For those who have Christmas china . . .

[testkitchen45]

. . . do you use it breakfast, lunch, & dinner all season long, or just a few times, or just for parties/company or whatever? Especially if you use it a lot, how many place settings do you have (perhaps extra dinner plates only)? Thanks.

[KristaMB]

My Christmas dishes are from Target, so they definitely aren't china. I do use them for each meal throughout the season, as I don't have room to have two sets of dishes accessible. When my Christmas dishes come down from their storage spot above the fridge, the everyday dishes go up. I don't do a lot of entertaining, so I don't have extra dinner plates. I have service for 12.

[sneezles]

I have Spode's Christmas Tree. I have service for 12 including soup bowls, fruit bowls, salad plates, bread plates and quite a few serving pieces. I only use it Christmas week as it's not dishwasher safe. I don't mind the few times I have to wash it but won't ever do it everyday.

[fstrpstr]

I use my at dinner time and special family dinners through out the month of December. I have a service for twelve including glasses to match. Also, I have serving dishes and bowls along with salt and pepper shakers. I also have matching tablecloths and napkins with a matching centerpiece. I love having special dishes for each holiday, and I think my family enjoys it also.

[jmarie]

Service for 12. I bring them out the day after Thanksgiving and put them away the January 2nd.

Like fstpstr, I used to have different dishes for different occasions, but when I went to fiesta, I used different color schemes for the different holidays. Love fiesta!

Joyce

[SDMomChef]

I have Reindeer china from Pottery Barn - place setting for 8 - each setting has a different reindeer. We use it on weekends during December, but not during the week.

[Jazzmatazz49]

My Target Christmas dishes are actually winter scene dishes. The only sign of Christmas is on the dessert plates, which have wrapped presents on sleds, by the fireplace, etc. I use mine from Thanksgiving until Valentine's Day. I use them for every meal, every day during that time.

[Gumbeaux]

We have Nikko Christmastime service for twelve. We mainly use the coffee cups, saucers, creamer, covered sugar, and salad plates to serve coffee, biscotti, and cookies before we open gifts on Christmas morning.

[LakeMartinGal]

We have Nikko Christmastime service for twelve. We mainly use the coffee cups, saucers, creamer, covered sugar, and salad plates to serve coffee, biscotti, and cookies before we open gifts on Christmas morning.

I have this same set, and usually switch out the regular dishes for these when we set up the Christmas tree. But, I just didn't feel like it this year, so they never came out. Besides, the DD from California thinks those are our only dishes!

Gumbeaux, this is spooky... don't we have the same stainless, too? Easton by Oneida?

[raka1214]

I inherited my MIL's Christmas china that is NOT dishwasher safe so I pull it out when I put up the decorations but it goes into the china cabinet. It gets taken out to use for Christmas Eve & Christmas Day only - it's old stuff and I would HATE to break anything - it's a service for 12 with all the serving pieces, etc.

I have everyday dishes that are simply stoneware depicting a winterscene (snowmen) that gets pulled out the day AFTER Thanksgiving and is used everyday, every meal until Spring. I then pull out my regular, simple, plain white dishes for the rest of the year until Thanksgiving and then the cycle starts all over.

[gritsgirl]

I have the Cuthbertson Tree pattern and have to admit I have not used it at all this year. My Aunt and Uncle gave me a set of twelve wine, highball, and old fashion glasses when I married (the first time) 25 years ago and I did use them this year.

[cchhbb]

I use it daily. It comes out the day after Thanksgiving and is put away in early January.

My mom uses her Spode daily too.

[Gracie]

I have white with blue and lighter blue snowflake "winter" dishes - not china, for sure - from Kohl's a couple years ago.

I pulled out the whole set - service for 8 - after Thanksgiving and they never got put away all year last year. . Our Friday Klatchs all summer were full of my intentions to put away the Christmas plates.

This year I never got them out.

I think I would love Pottery Barn's reindeer china.

