End of August...you know what THAT means!

     The calm before the storm.  That is always the feeling that we merchants have the week before Street Fair.  Yes, dear reader, the annual end-of-summer tradition looms before us this coming weekend. 

     For the first time since 1980, we will be watching the world go by from the west side of the street.  We will be open Friday likely from 11:00 until about 5:00.   We realize that parking will quickly fill up, as Glassell will be blocked off from midnight on Thursday.  So if you are coming to shop Friday, know that your competition for available spots goes up exponentially.  Saturday we plan to also be open from 11-5, unless the band in front sends us packing.   We would love to see you if you are coming to the Street Fair, but call ahead to confirm we’re still open.  Sunday we will be closed.

      

   A GOOD TIME HAD BY ALL,  On Sunday August 15^th,  thirty three loyal A & P patrons gathered at the lovely PJ’s Abbey in Old Towne Orange for a wonderful afternoon of lunch, conversation, and learning about American Silver.

    After our lunch, Mom got us off to a great start by sharing with us how an antique powder box

 started her off to a lifetime, (and career) of collecting and selling antiques.

Bonnie shares her first silver antique. 

    She started her story with an anecdote about her early days as a Los Angeles Police Woman.  Working at the Lincoln Heights Jail, she recounted how there was a Trustee, (one of several inmates who was ‘trusted’ to provide labor for certain tasks around the jail) who shined shoes for loose change.  She noticed a certain little glass jar with a metal lid.   Knowing he was incarcerated, she asked, “Gee…where did you get that little jar?”  He was using it to hold the tips he had garnered.  He explained that there had been a house next to the jail which had been recently torn down.  He had been involved in its demolition, and had found it in the attic.  He kept it.  “You can have it, if you want!”  She went to the vending machine, bought him a pack of cigarettes, and traded him those very cigarettes for a Victorian era cut glass powder box with sterling silver lid from some forgotten lady’s vanity table.  The lid was manufactured by Unger Brothers, one of the premiere silver manufacturers of silver of the Art Nouveau era.

    The Silver Seminar continued as we looked at the source of early American silver, (melted down coins of Spanish, English and French origin), the method of manufacture, the influence of the Industrial Revolution on style and market, and the 1859 silver strike in Nevada as a source for new wealth and raw materials for Victorian era silver.

       Above is a view of some of the eye-candy we brought in as visual aids.  From left is a LOVE-ly water urn, manufactured by the Meriden Silver Company, courtesy of dear customer Deb Bui, a long time collector, and now friend.  In center is a circa 1890’s or ‘80’s tea kettle on stand, a Victorian centerpiece/epergne, and silver-plated  water pitcher sitting on a lovely English  oval footed gallery tea-waiter.  Long time customers the Mc Carthy’s were sitting nearby and when it was pointed out that the monogram on the tray included an “Mc” for the last name, they knew they had found the perfect tray for their tea set at home!  A generous size, it will now be treasured at a home that has long cared for silver.  To the right is a lovely champagne cooler, doubling as a vase with a bouquet of flowers gathered from the Thursday afternoon Farmer’s Market near the Plaza.  It reminds me of the opulent floral arrangements we had for our At Home events at Bullock’s when I worked in the Dining Circle of the Santa Ana store.  (Don’t fall in love with the champagne cooler…it found a home this past Saturday as a wedding present for a young couple.  What a great gift!)

    What’s next on the A & P horizon?  Vacation looms ahead for this writer!  I will be in Corning, New York attending the Carder Steuben Collector’s Club Symposium during the later part of the month.  The week of September 21^st-25^th we may be keeping shorter hours as Mom keeps the home fires burning, but will work in a little fun of her own.  Please call her at the shop (714) 997-1370 to confirm she will be there before you come shopping that week.  Also, we will be CLOSED Wednesday September 15^th to attend the 100^th anniversary celebration of Los Angeles Police Women at the luncheon of the Legendary Ladies at the LAPD Academy in Los Angeles.  We apologize for missing you, but hope to catch you another day soon!

Afternoon Tea

         English Bone China tea set, circa 1940's-50's 

shown with Mosser stackable cake stands

  As we have already mentioned to many of our customers, this year marks the 30th anniversary of A & P Collectables moving to North Glassell Street in Orange, California.  Being that this is our FIRST blog, I thought it would be fun to look through some of our old A & P Reporter newsletters and re-print a timeless article or two.
          Some of the articles were specific to merchandise that had recently arrived, which might cause confusion over a reader being disappointed that we didn't still have that set of Repousse Sterling that I wrote about years ago.   Or that that Rachel Ashwell's show on cable featured a trip to A & P.
          Yet, there are some timeless chestnuts which we'll be sharing again.  Such are these articles written in 1999 and 2001.
          First off is a discussion on holding your own tea party.  What fun ways of entertaining these are! 
            Enjoy as we turn the clock back to the summer of 1999.

     Let's Have a Tea!

    For some reason, spring and summer just seems the perfect time for a Tea Party!

