Dinnerware + Flatware set?

dinnerware sets service for 8 image

Q. I'm planning on buying a dinnerware and flatware set service for 8, i'm willing to spend around $200. I typically want a "casual" set, nothing too fancy, but nothing too cheap. Any suggestions?

Answer
In 1972, I got Fraser's 18% chromium nickel flatware made in Germany. It was called (spelling unclear in my old note) Cromargan or Kromargan stainless steel and at that time was the only good stainless steel flatwear that you could monogram (I was probably mistaken). It was $12 for a 5 piece place setting, and people wondered why I wasn't asking for silverplate at that price (was it ever that inexpensive?).

30 years later, there is hardly a scratch, and the pieces still hold up to digging into hard ice cream just fine. Lasted 23 years longer than the marriage. Thank goodness I never got around to sending it to Germany to have it monogramed (stamped)!

In the meantime, along the way, I inherited my grandmother's silverplate, so I have the best of both worlds. I'm really glad that I stuck up for the stainless flatwear.

As for the dinnerware, I started out with heavy Pfaltzcraft, which held the food nice and warm, but took up alot of space. Moved to Corelle, just the opposite, and now have a mixture of white Corelle and "new" colorful Fiesta ware. The nearby Goodwill displays complete sets of great-looking dinnerware all the time.

What comprises a 45 piece china dinnerware set?

tampanorma

Answer
I would assume it would be something along the lines of
8 Cups, saucers, bread plates, dinner plates and dessert bowls, then a jug, meat plates, Salt and Pepper or serving plates. Each service is different, you would need to ask the supplier. Some are 6 serves with coffee mugs included.

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I found a bowl full of fuzzy mold in my kitchen - should I just throw the whole thing away?

dinnerware sets service for 8 image

Paranormal

It's a cheap ceramic bowl but then again it is part of a cheap ceramic dinnerware set (service for 8 = $19.95).

Answer
Nah just scrape out the mold and wash the bowl. If it were a wooden or plastic bowl I would trash it but not ceramic or glass. If you have allergies you should be careful not to breathe in the mold spores. I usually use a piece of newspaper to scrape it into a plastic grocery sack so I can tie it closed. Not to imply that I often find mold in my house but my kids have been known to leave gross bowls in their room.

dinnerware and drinkware: should I get sets of 8 or 12?

Delphine F

I am soon buying new sets of dinnerware and drinkware. Should I get sets of 8 or 12? My family is composed of my husband, myself, and our 16 months old son, and we dont entertain very often.

Answer
Are you purchasing very expensive items? Investing in settings for twelve will carry you in good stead for many years (unless it's Melmac, there will be breakage) and you can always pass it on to the next generation. How big is your extended family? Lots of things to consider, but I suggest service for 8 in a moderate price range; don't break the bank......your taste may change sooner than you think.

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Combination of questions about dishes?

dinnerware sets service for 8 image

guitarsolo

I love these dishes from Target but cannot afford service for 8. I had the idea to mix either plain brown or white plates in with it to lower cost (perhaps melamine material)
Here is the link: http://www.target.com/Botanical-Dinnerware-Collection/dp/B0011YUIYM/qid=1231811742/ref=br_1_16/177-3016963-4603901?ie=UTF8&node=15344791&frombrowse=1&pricerange=&index=tgt-mf-mv&field-browse=15344791&rank=pmrank&rh=&page=2

1) Would the melamine idea even work? Would it be tacky?
2) Having a hard time finding a brown that matches, any suggestions?
3) Can I mix square plates with round or no?

I know it's a ton of questions but I am concerned too because my mom told me stoneware (which is what those dishes are) chips easily and will show white underneath. So, your dishes will look crappy in a year or so. That leaves me wondering what my options are as I like a lot of the melamine sets at Target.
Comments and suggestions please =) Thank you in advance!
I meant to say that the plates are earthenware, sorry!