[Melman]

My Christmas china is Pfaltzgraff "Nordic Christmas". It was discontinued MANY years ago. When they discontinued it, I caught an awesome sale and have enough dinner plates, and particular salad/dessert plates, for a small army! I pull it out around Thanksgiving (replacing my every day dishes) and put it up sometime around March! I figure it's more of a WINTER pattern than a Christmas pattern, so I'm all set. Besides, I really like it!

http://www.replacements.com/webquote/pfanoc.htm

[Peggy]

I have 12 place settings of Lenox "Holiday" china with most of the serving pieces and matching glassware. I bring it out with the Christmas decorations and use it sporadically through New Year's Day. We usually just use it for dinners but I will use it on Christmas morning for brunch. Even though I only use it for one month out of the year, I love having it. It just makes the season feel more special.

Peggy

[sneezles]

Peggy

...

[Kevlar]

We have Happy Holidays by Nikko, service for 8 with glasses, many serving pieces, teapot, ramekins, even espresso cups. It comes out when we decorate for Christmas and the everyday china goes in the closet until the beginning of January, when we un-decorate.
I love this china and use it for all meals during the Christmas season. It is very festive. I started collecting it the year we had a house fire and were living in a rented house for six months.
K

[Vanessa]

Dh was going to buy me Lenox holiday and I was not sure. But I was not sure I wanted more china. If I do get it I would use it through the holidays every day and into January as I continue through 3 Kings Day Jan 6 and even extend it a bit more. I love Xmas.

[shoezoo]

I also have the Christmas Spode. I have 11 place settings and use it daily from Thanksgiving until Christmas.. as it's usually just the two of us until the holiday I don't mind the hand washing. I only used to use it for Christmas dinner until a few years ago when I realized it was silly to have a set of dishes and only use them one night a year.

[testkitchen45]

For those of you who use it every day, all season long, how many place settings do you have?

I have service for 16 in mine, but one day's use with my family will blow through most of the dinner plates--meaning that if we have company even once, we need to be sure to run the d/w or we can't use the china all day long. I wonder if I should have an extra stash of dinner plates? So far, I haven't bought extras, but it'd be nice to be able to use all Xmas china for the whole season plus our Xmas party (I think it's so cool when a big party has everyone eating off nice plates instead of the paper ones).

But, at this time of year, it's a pretty hefty $$ outlay to buy a stack of extra plates--yet I wonder if they'd be available in summertime at all? (Discontinued pattern, so get it while I can, or save the cash?? )

I adore Lenox Holiday Tartan, but my DH made a good point: our simple holly pattern, while lacking the red plaid ribbons & fruit of the LHT, has all the coordinating pieces--so if we got LHT to enlarge our set, we'd inevitably need to combine sets on the table (b/c the #'s would never work out evenly throughout the day, of course ).

[Gracie]

(Discontinued pattern, so get it while I can, or save the cash?? )

Discontinued pattern, get it while you can. JMO!

This thread has inspired me to find a replacement plate for some cheap but adorable dessert reindeer plates that I have, one for each reindeer.

I broke Vixen last year and almost cried - she was the cutest. But I just found and ordered a replacement plate!

[testkitchen45]

Discontinued pattern, get it while you can. JMO!

Sure, but 12 or 16 of them? That'$ a lot of ca$h. But if it filled in for a Valentine's Day gift plus Mother's Day plus my b-day . . .

(go ahead--egg me on; I could use it)

[KristaMB]

This thread has inspired me to find a replacement plate for some cheap but adorable dessert reindeer plates that I have, one for each reindeer.

I was also inspired by this thread and have been checking out replacements for a few chipped bowls from my Sakura Magic of Santa collection. I think I'll slowly add to this as money allows.

[misskitty100]

Has anyone seen the Sur La Table Christmas dishes? You can view them online but looking at them in person makes a huge difference! I saw them when I went to pickup my AC roaster! They are sort of Italien/Deruta inspired!!

http://www.surlatable.com/product/ta...6%2334-++++.do


I have my Mom's Christmas dishes which I bought for her. I have a service for 16 plus drinking glasses and serving pieces. We haven't used it in years and I was actually thinking about selling the whole lot. I am definitely in a "get rid of stuff" mode right now.

