“I saw those red stemmed goblets one day when I came into work at Hemphill Wells and I just had a fit over them!” (“Had a fit,” is Southern Belle slang for “I absolutely adored them, Dahling!”)

My Belgian living room is cast in a soft glow from stained glass lamps. Frank Sinatra croons from our Pandora radio. With my phone tucked into my ear, I lean forward and grasp a heavy red goblet, swirl the French wine, and take a sip. I continue to jot down notes.

“Did you ever actually, use the glasses, Grandma?” I cock my head to the side, stare at the couch as if she’s sitting right in front of me. The cardinal sin of any beautiful piece of crystal, silver, or china, is that you never take them out of the cabinet. I’m trying to break that cycle.

“Oh yes,” she tells me. “Years ago, I’d host Christmas dinner for the whole family. I’d always use those red glasses and my crystal,” she coughs a bit, but continues, “of course, those days were a long time ago. Everyone eventually moved from Lubbock you know. Even me. . . “ and she trails off.    

I smile and nod into the phone. I have a Yankee candle (ordered off of Amazon.de!) lit on the coffee table. The candlelight twinkles from the curves and edges of the glass, reflecting the journey these glasses, and our members of our family, have taken.

A few years back, my hubs and I sang along with Cowboy Mouth at the Granada Theater on Greenvile Avenue in Dallas. After placing our drink order – a beer glass and a hefty goblet were passed over the counter in exchanged for a fistfull of cash. As I held the glass in my hand – staring at the renovated, but preserved theatre, I realized the ‘old’ had become trendy again.

“I’ve got goblets just like this in my Grandma’s china cabinet at home!,” I shouted to my husband, and that’s what prompted me to start using the glasses I’d never used before.  

As I research this post, I’m shocked by the number of ‘vintage red stemmed goblets’ that are available online and for reasonable prices. Want to add a little edge to your next girl’s night or dinner party? Order yourself some, and make someone’s grandma proud.