Fundraiser Tea at the former Hudson Home

The fundraiser Afternoon Tea benefiting Little Angels school in Nigeria, held at the former home of J.L. Hudson, took place Sunday afternoon, February 15, 2015.  

It was a bitter cold afternoon [-6 degrees] but that didn't stop over 50 guests from coming out to enjoy Afternoon Tea, hear a program about J.L. Hudson and his magnificent department store, and support a worthy cause. Pictured below is the program cover from the event.

I had the privilege of meeting some of the lovely people who read my blog, and I'm happy to report I received an e-mail from Sister Rosemarie this morning informing me that $1,594.00 was raised for the mission project.  Heartfelt thanks to everyone who attended and made this event a huge success.

The buffet tea and informal self-guided tour of the former Hudson home didn't begin until 2:00 p.m., but I arrived at 11:00 a.m. to set-up.  I used my two silver tea sets, and positioned one on each end of the buffet table. Back in the day, I'm sure J.L. Hudson's household had sterling silver tea sets, but my silver plate sets sparkled just like the real deal! ;-)  The set on the right was my mother's that she received for her 25th Wedding Anniversary.

I collected the clear glass snack sets when I had aspirations of opening a tea room.  They worked perfectly for the event.

Pictured next to me is my sweet girlfriend, Lori.  She poured tea from one of the sets. My girlfriend, Sandy, poured from the other.  Unfortunately I didn't get a photo of her.

Lori and her hubby, Rick.  He worked just as hard as Lori, gathering up snack sets from guests when they finished eating.  I'm so grateful for wonderful friends!

Living room set up and waiting for guests to arrive.

Ladies registering at the entry table. In the distance the beautiful oak library that the Sisters use as a chapel is visible.

~ My display of Hudson memorabilia. ~

~ My girlfriend's daughter, Kim. ~

  ~ A fund raising committee member ~

Two ladies enjoying tea together. The lady on the right was a former Hudson's employee at Northland Shopping Center.

Guests beginning to assemble in the living room for the program which started at 3:00 p.m.  

Sister Rosemarie gave her opening remarks and explained what the proceeds from the event went towards.

Then it was my turn to share highlights from the life of J.L. Hudson and his beloved department store, which in the 1960's was second only to Macy's N.Y.C. store.  Marshall Field's in Chicago was number three.  The guests were wonderfully attentive.  

One of the fundraising committee members gave me the adorable china Portmeirion teapot pin pictured below.

The fundraising committee sold items in the solarium, and I bought the china teacup below as a keepsake of the day.

It was a wonderful afternoon, and I'm so glad I had the privilege of being a part of it.  I like to think J.L. Hudson would have been very pleased that such a worthy event was held in his former home.

Sunday Reflection...

Friday evening and yesterday [Valentine's Day] my hubby and I attended a Marriage Conference titled Love and Respect.  Dr. Eggerichs is an international speaker, author of several books, and for 20 years he and his wife, Sarah, have been presenting their marriage conference to help improve marriages and reverse the spiraling number of divorces.

The conference takes its name out of the Book of Ephesians chapter 5:33 where the Apostle Paul says, "Each one of you also must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband." [NIV] I'm so thankful the Bible gives us a blueprint for a happy marriage. 

The auditorium was filled with over 400 couples.

[Emerson & Sarah Eggerichs]

In June Jerry and I will celebrate our 49th wedding anniversary.  It's easy to think about the things that make me feel loved, but I needed to be reminded of the things that make Jerry feel respected. Marriage is an ongoing cycle - His love motivates her respect.  Her respect motivates his love. What a great way to spend Valentine's Day, and far better than a box of chocolates!

May God bless your week!

Happy Valentine's Day!

No matter how old a person is, there's always excitement when a Valentine comes in the mail. Yesterday I received the loveliest hand crafted Valentine that I just have to share with you. 