[sneezles]

Sure, but 12 or 16 of them? That'$ a lot of ca$h. But if it filled in for a Valentine's Day gift plus Mother's Day plus my b-day . . .

(go ahead--egg me on; I could use it)

Buy what you can afford! You've seen what those replacement places charge for discontinued...outrageous prices!!

I actually have 18 dinner plates of the Spode because one year there were that many for Christmas Eve dinner (which was served buffet style so the other pieces didn't really come into play).

[testkitchen45]

Buy what you can afford! You've seen what those replacement places charge for discontinued...outrageous prices!!

I actually have 18 dinner plates of the Spode because one year there were that many for Christmas Eve dinner (which was served buffet style so the other pieces didn't really come into play).

That's an argument against getting next year's Macy's sale on Lenox Holiday Tartan, which I love (I'm referring to your comment about the other pieces not being used as much). Not only is each 3-pc place setting of LHT $25-$30 *more* than a single replacement plate of my current dishes, but then I'd have to store 12 more cups & salad plates. I have tons of salad plates b/c I use them for dessert plates, plus I have lovely glass dessert/salad plates from my MIL, so all I need is dinners. Am trying to talk myself into finding the somewhat costly extra dinner plates now, instead of hoping they're still around next Xmas somewhere . . .

[Chefzhat]

I
Peggy

Peggy! You won't believe it, but Sandy, Emilie and I were talking about you last night!!! We miss you!!!!

Debie

Re: OP topic - I'm ashamed to say that I never even uncrated my holiday china this year.

[Peggy]

Peggy! You won't believe it, but Sandy, Emilie and I were talking about you last night!!! We miss you!!!!

Debie

My ears must have been burning!!!! I hope you were saying something good.

Hello to you too, Susan!!

I have been away from the BB for way too long. We relocated in August to Sonoma County and DH and I immediately started working our second grape harvest in winery laboratories. Lots of fun but very long hours and we have been so busy. The wineries close down for two weeks at Christmas time so I finally have some time to call my own.

Hope to be around here more often in 2009!

Peggy

[avariell]

I have service for 16 in mine, but one day's use with my family will blow through most of the dinner plates--meaning that if we have company even once, we need to be sure to run the d/w or we can't use the china all day long. I wonder if I should have an extra stash of dinner plates? So far, I haven't bought extras, but it'd be nice to be able to use all Xmas china for the whole season plus our Xmas party (I think it's so cool when a big party has everyone eating off nice plates instead of the paper ones).

Wouldn't you have a similar problem with non-holiday dishes? Unless you keep service for like 28 out with your everyday dishes I think I wouldn't bother buying any new dishes, and I would just plan for a holiday party by making my family use paper that day (or keep some everyday dishes out or whatever).
However, I think owning like 12-20 small, white plates might be handy in general. You could use them for parties or for your family to eat off of on party days.
Maybe I am misunderstanding the problem

[testkitchen45]

Wouldn't you have a similar problem with non-holiday dishes? Unless you keep service for like 28 out with your everyday dishes I think I wouldn't bother buying any new dishes, and I would just plan for a holiday party by making my family use paper that day (or keep some everyday dishes out or whatever).
However, I think owning like 12-20 small, white plates might be handy in general. You could use them for parties or for your family to eat off of on party days.
Maybe I am misunderstanding the problem

No, you're not. I actually do have two sets of everyday dishes , and I dip into both stacks all the time, so I don't have this problem with regular dish use after all. However, after mulling it over, I've decided not to blow the $$ on any more Xmas china; it's a lot cheaper to run the d/w and get my 16 dinner plates ready! And it's just more "stuff" to store. My everyday #1 is a white-background, small-floral Mikasa, and #2 is Fiesta. So I could always mix in the red, green, or even yellow Fiesta for the kids, if I needed to expand my pieces for a holiday dinner. For an Xmas party, I suspect that if the party's big enough, I'll head for red divided-compartment plastic plates anyway, for easier cleanup. I'm not ready to sink a bunch of money into another stack of Xmas dinners, but it might be nice to have just a couple of extras in case of breakage--and stop there.