Wandering through a pawn shop with the lovely Mrs. W. this week-end, I saw an Edwin M. Knowles plate featuring a smiling Julie Andrews as Maria from “The Sound of Music”. Aha! I exclaimed to myself, the perfect plate for me to use for my office lunches, when I bring in the family leftovers. I happily carried away my find (along with a “certificate of authenticity”, a dissertation on the gripping soul-searching painter T. Crnkovich went through when producing his masterpiece, and a hand-dandy little wooden plate display stand.) Imagine my chagrin when my colleague at work warned me of the most dire consequences if I stuck that plate in the microwave with lobster newburg on it, or allowed any of my food to come in contact with its collectible surface, since a painted plate might have lead on it.
I did a search on the web, and came up with a few pages offering sage advice such as “pregnant women should not drink out of ceramic cups” etc… which didn’t seem to apply to my particular situation. I thought I could find the “Edwin M. Knowles” website to see if they had any blinking red warnings, but searching for “Knowles” on the web brings up offers to buy more samples of this art form, or else websites promising me, in exchange for my credit card number, naked pictures of Beyoncé Knowles, puchritudinous singer from the pop group “Destiny’s Child”.
So I once again turn to The Teeming Millions. Is my plate destined to remain in intact splendor in a corner of my work desk, or can I empty a can of Chef Boy-ar-dee on the austrian alps and cook away? Is it possible that my plate has lead-free paint? If it does have lead in it, what are the odds that the lead will get in my food?
Boy, is my face red! You’re right, JillGat in her Staff Report had said <<I recommend simply testing your dishes to see if they contain lead. Lead test kits–swabs that turn red if the surface being tested contains lead–can be found in home improvement/building supply stores.>>
I’ll just toddle off to Home Depot and see what I can find.
Having just read the link to JillGat’s column, I gotta ask - “How long have these handy-dandy lead testing kits been available” ??
Flashback to 1985, I’m living in this decrepit old house that the previous owners had um, renovated, every now and then, I spot my toddler (then about a year old) in the window, looking outside, happily munching. Well, since I hadn’t given him anything to munch on, I check it out, and find, paint chips.
So, I called the health department and various other governmental services to ask about how to test said paint chips, figuring I could simply bring the offending items to some guy in a white coat and he’s be able and willing to help me.
Not so fast, I was told. THEY had to come to you. Why? Something about insuring ‘proper collection procedures’. What? I’m going to ‘doctor’ it up first?
ok, ok, so, let’s go for it. Not so fast, I was again told. The wait to have some one come out and test the substance was currently at 6 months.
I didn’t want to wait that long, needless to say (and no, I wasn’t really encouraging my toddler to eat paintchips), so, instead checked the toddler.
I would have far preferred buying some damn kit from the local hardware than holding my son down for a blood test. :mad:
a) wring, I haven’t had time yet to go to the store and find the afore-mentioned lead test kit, but if I find one I’ll post in the thread.
b) manhattan, UncleBeer, what are you babbling about now? In Switzerland it’s traditional at fancy dinners to serve white wine in a pewter carafe (“channe”) and drink it out of pewter cups. Here are a couple of pictures:
I sent paint chips from our house to the state scientific lab and they tested them for me. They gave me the level of lead present too, which the swabs don’t do (you should be able to find the swabs at like home depot). For more information about lead paint, check your local HUD office.
Jill
Thanks, that wasn’t offered as a solution in 1986. I had my son tested instead (lead levels indicated no sign of contamination, thanks), and moved out of that house shortly afterwards. It infuriated me, tho’ that instead of testing the paint chips, I had to have my son poked. (he’s 17 now, and fine - well, he may not be after I catch up with him today, but that’s another thread topic )
Well, the lead test kit purchased at my local home improvement store has confirmed the awful truth - the surface of my beautiful plate contains lead. The swab only turned a light pink instead of bright red, so I might still use it on special occasions, but for day-to-day stuff I will resign myself to some boring dinnerware.
UncleBeer - not appreciating the beauty of the alpenhorn and the yodel is one of the true marks of the cultural philistine.
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