    Who among us hasn't attended a Tea, or know someone who has?  Having and attending Teas has become an indispensable way to visit with dear friends.  Popular themes for Teas include celebrating birthdays, an out-of-town visit by Cousin Anna Belle, or a bridal or baby shower.

    Old Towne Orange is blessed with three great tea establishments and each has it's own personality. [editor's 2010 note: we now have but one tea room, but it is LOVELY!  Paris In A Cup is on South Glassell and are now planning their annual Evening In Paris event to benefit breast cancer research. 

http://www.parisinacup.com/caofev.html]  A favorite way to "walk off" the surprisingly filling scones and sandwiches, of course, is a shopping trip through our wonderful stores.  (DO be a dear, and bring your pals to A & P, won't you?)  In addition to taking home a souvenir of your afternoon, you can also eavesdrop on your friends as they oooh and ahhhh over items that you might acquire for their Christmas present.  It's never too early to start shopping for Christmas you know!

     But as fun as the Tearooms are [is], it's really fun to have your own tea, and easy, too.  Plus, you get to Play Dishes!  This was one of the big reasons I had a Birthday Tea for Mom last year.  We held it in her garden and she got to use all the neat stuff she's adopted from the shop over the last 18 years.

      In planning your tea table, gather all your favorite cups, saucers, plates and silver.  Don't be afraid to mix and match patterns and use glass plates with china cups or vice-verse.  You'll be surprised at just how "Martha" your spread will look when everything's together.

     For Mom's tea, we set up one table for food, and another one for the tea service, (silver quadruple-plate of COURSE!)  We also had ample pitchers for water and iced tea, since it was a warm day.  We let guests serve themselves, although you might delegate the pouring of tea to a special friend.  We borrowed various wicker side tables from the house and draped linen parlor cloths and runners over them.  Guests were scattered in the garden in small groups, but everyone was close enough to participate in conversation.

      The sky's the limit for menu selection.  You can consult many cookbooks on the popular subject of Tea, or adapt your own favorite recipes.

    For tea sandwiches, we made a variety of spreads, and used dyed pullman loaves for the bread.  Dyed bread?  Why of course!  Back when your mother or grandmother gave Teas, it was quite common.  Does one have to make their own?  Heavens NO!  Too much work!  Ask your bakery, such as Poul's Bakery in Orange [still on Tustin Street between Collins and Mayfair] for colored pullman loaves, (which is just white bread, dyed).   You can also ask them to horizontally slice it for you.

     Place the bread in the freezer before spreading, then cut off the crust when you're ready to fill them, (saving the crust for bread pudding scraps, if you wish.)  Spread your bread, top with another long slice, then cut into shapes with a bread knife or cookie cutters.  You can also have 2 or 3 colors of bread, and alternate spreads, tops and bottoms.  You'll be surprised at how many compliments you'll get...but make sure the fillings are good!

     Another mainstay to the tea are scones.  [I'll post my easy recipe on another blog].  For Devon clotted cream you can make your own, or buy it and your lemon curd from a British grocer.  Just steps away from A & P, our neighbors at Antiques Antiques now carry an assortment of delicacies from England. [Another sad note:  Barbara and Adam Varrow closed their store Antiques Antiques years ago and now live in England.  The location is now home to Perfect Circle cupcake bakery.]

     To finish off the menu, you may consider having little Petit Fours, chocolate truffles or other small sweet.  

   And it goes without saying that you want to provide good tea.  Be sure to plan for milk and sugar.  You may select either cube, if you have tongs to play with), or granulated [sugar].

      Once the menu is planned, make a check list for all serving pieces you'll need.  Most likely you will have almost everything you need, or know someone who does.  But in the event you don't, remember we can help you with an assortment of Entertaining Necessities, such as sterling sugar tongs, stackable glass cake stands, silverplate trays, mix and match plates and of course, teapots, cups and saucers!

     And if you need a little extra help coming up with your own menu, you might borrow one.  In our April 2001 edition we printed this:
      Amy Shows how it's done!

     While paging through our copy of Amy Vanderbilt's Complete Cookbook circa 1961, with illustrations by some guy named Andrew Warhol, (TRUTH!), I thought you would like to see what Amy would serve her guests:

Buttered Black walnut bread (page 86)

Assorted Small Sandwiches

Cinnamon Toast

tea-sugar-cream-milk-lemon slices

****

Bridesmaid' Tea

Small Chicken Sandwiches

Small Water-cress Sandwiches (p.536)

Petits Fours (p. 116)

Chocolate Pound Cake (p.120)

Tea-Sugar-Cream-Lemon Slices-Coffee 

     We hope you enjoyed this stroll down memory lane.  In the days to come we will have many more postings.  It is hoped that a blog will allow for easy distribution of what's new (or OLD) in the shop and keep you up on events in the Plaza.  

    We will also have pictures and a full report from this coming Sunday's A & P Luncheon and Silver Seminar at PJ's Abbey.  We still have a few places at the table left if you would like to join us.  Prepaid tickets that are picked up at the store are just 36.00, or 39.00 if you mail in your check.  Call us at the shop at (714) 997-1370 or email us at ap4tiques@aol.com

    Thanks for reading! 

       

    

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