Paper plates, China, or everyday dishes for holidays?

[AndreaDM]

China or even everyday dishes, anything but paper. Yes, we have to wash them, but so what? The Queen is never coming to visit and my family members are the most important people in my life, so we use the good stuff. But, we also never have more than 8-10 people over either.

If anyone is looking for a cute place card, last year I used mini pumpkins and just wrote everyone's name on them, they were so cute!

 

[FireDancer]

We have used disposable plates at holidays as long as I can remember. My grandma bought a 1,000 count of the styrofoam divided plates a while ago and we are still going through them. If you have a GFS near you try there. They have disposable plates, bowls, cups, and utensils year round and in large quantities.

 

[minkydog]

I always break out the family china for holidays. It's old and fragile and has to be hand washed, but my kids always ask for it. I even have a special set of monogramed silver, something my sister found in her MILs garage after she died. No one else has the same last initial and we have no idea why her MIL would even have it but lucky for me, I inherited the flatware.
I usually buy special holiday napkins and I have a tablecloth I use every year. I buy my paper dessert plates at the after-Thanksgivng sales and keep them for the next year.

 

[Conservative Hippie]

We have always used my regular everyday dishes, but this year I am considering getting plastic cups and paper coffee cups. We run out of glasses and coffee mugs so fast!

 

[kiddo76]

I use my fine china and crystal for dinner and desert, with cloth table cloths and napkins. I have a total of 12 place settings. If I ever have more than 12, I have the kids use the desert plates and cheap wine glasses for water goblets instead of crystal. Last year I had enough kids for their own table and used Thanksgiving themed paper plates and cups for their table only.

For appetizers and late night sandwiches, I always use paper plates and napkins and I agree, it's very difficult to find Thanksgiving themed tableware. It seems I see a small selection around Halloween, but by the time I actually think of buying it (usually about a week before), all that's left around is Christmas stuff. If I can't find nice Thanksgiving plates, I just use solid color plates and napkins in fall colors.

I love how my dining room looks with the table set with my china and crystal and how it sparkles with the candle light. It makes me happy.

 

[golfgal]

I use my fine china and crystal for dinner and desert, with cloth table cloths and napkins. I have a total of 12 place settings. If I ever have more than 12, I have the kids use the desert plates and cheap wine glasses for water goblets instead of crystal. Last year I had enough kids for their own table and used Thanksgiving themed paper plates and cups for their table only.

For appetizers and late night sandwiches, I always use paper plates and napkins and I agree, it's very difficult to find Thanksgiving themed tableware. It seems I see a small selection around Halloween, but by the time I actually think of buying it (usually about a week before), all that's left around is Christmas stuff. If I can't find nice Thanksgiving plates, I just use solid color plates and napkins in fall colors.

I love how my dining room looks with the table set with my china and crystal and how it sparkles with the candle light. It makes me happy.

That is pretty much what we do. For the kids table on Thanksgiving I usually set it with our everyday dishes, which are a pale yellow, so they look nice for Thanksgiving. Paper plates for the second go round on the food

One thing I am doing this year-I think I read about it on DIS, is putting tea lights into apples, gourds, etc. for the candles on the table. You hollow out a hole in the gourd, apple, pumpkin, whatever that is just large enough for the tea light and set them around the table.

 

[Stitchfans]

Every day dishes since I do not have china. Suppose we could use paper plates, but whatever, because there will still be other dishes, so on to wash.

 

[Handbag Lady]

BEWARE THE ZOMBIE THREAD!

(And someone is trying to sell something!)

 

[Sgt Mickey]

Christmas threads thanksgiving threads. Now we just need a halloween thread.

 

[ilovepcot]

BEWARE THE ZOMBIE THREAD!

(And someone is trying to sell something!)

Yep...see my post above. I had "intended" to quote you.

 

[Conservative Hippie]

We have always used my regular everyday dishes, but this year I am considering getting plastic cups and paper coffee cups. We run out of glasses and coffee mugs so fast!

And I did get disposable cups and coffee cups that year and have since!

 

[JessicaR]

And I did get disposable cups and coffee cups that year and have since!

 

[tcufrog]

Instead of traditional china we registered for Sango Splash which looks great at Thanksgiving. We have 12 place settings plus tons of accessories including serving dishes that are oven safe which means that side dishes can go straight from the oven to the table.

For Christmas I have some gorgeous dishes that are 12 Days of Christmas themed. Each dessert plate is themed to a different day. I have 21 place settings of it plus serving dishes.

Both of my dish sets are dishwasher and microwave safe.

One cost effective solution is to get plain white place settings and accessorize for the occasion with themed or colored serving pieces and linens. You can get for example a white turkey platter for Thanksgiving and red and green accessories for Christmas.

As for clean up I found it to be easy after I bought a few large plastic busing tubs at Sams Club like those used at restaurants. While I'm getting dessert ready I fill the busing tubs with hot water and dish soap. After dinner I scrape the dishes into the trash and then let them soak in the sink and busing tubs. After I've relaxed post dinner the dishes are easy to clean because the food isn't caked on. Just a quick rinse and then I put them in the dishwasher.

 

[Aliceacc]

I use China for the holidays... my regular China for Thanksgiving or Easter. For Christmas, I either use my Niko Christmas China or the Pointsettia China my mom gave me. (The Niko stuff is a bigger set, so it depends on how many people I'm having.)

We use linen napkins and light candles on the table; it's a holiday and the setting is as important as the food.

We don't have a dishwasher, but it's no big deal. I'm a teacher, so I have a couple of days off after each holiday to get things back to where they belong. I wash the dishes that night, and get them put away a day or two later.

 

[maelstrom]

For a holiday like Christmas, Thanksgiving, or Easter we use the "good" stuff (Fiestaware). For smaller parties and get-togethers (Cinco de Mayo, 4th of July, etc) we use paper or plastic plates & bowls and disposable flatware & cups.

 

[eliza61]

I like to use my china for the holidays. I simply like to make the occasion special.
I don't find the cleanup that big of a headache or maybe since I'm always off 3-4 days after the holidays I don't have to rush to clean up. I have also been known to throw some money to my younger family members to clean up. LOL