Two identical ladies [that remind me of Marie Antoinette] are glued together at the head and shoulders to form a matching front and back, but they aren't glued at the bottom, which allows them to be a stand up figure.  

Notice the cupid above her head pouring hearts out of his basket into the teacup held by the other cupid.  The lady holds a sign on one side that says "Happy Valentine's Day", and on the other "I'm pouring you a little cup of Love."

My friend inserted a handmade, heart-shaped teabag, into a paper envelope that matched the Valentine lady, and placed it between the two sides of the lady's flowing skirt. How creative.  It made my day!

Happy Valentine's Day!  I hope everyone is a recipient and giver of love on this special day we'll celebrate tomorrow. 

Hudson's Memorabilia Collection

When I began sharing Hudson's memories with Angela at Tea With Friends blog back in 2011, I had no idea it would take me down such interesting paths.

I've been asked to share my new-found passion with twelve different groups, which has introduced me to many new friends; I've met Mike Hauser, co-author of Hudson's Detroit's Legendary Department Store on numerous occasions; I've met J.L. Hudson, Jr., president of the store from 1961-1985, and also grand-nephew of the founder; and I've had the opportunity to tour J.L Hudson's [the store's founder] former home.  Sometimes I feel like pinching myself to make sure it's all really happening.

As I've already posted, this coming Sunday I'll be doing a Hudson's presentation in J.L. Hudson's former home on East Boston Blvd.  The Sisters, Home Visitors of Mary presently live in the house owned by the Catholic Archdiocese of Detroit, and the Afternoon Tea and presentation is a fundraiser for their extended work in Nigeria. 

Even though I've presented my program numerous times, I've been studying diligently this week so I'll dot every 'i' and cross every 't' perfectly. I wouldn't want to say anything incorrect in the founder's home! ;-)  The history of J.L. Hudson and his magnificent store is so interesting. It's almost as good as reading about tea!  Below are the two books that have been great resources.

My car's packed with my display case, podium, tea urns, and dishware ready to take over to the house later today.

Since I've been doing a series of posts about my collections, I decided to share some of my Hudson's memorabilia today.  For the most part I've limited my collecting to things that would have been used in the Mezzanine Tea Room, 13th floor Dining Rooms, and the store's other eateries.  Then I broadened my collection to include what ladies would have worn when they dined at Hudson's.

Mike Hauser began my collection with silverware used at Hudson's tea room and restaurants. Everything except the long-handled teapot [top right] were duplicates in his collection. They all have Hudson's name engraved on them.  The teapot somehow strayed to Texas, but through E-bay I brought it back to Michigan!

The 1947 Mezzanine Tea Room menu below was featured in Angela's Dainty Dining book. After it was published, she sent the menu to me.  I have since acquired two more - 1942 and 1952.  A pot of tea was .15 cents and a chicken salad sandwich was .35 cents!  Duncan Hines came to dine at Hudson's in 1947 and loved Hudson's Tea Room.  He declared their chicken pot pie was outstanding!

The basement store tea room transitioned to a cafeteria in 1947.  Diana Ross, lead singer of the Supremes was the first African-American employee to work in the cafeteria as a bus girl in 1962.

I have two menus from the 13th floor Georgian Room Restaurant.  The one pictured is dated 1929, and the other one isn't dated.

Below are menus from 1948 and 1953 used in the Georgian and Early American Dining Rooms.

In 1958 the Georgian and Early American Rooms were combined to create the new Riverview Dining Room.  Below is an undated menu from the Riverview Dining Room.

I've bought several dishes backstamped J.L. Hudson's because I was told they were used in the tea room or restaurants.  Then later I found out they were merchandise sold on the china floor, but they're still nice to have in my collection.

I got a great break last year, however, [thanks again to my friend, Angela] when I was able to purchase three Syracuse china platters on E-bay that truly were used in Hudson's dining rooms. Syracuse China featured the platters [Dorsett pattern] in their 1946 catalog, and the photo was taken in Hudson's 13th floor Early American Dining Room. It took a lot of research and patience to obtain a photocopy of the catalog page because Syracuse China sold to Libbey Glass in 1995. But persistence paid off, and I'm happy to now have it in my collection along with the platters.

