ATTN: Yssie

[Autumnovember]

Did you ever decide on your fine china set?!?!

 

[yssie]

We did!

We went with Vera Wang's "Leaf" crystal, which wasn't even on the table when we were having the big debate And ironically enough were also gifted goblets from the first set I wanted, Bellina by Lenox..

We kept the china (Lisette by Waterford) and sterling (Baltimore Rose) that we'd been given before the wedding. They go well with the VW (well, I think so!) - not *too* flowery, but enough that I'm happy



Are you considering patterns? What are you thinking about?

 

[Autumnovember]

We did!

We went with Vera Wang's "Leaf" crystal, which wasn't even on the table when we were having the big debate And ironically enough were also gifted goblets from the first set I wanted, Bellina by Lenox..

We kept the china (Lisette by Waterford) and sterling (Baltimore Rose) that we'd been given before the wedding. They go well with the VW (well, I think so!) - not *too* flowery, but enough that I'm happy



Are you considering patterns? What are you thinking about?

That sound great!!! I think you should take some pictures

There are a more than a few I'm torn over:

Silver Mist by Lenox, Platinum Wave by Noritake, Precious Platinum by Royal Doulton, New Wave by Villeroy and Boch, Simply Fine by Lenox, Pebble Point by Lenox.....PHEW.

 

[yssie]

Ooh you've got some fun patterns!

A friend has had 12 platinum wave placesettings for just over a year and a half now, she loves them! She uses them quite often - as in, they actually *do* Sunday family dinners, when anyone comes over (I've pretty much only ever eaten on her fine china), and she does *not* baby them - they go in the dishwasher willy-nilly with everything else w/ bleach, whatever random soap she has on hand.. they look fantastic, the pattern has barely faded. It was really important to me to have bone china over porcelain as I'd only ever heard that they were stronger even though the pieces were thinner, more chip-resistant, etc. but after seeing how well hers have stood up to regular use I'm not sure what to think! I suppose we'll have to compare in five years

Ours are sadly currently on the opposite coast with the parents, so I can't comment personally

I do think Lenox has a nice lifetime breakage policy - they apparently replace broken pieces at 50% of suggested retail price, which granted is higher than you're ever going to actually pay but still less than buying new pieces outright. I have heard that Lenox discontinues patterns more frequently than others, I don't know if there's truth to that but it's probably something to investigate.

One of my big considerations was that if you choose a pattern, it's under the glaze so it won't fade, but the metal banding and designs are on top so they'll fade as the plates are rubbed/washed/worn. Of course, the glaze can craze no matter what design you pick!

Good luck choosing Autumn!

ETA: are you also looking at flatware and crystal?