How to Buy Dinnerware

Few households can get by without a set of dinnerware. The dishes you use on your table make a statement about your personality and style. These tips will help you pick out a set of dinnerware that will make your table look great for years to come.

Tips for Buying Dinnerware

Buying dinnerware can be an expensive investment, depending on what you choose. The rough border between the two expenditures lies between casual dinnerware and fine dinnerware. Casual dinnerware is for serving breakfast, for eating snacks and for serving dinner to yourself, family and friends. Fine dinnerware is usually reserved for special events, such as birthday and anniversary meals. Casual dinnerware tends to be more colorful, while fine dinnerware has a more formal design and is often white or a light shade. Fine dinnerware may be made of delicate china, while casual types can be made of melamine, Corelle, ironstone, or other materials.

How to Buy Dinnerware

You should first decide what exactly you need. Do you want a set of casual dinnerware for serving every meal? Would you rather have a set of fine dinnerware for special occasions? Maybe you simply prefer to eat off of the subtle design of fine dinnerware and want some as your primary set of plates and bowls. Thinking about these things will help you narrow down the choices that you have.

Once you have decided on fine or casual dinnerware, you should determine your budget. Casual dinnerware tends to be less expensive, but there is a lot of price variation within that category. You will also want to determine how many place settings you need. In some cases, especially with fine china, you can buy one place setting at a time. Casual dinnerware usually comes in place settings for four, six or eight people. The majority of casual sets will be for four, four-piece place settings.

  • Bowl
  • Tea or coffee cup
  • DInner plate
  • Salad plate

Check to see if the pattern includes serving bowls and platters. While these are usually sold separately they are nice to have.

Know what you need and what you can spend before you start shopping.

Before You Shop

At some point in time, someone is going to break a piece of your dinnerware. Before you buy, make sure the manufacturer sells individual replacement pieces and that it also carries discontinued patterns. Ten years on, you may decide to replace a plate or a bowl--you want to know now whether the manufacturer stocks dinnerware patterns that are no longer offered as sets.

Choosing Color and Style

There are thousands of colors and styles to choose from. While you may fall in love with the leopard print plates you should consider that you will be eating off of them for years to come. The best choice is a plain color that goes well with your current decor but could also go with an updated style. Most food photographers use white plates for a reason. The plain white plates showcase the food and look good with any decor.

Where to Buy Dinnerware

There are thousands of places to buy dinnerware, locally as well as online. Remember that when you purchase items from the Internet you will have to pay shipping, which can add quite a lot to the price.

  • Find dinnerware at reasonable prices at Target. Browse by brand, price or bestsellers.
  • Macy's sells sets and individual pieces of dinnerware. See what each brand offers this year.
  • Cooking.com displays photos of every dinnerware set it has in stock. View only bestsellers and new patterns, if you want.

Finding Replacement Pieces

If you have a set of antique or vintage china and you just need to replace some pieces, you can find replacements at Replacements.com. They carry thousands of patterns for old china and you can have them search for any that they don't have on site.

A Beautiful Meal

Choosing just the right dinnerware along with flatware and other kitchen items can help you create beautiful meals no matter what is on the plate. Just be sure to plan ahead when you shop so that you can use the set for years.