China Display?

[SouthernBelle]

I have my china, my mother's, my grandmother's and my great grandmother's, as well as some crystal and a gold plated coffee service. I could host an army. One china cabinet has grooves in the shelving to set up plates. I set up a plate in the groove and set the smaller pieces in front.
Maybe set up the larger serving pieces in the center.

If you need pictures, let me know.

What constitutes dated and weird?

HTH,

[Mr. Bloom]

We have the same china and it's a good backdrop for collectibles we keep in our china cabinet.

[Zen]

Use it use it use it.
what's the point of looking a dishes in a cupboard

I have no china nor would I want any.
I do love Fiesta Ware though.

[malkin]

I have china that I don't use because it's awkward to get it in and out of the hutch. It's awkward to get it in and out of the hutch because it is angled funny, and the door opens into a corner. The hutch is angled funny in the corner because the homebrew carboys have to sit right there by it. The homebrew carboys are right there because when they weren't, I bumped my toes on them. And the bumped toes finally, were unacceptable.

So we use the other china, which lives on an open shelf, and sitting there in the open, it gets dusty if it sits there very long, so we try to use all of it routinely, even if it isn't the right size.

I suppose this is what people mean when they say "Life is full of compromises."

[Crankin]

I bought my own china when I started doing some of the holidays. It was cheap and has not held up that well. The reason you can't put it in the dishwasher is that the metallic (if you have that) comes off. I do put mine in the dishwasher, but I probably shouldn't. And yes, use it!
I finally bought myself sterling silver about 5 years ago. I love it! I got nothing like that for my wedding, but I do have many of my mom's large silver pieces that no one could afford today.

[Aggie_Ama]

What constitutes dated and weird?

HTH,

My husbands grandma bought herself some china that screams 1970 to me- aqua and pink and very weird pattern. I guess if I didn't think it was so not china like it might have personality. She was an interesting woman.

We have the same china and it's a good backdrop for collectibles we keep in our china cabinet.

Yup. I needed a curio for those creepy dolls, so thanks Nanny I got one.

I got nothing like that for my wedding, but I do have many of my mom's large silver pieces that no one could afford today.

We didn't register for china knowing my Nanny said as her only granddaughter it was mine. No one would have bought us china anyway, my family and DH's aren't like that. Nanny bought it for herself in the 1980's, oddly she never bought herself silver but I could truly care less about one more thing to polish or take special care of.

On a funny note. The dining room furniture is really not our style at all but last weekend I painted a darker blue accent wall and then lighter brown walls. Now the furniture suddenly looks more us, strange how that works.

[SouthernBelle]

For those who would like china, but don't have any, watch for estate auctions in the spring. That how I got a set of silver (only plate, alas).

[Zen]

I got some nice Fiesta Ware pieces at Goodwill and a FW pitcher at a yard sale.
So what if they're different colors? It makes me happy to look at them.