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i inherited my grandparents' fine china

i don't think that it has gone out of style exactly but especially in the day of the homes without dining rooms you begin losing spots to store it. I resisted getting a china pattern when I got married because as an only child I am going to be getting plenty of fine china down the road. And the one type of pattern that I like most my mother has plenty of so eventually having so many sets seemed crazy. I do entertain though and would use it if I already had it.

I inherited it as well. It sits in boxes in my basement :(

Nope.

I inherited my great great aunt's fine china & I love it. I use it for dinner parties, holidays, & birthdays. The pattern (Tressmen & Voght TRV 15) has long been discontinued, but I have been able to get some serving pieces from Replacements. I am one of those crazy people that loves to set a fancy table, using the china, sterling silver, crystal & use the antique linens. Don't do it often enough though. Maybe tonight just because it's Monday & will make me smile!

I absolutely love china, and it makes me a little sad that so few couples are including it on their registry. I love my mother's and my grandmother's, and I look forward to having some of my own for my wedding. I think it's something so special to be able to collect in your family and to pass down among generations. It also helps make any occasion seem more special!

I inherited my great grandmother's bone china. She received the set as a wedding gift; I got them before my own wedding. I display mine in open shelving.

I do use them, but I am missing a few tea cups and a few salad dishes. The set is about 100 years old, so some of the dish shapes are strange and hard to put to use.

Emma, about 40 years ago I was given my first set for 12, five years later another set, and found out just before it happened ten years after the first so I was able to stop the onslaught.

I love my china, and use it regularly for gatherings of friends or family, but also sometimes just for romantic dinners or every day. Most of the time though, meals are served on the "everyday" dishes.

A few years ago I inherited, additionally, my mother's set of china, but I generally only take that set out for the largest dinner parties.

My own children are not really interested in getting the china, but three of my adult, or nearly adult, grandchildren have each asked to inherit a set.

Because I always included china at "the kid's table" at events there are a few pieces missing from each set, but I found out years ago that if they were served their meals on china they tended to be on their best behavior during meals, putting away their antics during the meal time.

As each child in my life turned five, they were "treated" to lessons on setting the table. This has turned into a family tradition, and the little ones view it as a rite of passage. Now that they are scattered around the nation, their parents have generally taken over the training, but they are still learning about a proper table, along with training on manners in general.

An added bonus is that they are more willing to try different foods, as a way to get to use different dishes or different silverware pieces.

i would only own fine china if i inherited it or had significantly more money than i do now. haven't inherited anything yet so...

We inherited my husband's family's china, and use it a lot. We decided a while back that it wouldn't only get hauled out once or twice a year; instead, every dinner party, no matter how small, is a special enough occasion. Life is short.

I chose not to have any fine china on my wedding registry, I picked some nice everyday stuff instead.

I have access to my Grandma's and my Mom's fancy stuff if I ever need it, but it is a little too frilly for my tastes.

Inherited my great-grandmother's wedding china and a rather imposing collection of Christmas dishes from my great-aunt. As I currently live in a one bedroom apartment, I will be visiting both sets at my parents' house over the holidays.

I think that I was more excited about my china pattern than anything else on my registry. I have a lovely set of Noritake's Barrymore, (discontinued). I love to beautifully set my table for Christmas dinner, Easter and birthday celebrations. Ironing my linen tablecloth and napkins is a pain, but once the table's set, I see why it was worth it.

We have very simple (but not chunky) all-white everyday dishes, and that's what I use for "nice" meals, too. I love being able to just load up the dishwasher and be done with it after entertaining. No hand-washing china for me!

I didn't have any china at all on my registry. Like others here I inherited 2 sets, and we will inherit 3 or 4 sets more of silver and fine china. And our families had helped us each build a set of "nice" everyday china as college graduation presents (a good idea for today, IMO).

I'm always aiming to set a gorgeous table, and don't hesitate to break out the good stuff, especially when guests are over. That having been said, I do sometimes use the "everyday" stuff in springtime as my formal china patterns are in more fall/winter patterns.

The only thing stopping me from using the good stuff more often is the fact that it has to be washed by hand, which I loathe.

not our style really and also not like us to have a bunch of dishes that don't get used very often. its eachother's company that makes our meals special. not the dishes we put it out on... :)

can totally appreciate the sentimental value of having inherited some nice dishes from loved ones though. :)

My husband and I registered for china for our wedding. We always have large groups for Thanksgiving and/or Christmas, so 12 settings of china plus 12 settings of our everyday dishes are necessary to serve everyone. I enjoy having china, it adds an extra touch of formality and elegance.

Got a set each from my mother in law and my parents when I got married. We use them for holidays and special occasions like the first time my mother in law stayed over I used the china she gave us. Got major brownie points. This Thanksgiving when my parents come over I'll use the china they gave us.

I have not only fine china but sterling silverware to go with it, a sterling coffee and tea service and fine crystal. Grandmother loved to set a formal table with all the niceties in life. It's too bad we don't have formal dinner parties anymore like we did when mom was younger so we can pull out the china, silver and crystal along with the linen tableclothes.