I love this 1880's trade card from Hudson's.

                                  

My hubby gave me the signed and numbered painting of Hudson's [below] for Christmas 2013.  It was painted by Jim Williams.

I was happy to obtain a 1929 copy of "The Minuteman" publication earlier this year, where the back cover was dedicated in large part to Hudson's restaurants.

Below is the Detroit News/Free Press edition from the store's  implosion in 1998. What a sad day! Only in Detroit would such an iconic building and historic landmark be demolished.  In the 1960's the 25 story building was the second largest department store in the United States, with only Macy's main store in New York City surpassing it.

I have vintage postcards, store directories, 'Hudsonian' magazines [in-house employee publication], employee handbook, employee recognition pin, two Hudson's videos, Hudson shopping bags and boxes, and other memorabilia that I won't include in today's post, but I do want to share some of the items I've acquired that ladies would have worn when they dined at Hudson's.

This box of Hudson's hosiery had to come home with me when I discovered the color of the hose was "teatime."

Two pair of brand new gloves from Hudson's with original price tags - the ecru lace gloves sold for $1 and the leather gloves $4.  I also have a strand of Hudson's pearls and a 1930's tapestry evening purse [not pictured].

I love my hats from Hudson's.  Millinery was sold on the first and seventh floors. The turquoise hat has it's original price tag of $3.99

You will probably remember the large Hudson's hat box I purchased when KrisTea's went out of business last month.

And the two hats I recently acquired at Tyme Well Spent tea room.

Lastly a fur cape from Hudson's.

So now you have a sneak peek at most of the items in my collection that will be displayed at the former Hudson home this coming Sunday.  I'll be sure to tell you all about it next week, complete with photos.

Hudson's Memorabilia Birthday Gifts

Yesterday I met some of the gals I attended high school with for dinner - always a fun time! My girlfriend, Sandy, knows I collect Hudson's department store memorabilia - especially things that pertain to the store's eateries - so part of my birthday gift from her were two items she found while antiquing.  The timing is perfect since I will be doing a Hudson's presentation this Sunday.

The first item is a box of crayons that children would have received to color with while they waited for their 'Tommy Tucker Special' [or whatever menu option they chose].

Hudson's sold more than one-half million commodities in its 49 acres of shopping space, from jeweled dog collars to baby bumble bees preserved in soya sauce and sugar!   So it's not surprising that they also sold hard milled bar soap from West Germany - the other item Sandy gave me. It was important to be squeaky clean and dressed up to shop at downtown Hudson's!   I'm so happy to add these items to my collection.

And a pretty tea themed birthday card too!

I already had the Mary Had a Little Lamb Hall pitcher that held milk or soda pop accompanying children's meals. And in December I acquired a 1953 and 1954 Christmas Carol Goodie Book.  My collection continues to grow.   

What's your favorite childhood department store?  Do you collect any of its memorabilia?

Tea Angel Collection

Continuing on with the series of tea collections, I'm sharing my tea angels today. This collection  is considerably smaller than my aprons, tea towels/linens, and jewelry. It consists of just seven angel figurines, but with E-bay it has the potential of increasing.

~ Below is the shelf where they all reside ~

~ My first tea angel was a gift - a 2004 Willow Tree angel, called Angel of the Kitchen ~ 

~ The second tea angel is Jim Shore's 'Angel of Hospitality' ~

~ The third tea angel is 'Time for Tea' by Betty Singer ~

 ~ The fourth tea angel is from the Heavenly Guardians Series ~

~ The fifth tea angel has no markings ~

~ The sixth tea angel is Jim Shore's 'Giving Has It's Own Reward' ~

The seventh tea angel has no markings.  She has wings even though they're not clearly visible in the photograph. 

Do you have any tea angels?