Red Wing also accepted custom orders. These orders featured Hotel or Restaurant China (Empire Shape) decorated with a unique design made exclusively for that customer. Four such designs are known to exist.
Sweden House Years: 1960s
Red Wing reference books refer to this pattern as “Sweden House”, but the name used by the restaurants is “Sveden House”. Sveden House was a chain of smorgasbord (buffet) restaurants with a Scandinavian theme. Sveden House restaurants were located around Minnesota and perhaps in surrounding states. Sveden House plates had a Scandinavian-looking house above an abstract floral design. The artwork was done in two shades of blue against a white background, with a blue trim line around the rim. The same blue trim line was used on other pieces such as the coffee cup. Because Sveden House was a self-serve buffet style restaurant only a few basic pieces were needed. 6.5” and 9.5”plates, cups and saucers were apparently the only pieces ordered by Sveden House.
Diamond Jim Years: 1960s
Diamond Jim’s was a nightclub located in Mendota, MN, a suburb of the Twin Cities just south of the Mississippi River. There may also have been at least one location in California, according to a Red Wing collector who recalls working at a Diamond Jim’s there many years ago. The artwork on Diamond Jim plates featured an antique automobile. A different auto appeared on each of the five plate sizes. The auto was dark pink and black against a white background. The entire rim of each plate (not just a trim line) was dark pink. Cups and saucers and possibly other pieces had the same dark pink rims. The antique auto motif has great appeal to collectors, and the limited scope of production makes Diamond Jim plates difficult to find and highly sought.
Thunderbird Years: 1960s
The Thunderbird Motel was located in Bloomington, MN near the old Metropolitan Stadium, now the site of the Mall of America. A small number of Hotel or Restaurant dinner plates decorated with a totem pole design in black and rust on a white background have been found. These plates had glaze codes on the back rather than the standard Red Wing ink stamp. It is believed these are test or sample plates made for the Thunderbird Motel. Apparently no order was placed and the design did not go into production.
Sheraton ?? Years: 1960s
Four Hotel or Restaurant dinner plates with an “S” in the design are known to exist. It is speculated these were made as samples for the Sheraton hotel chain. The design featured a large “S” below three flowers and several leaves. The design on each plate was applied as a single color. The artwork on two of the plates was greenish-gold; the other two plates had pink artwork. The background color for one plate in each color was white, the other was beige fleck. Like the Thunderbird sample plates, these plates had glaze codes on the back. The samples apparently did not result in an order.
