President Reagan's Service set

This image from the Lenox Collection shows the china that the Reagan's ordered to replace the set that had been used since Lady Bird Johnson purchased it in 1967. First Lady Nancy Reagan chose red, her favorite color, for the focal color of the china. Lenox designers even took samples to the White House and viewed them in the dining room under candlelight to make sure the tone was just right. The $209,508 cost of the 4,372-piece set initially caused a stir, which President Reagan dubbed the "china crisis". However, since private donations, not federal money, funded the purchase, the criticism quieted. Still, this demonstrates how important public perception can be.