Answer
If you have your heart set on those dishes i would consider using white underneath and using a napkin as an accent on colour. Say the green or the tan colour. Or freshen it up with a green plate underneath. I would definitely NOT go the melamine, it is a little tacky. There are really no hard and fast rules but generally round and square together i would say no, it doesnt look right.

My honest advice would be to consider a crisp pure white dinner setting. White can be casual or very elegant. With white other colour dishes can be used as an accent. Over time your taste will change and white never goes out of style. White looks beautiful on a christmas table with a white linen cloth teamed with either silver or gold, and looks just as lovely at a bbq as it does a formal dinner.

Choose a brand that you can add pieces to as this gives you the best opportunity to extend your setting and also replace any pieces that may get broken over time. I'm not sure what country your in (im in Australia) but you could try a brand like Maxwell Williams. You can buy a classic basic dinner set and a huge variety of all white matching single pieces are always available. You can add things later like noodle bowls, serving platters, jugs, S & P shakers, dipping bowl, divider dishes really is endless what they make. I like it because it is inexpensive, good quality and years on mine still looks great.

This is the maxwell Williams "white basics" range http://www.maxwellandwilliams.com.au/mw/range-wba.asp

Even if you don't have this brand where you are i'm sure there is something just like it. Good luck with your choice :)

How many formal place settings do we really need?

Crazybird

Literally everything me and my fiance own is from either a thrift store, flea market or pawn shop. We don't need a bunch of material crap to be happy, and we put money into our savings account like crazy. We do tend to host a lot of small dinners (like 4 or 5 people), and we've really been wanting a nice set of stemware and flatware for a long time. We've requested no gifts for our wedding (we really don't want a bunch of stuff we already have like pans and towels), so we think now would be a good time to buy these items, so we can remember them as something special as our wedding "gift" to ourselves. We're planning on spending about $1500. For that, we can get a service for 12 flatware set and a 16 piece stemware set (8 wineglasses, and 8 iced beverage glasses), or a service for 8 flatware set, the 16 pieces of stemware and 8 awesome turkey napkin rings. The only reason the napkin rings even caught our eye is because we both find Thanksgiving as our favorite holiday, and we can really picture these on our table for every future Thanksgiving in the years to come. I can seriously never ever imagine hosting 12 people at a formal sit down dinner, but the saleslady insists the extra 4 place settings are the better way to go and we'll regret it if we don't get them. We kind of feel like we'd regret it more not getting those napkin rings. We have never spent so much on frivolous things like this, and we really want to make the right choice in getting the items we will use and enjoy most. More than anything though, we ant to get something we can always remember as having as newlyweds, and something we can pass down to our future children. Does anyone have any suggestions on which way to go? I know it's "traditional" to have a service for 12, but do you actually ever use all 12 place settings at once? Or if you were in our situation, would you get the napkin rings that really grabbed your attention and get a more reasonable number of place setting you can actually imagine using?

And we're looking at Reed and Barton, which is an extremely nice brand. The number of glasses isn't really negotiable to us, as we frequently have 10+ people over for drinks, but not for sit down dinners. And don't worry, we are by no means draining our savings or spending more than we can afford on this purchase, we simply picked an amount that seems reasonable to us for our first important houseware purchase together :-)

Answer
I personally was never able to buy special dinnerware. I hope you love what you picked out. I will probably inherit my Mother-in-Law's Desert Rose pattern, which I really don't care for. My two sisters-in-law both have two or three sets of 12 each that they have purchased or inherited.

If you are choosing a classic pattern for all these things, and are buying at a large, nation-wide chain (like Macy's) then I'd go for the 8-piece settings and get the napkin rings. Now, you can "register" just like a newly married couple for the rest of your items, and include things like the large serving platter, and other special service pieces. It will be there in the future if you want to continue buying one piece at a time until you've got all twelve settings. Face it, as your family grows, the number of people at your table will, too. And there's always that nice couple across the street to invite.

You could also mention to people who ask that you are registered at Macy's for gifts.

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