My husband and I were both in line to inherit sets of china and silver, so we never registered for it when we were married. We've been holding off on actually accepting the items though...no place to keep it yet! So, for now, I have to visit my mother to use our nice stuff. :)

We didn't register for china this year simply because we don't have room for it. My husband is a student and we have no idea where we'll be in the next couple years. But once we've sort of settled somewhere I hope to acquire some fine china.

I adore dishes, and definitely believe in using the fine things for everyday, if I have them. I actually had a set of china (not particularly fine stuff) as my every day dishes in college. But dishwashers and microwaves are very much part of our life right now, so we registered for sturdier stuff. Sad that most of my great-grandmother's dishes were destroyed in the Loma Prieta Quake, or I might already have a set.

no china...i stick with white plates, bowls and such...although I sometimes wish I had china but if I did I would not have space to store it.

I inherited a 12 piece set of pre-war Noritake which I loved... but my husband and I have no children and I'm an only child. I chose to move it on to a cousin who loves it as much as I and has children to pass it to. Instead I have a very nice set of Portmeirion Botanic Garden. It's fancy but fairly sturdy... I use it every day! I agree with Onepot... Life is Short.

I inherited it, and I love it. Although I use it only a few times a year for the big feasts.

I registered for china (dishwasher safe) when I got married 7 years ago - and still don't have the complete set for 12.

When I was in Ireland about 9 years ago, I picked up a china tea service for 12 - which, unfortunately - doesn't match my wedding china (I tried, I really tried to get them to match). so while I use the wedding stuff for the occasional holiday - the tea service NEVER gets used and I'm debating how to get rid of it...

When I got married 15 years ago, at my mother's insistance, I registered for fine china. I wanted the blue willow pattern for my dishes and had intended to just register for the Johnson brothers pattern of it, but she insisted I'd be sad if I didn't have the "real thing". She made me register for some fancy version, by I think, Royal Doulton. It was trimmed with gold and I didn't like it nearly as well as the Johnson Bros. version. And it cost something ridiculous, like $200 a place setting! Luckily, I ended up with only one place setting being given to me, by my uncle who is a doctor. I ended up returning it and using the refund from the place setting to buy twelve place settings of some no-name blue and white dishes that served me well for years.

Now, years later, I also have a pretty nice set of Portmeirion Botanic Garden. I love that it's super sturdy, dishwasher safe and pretty without being too precious. I also like that I know if I do break a piece, I can pretty much get anything I need open stock. I even find pieces cheaply at Marshall's and TJ Maxx all the time.

When I moved into my own apartment, my grandmother gave me some china so that I wouldn't have to buy any plates. Turns out, it's her old good stuff!!

I use it everyday, and I'm glad I do. It's a beautiful set, and it's nice that it's actually out of the box it sat in for years and that it's getting enjoyed.

I have my grandmother's set of china. It's a beautiful Lenox pattern in pastels and the soup dishes have wonderfully scalloped edges to them. So elegant.

My everyday dishes are Denby pottery, which are both casual yet can be dressy depending on the setting. I LOVE my everyday dishes.

But I also love the idea that someday I'll have the opportunity to have a formal dinner where I can use her china and her set of real silver flatware. Part of that silver is a set of teaspoons pounded from silver dollar coins and etched with the last name initial of my great-grandmother. So much family history and connection in those little things.

We didn't receive any fine china from our registry (college-age guests), so I went searching online for discontinued patterns.

I found www.replacements.com--and ended up getting 8 Lenox place settings (40 pc.) for $199! They have a few paint splotches on the BOTTOM of the dishes, and slight pattern errors on the front, but nothing you would notice unless pointed out.

When we were married 10 years ago, we registered for fine china and crystal. To our absolute surprise, we received all 12 settings of each! My husband picked out our pattern, a much more ornate pattern than I would have chosen, but I am so glad he did. It is absolutely beautiful. Before our kids were born, we used it fairly regularly, whenever we had people over. Now we only use it once or twice a year, but that is partly because we still have a toddler in the house. When both girls are older, we will start using it more often again. I really love having it. I have noticed that most of my friends who have gotten married in recent years have either registered only for everyday dishes, or for extremely simple china. What we have seems to be a dying trend. It's fine with me though, I love it!

I have only fine china and sterling silverware in my apartment (I gave the everyday china and flatware to friends). Since I live in a teeny NYC apartment, there was not really room for both. It makes me so happy to use the good stuff every single day -- even toast and jam seems like an event. And because I have no dishwasher, I wash everything by hand anyway, so that part is no hardship.

i have my grandmother's china - wedgewood and haviland pieces. we bought a shabby china cabinet and i look at them every day. they are not necessarily my style but it makes me happy to look at them every day.

I too inherited my great aunt's lenox china. I'm not the sort to use it, I'm too nervous to and seems too fancy for me. It's not my style to display it anywhere either...and I can't sell it because, well...my family would be mad! So basically it's useless to me...