Back to Mildred

Time to get back to my "friend" Mildred again.
"Mildred" as you remember is the name of the china dishes I inheirted from my Father's Mother. I have a fairly large collection of it so I consider myself very blessed.

Mildred was manifactured by a company called "Mount Clemmons Pottery."
Which seemed odd to me because it was china not pottery.....but so be it. Possibly it isn't china?

I found this bit of information regarding the company that made not only Mildred but many more patterns of china and other such things off of a website:

"Mount Clemens Pottery, Mount Clemens, Michigan 1915-1987 - By 1964, the company was turning out 240,000 pieces of dinnerware per day. This company was bought by SS Kresge in 1920 and made semi-porcelain dinnerware and a solid color ware which came in solid dark green, blue and pink. The ´Mildred´ dinnerware pattern so sought today was designed at Mt Clemens.
In 1965, the Kresge company sold the Mount Clemens Pottery. The new owners (Chase and Chase) operated it under the name Jamestown China Company. Ownership passed to Action Industries of Cheswick, Pennsylvania in 1983."

I am pretty sure that my Grandma Ayres' bought hers at the Kresge's store, since we had one in my home town of Hannibal Mo. which is where my Grandparents lived most all of their lives until their deaths.

As a child I remember going in there to shop with my Mother. I can still recall how the store looked inside even.

It's interesting the memories we hold inside of us even after we are older.

The memories I have from just these simple dishes is invaluable. The dishes may not even be worth much money wise.......yet they are priceless to me.

My Grandmother's China ....Pt.#1

One day in the Spring I was preparing for a special "Tea" I was going to host for a Missionary from China that was in visiting a good friend of mine.

I was digging in my China Cabinet searching for which china setting I should use.


Upon seeing some of my "Grandma Ayres's" china that I had in there. Which I rarely use, for fear of BREAKING them. These dishes are so precious to me.

Somewhere in my decision making...I came to the conclusion that "life is short" and I probably remembered reading one of those random e-mails I received that spoke about saving up things.

And then you die and people you love and left behind FIND your precious "wrapped up under ware from France that you bought on a trip and were 'saving' for some special occasion" and other such things along that line.
You know what I mean. Because you get the e-mails too.

Honestly, they make you think....for about 5 minutes.
I am sure you yourselves are "saving" things for later.

Really though someone PLEASE tell me...."WHEN" is later???

"Why hoard up all these pretty things that are so precious to me when I can use them to BLESS other's along the way?" I began to think to myself.....
So then it began....and I got on a "roll."


I pulled out what I had readily stored in my China cabinet just for "display" and then proceeded to climb up on a chair and dig down more pieces that I had stored in my upper kitchen cabinets. They were still carefully wrapped in the newspaper I had transported them back to Baton Rouge in.

It felt good unwrapping them. Like seeing an old friend actually. Because when I first was given the dishes I religiously used the teacups and saucers to drink tea out of.

Then the imaginable happened and I broke a saucer one day...just droped it by accident and it scared me. Because "What IF" I broke another piece, then another??

That is when I put it all away....and only displayed parts of it in my safe China cabinet.

We do that sometimes when things scare us.....it puts FEAR into us and then we basically "close up shop."That my friends isn't always the BEST thing to do. But it makes us feel safe doesn't it?
However it isn't REAL safely now is it??

Next time.....I will write more on this subject....and tell you more about the dishes that were my Grandmothers. They are beautiful.
And probably some of the only "nice things" she ever owned in her entire life.

What an HONOR it is for me to possess these simple yet elegant dishes.
"Miss Priss"...who was sitting at the table with me while I was drinking a cup of tea one day out of one of my Grandma's china teacups.

She will inherit all these dishes one day...but will she understand how "valuable" they are?? No I don't think she will.
Mainly because she doesn't have the "connection" with the dishes like I do. Sadly, she never met her Great Grandmother.

I can't tell you all of this story, nor the history of these dishes in this one sitting...
I will write more next time...plus I want to visit with you again.