CNN
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It was during the George W. Bush administration that it was first noticed in earnest, and the massive state dinners of the Barack Obama era only solidified the situation: The White House was desperately in need of crystal.
Not crystal balls, not crystal chandeliers – just crystal, the kind one drinks from.
The need next fell to then-first lady Melania Trump, as first ladies are the ones ultimately tasked with assessing and acquiring needed items for preservation or continuity of tradition at the White House. However, three people with knowledge of the glassware discussions confirm that, though Trump was aware of the situation, she declined to carry out the suggested request. CNN reached out to Trump for comment and did not receive a response.
“The last crystal that was acquired for the White House for a full state service was during the Nixon era,” said Stewart McLaurin, president of the White House Historical Association, the nonprofit organization established in 1961 by then-first lady Jacqueline Kennedy to preserve the People’s House. The Reagans did have new stemware made as a gift to the White House in the form of 130 pieces of Steuben glassware, but it was deemed only for private entertaining in the residence.
As the Bidens begin moving the White House to a more normal social schedule after years of pandemic-related restrictions, the lack of crystal is becoming an ever more pressing issue.
McLaurin said the need for crystal on the state level, approximately 120-160 settings, is just as important as every other element of a special event at the White House, as are the china and silver. There is plenty of china, apparently, and enough silver to set a few tables for VIP service. Using the real White House sterling silver collections for larger dinners can be a gamble as forks, spoons and knives tend to go missing as souvenirs of the meal – slipped into coat pockets or dropped discreetly into purses.
Today, when a state dinner is held – whether on a small scale, as was the final Trump state dinner, for Australia in the Rose Garden; or a big blowout, such as the last Obama state dinner, the administration’s 14th such event that had more than 350 guests in a chandelier-lit tent on the South Lawn – the glassware is rented.
“It’s like going to the Met Gala in a Rent the Runway gown,” said one person, who formerly worked in the White House social secretary’s office. “Here you are at the White House, but you’re drinking from glasses you could get from the local caterer. Some people don’t think it’s a big deal, but some people really, really do.”
The design of presidential crystal, much like presidential china, is a hallmark of the aesthetic of a particular administration.
First lady Florence Harding picked wine and champagne glasses, made in West Virginia, with a gold dragon motif wrapped around an “H.” Eleanor Roosevelt ordered glasses with an engraved American eagle insignia. Kennedy’s were minimalist, nothing etched. Patricia Nixon’s family set of glassware was made in France and featured a “Chantilly” pattern.
The designs of this little known and understood presidential tradition of decorative items “gifted” to the White House collection often heralds back to a touchstone of a president’s origin story. For instance, the Obama china features bands of “Kailua Blue,” a nod to Barack Obama’s Hawaiian roots.
However, it has now been decades since a full set of crystal has been commissioned in a similar fashion.
McLaurin said it is the job of the historical association to locate need and to advise an incoming first lady’s office of what it may want to consider as a legacy item.
“It is not…
Read More: A crystal-clear issue: The White House is in desperate need of new glassware