Last minute preparations for tomorrow’s Turkey Day. Serving Thanksgiving dinner and found you need an extra, or different, serving piece? Repurpose the china serving pieces that might be in the back of the cabinet, Use what you have, mix and match with other pieces. These extra pieces can come in handy when there’s a last-minute [...]

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In one of the prior economic downturns, in the mid-1970s, bold colorful dinnerware was also in fashion. A friend gave me some old home decorating magazines from the 1960s and 1970s, days I remember well. It was fascinating going through them, looking at the designer rooms, tableware displays, and the advertising from those decades. I [...]

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Vintage and new dinnerware sets show the long-term appeal of apple china patterns! Some patterns go with red, as you’d expect. Others focus on green apples. And there are versions that have both red and green pieces to mix and match in your table setting, like the Apple Pie pattern by Franciscan (see thumbnail photo). [...]

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You don’t have to be using a country theme table setting to enjoy quilt motif dinnerware. But you could! A table setting based on a quilt theme can reach into classic and traditional themes based on Early American styles. Or it can harmonize with modern designs, in sleek shapes and stylish colors. It can be [...]

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I couldn’t stop playing with the dishes, so I came up with some more Missoni table setting ideas. Missoni for Target dinnerware provides lots and lots of table setting inspiration. I used a salad plate in the Passione pattern, purple family colors, big chunks of raspberry and white in between the center color bands. Continuing [...]

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Green glassware can mix and match with lots of different tableware patterns, both glass and china. Vintage glass in the Soreno Green pattern by Anchor Hocking was created in the late 1960s and has classic retro style that is still relevant to today’s table settings. This pattern was made in multiple colors, in addition to [...]

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We get lots of gloomy days in Michigan. One way to brighten them, mix and match dinnerware pieces from the cupboards. Playing with dishes is always fun… I started with the smaller plate, Marion by Meyer. This is vintage restaurant ware. In weight it’s close to stoneware. This service-ready china is very practical, and this [...]

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My china gravy boats tend to drift to the back of my china cabinet, and I’m betting that yours do, too. Meat gravy, to serve over potatoes, has gone the way of the meat and potatoes meal, less common than in past decades. Gravy boats are also called sauce boats or servers. The functionality of [...]

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Blue is a restful color. Add white and look sharp! Blue and white dinnerware can go formal or casual, to convey a simple charm to your table setting: calm, cool and classic. Choose a dinnerware maker, and look for their patterns that incorporate blue. You’ll find hundreds of china patterns based on a blue, or [...]

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Glass relish dishes, and china ones, too, have been a mainstay of holiday dinner tables for many years. Because, you need them to serve the pickles! At home, we always had a relish tray for any holiday or special occasion. Pickles and deviled eggs were favorites on the menu. A relish tray can include lots [...]

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