TOM D’S SHADES OF JADE
Fran Gabel of Morriston, New Jersey responds to Bob Mueller’s Shades of Jades piece in the last Gazette with the following.
For more information on the shades of jade, there is a 7 page article in the magazine Traditional Home Sept. 2000,where Tom Dimitroff is interviewed. He also worked on setting up all the pieces of jade to be photographed.

Fran brings back some of my special memories. When I first began to collect Carder Steuben 10 or 11 years ago I came across this article in Traditional Home magazine. The photography with the colors of jade was brilliant. In the front piece of the article was a two full page centerfold picture of a number of ivory pieces, most with black decorations. The rest of the article contained a large number of other wonderful colorful jade selections. Captions such as “The creamy colors of beautiful, translucent jade glass have lured collectors for the past 100 years” and “Jade glass has a coy, seductive personality.” Then, a quote of Tom Dimitroff “In Glass Color is Chemistry.” When this article appeared in the summer of 2000 I met a dealer who suggested that I should or needed to travel to Corning before August because they, The Rockwell Museum, were about to dissemble the Carder collection, and in particular the Reifschlager gallery. So, in late July of 2000 I traveled to Corning on my maiden journey to see the heart and soul of Carder Steuben glass. I arrived and immediately headed to the gallery. It was a jewel case presentation of a limited number of examples of the best of the best of Carder’s creations, in museum type display cases with brilliant lighting, as contrasted with the rest of the typical exhibit space of tall cabinets poor lighting and great volumes of glass. I was beside myself with joy and emotion. I’d never witnessed such a collection of art displayed so well to its best advantage. I was moved; this was a transforming event to this collector and sparked my deep appreciation of Carder glass. I grieve the taking of this Reifschlager gallery apart and the subsequent stacking and cramming the brilliant Rockwell collection in a limited space at CMoG.

I had heard of Mr. Dimitroff found his name listed in the phone book. With some courage I called him and on the other end was a most gracious gentlemen who invited me over to sit on his front porch and took substantial time finding out my interest and where I was in my beginning year as a Carder collector. Tom took me up to his office or gallery, or whatever it may be called, to show me the wondrous things he had for sale. I was a kid in a candy shop. At the end of our visit I looked around his many tall cabinets housing many of the pieces he had for sale. And there, on the top of a cabinet, all by itself, was a large Ivory charger trimmed with a black rim. Simple, but yet striking and captivating. I asked Tom if it was for sale. Tom sort of hesitated, and then said “yes”. He explained that he likes to sit back at his desk, in his desk chair with his feet on his desk, and just admire this ivory piece way at the top of his cabinet. He brought the piece down. From the dusty price tag it was obvious he had, had the piece for some time. The deal was quickly sealed. Then I returned home with sugar plums of imagery in my mind from this, my first experience in Corning. When I got home I went to reread the article in “Traditional Home” magazine since I now had met the man who was behind the article. To my surprise and joy, there was my Ivory charger on the first page of the article, The Many Shades of Jade, serving as a eye appealing dramatic back drop to several other ivory Carder pieces.

As collectors there are certain pieces and moments that are special memories and links to our collecting. Well, this is my story and why this particular ivory charger is one of the backbones of my collection. Alan Shovers