Source of large amount of dinner plates?

[lucyanna girl]

Does anyone here know of a good place to buy a large amount (around three hundred) dinner plates for a resonable price? My daughter is getting married and after pricing rentals I am wondering if buying and then either reselling or donating them to our church might be a better way to go.

Thanks,

Penny

 

[mrsclark]

I would try a restaurant supply store near you - a lot of them are open to the public. DH and I have bought cookie sheets,cooking utensils, and food containers (no dinner plates, sorry) from our local restaurant supply and prices are very reasonable. They offer quantity discounts too!

 

[Shagley]

I ordered from this place last year because I made personalized popcorn/ice cream bowls for everyone in my family for Christmas. I ordered 30 corelle bowls, and they had great prices (especially after I used a discount coupon code, plus they were on sale, etc.). They arrived very well packed, and I was really happy with this company. I see they have a number that you can call to get a quote for large quantity purchases for wedding and other events...

http://www.shopworldkitchen.com/business-large-orders

 

[ah1126]

I think the Dollar Tree carries dinner plates. I have seen signs where you can order large quantities.

 

[JediMaster]

Try "IKEA" good price , large quantities and good quality!

 

[Sagginit]

restaurant supply stores don't always have great prices on dinner ware. its made to be super sturdy so i found when i tried to buy martini glasses there they were actually more expensive (plus they had like 12 packs only).

do you have outlets near you? i know crate and barrel have outlets.

since your amount is so high i second trying to find a place to buy them wholesale.

 

[anniemck]

Dollar Tree or IKEA would be the best bet. When we were married last year we did it all ourself, and bought the MasterPiece collection from Sams, They were heavy duty plastic that looked like the Corelle sets. We also used the plastic ware that was silver colored. We were able to get them all at a really great price at Sams and Costco and used what we had left for months here at home. They were washable/reusable and when they finally cracked we threw them away. The cleanup after the wedding was great, just toss it in the garbage can. No one wanted to have to wash dishes after 100 people finished eating. Especially if they took multiple trips.
My sister n law had a really fancy wedding for her spoiled daughter and was very upset to know that the total cost of the dinner ware that we had was less than what she paid to rent what they used. They also had to was them and dry them and return them within 24 hours of the wedding.

 

[TLuvsD]

Dollar Tree, Ikea, Walmart or a restaurant supply.
And check Craigslist...my friend bought a lot of items off Craigslist when her daughter got married, then resold them. Really helped the budget. Another friend bought all the silverware at a restaurant supply place, it was cheaper than renting, she uses it for holiday family gatherings. You could check online for silverware....

 

[TravelMommy]

My aunt did the same thing as annie for her wedding. The placesettings were gorgeous, honestly I did not originally know they were disposable

 

[tinker&belle]

Look into renting from a party supply retailer.

 

[Jedimom]

If you're not overly concerned about them being matchy-matchy, Goodwill might be worth a look. If I'm remembering right, my Goodwill regularly prices plates between $1.49-$2.49. Those which don't get sold within the month (and with dishware, it's most of it) get marked down to half price -- $0.75-$1.25 per plate. Not bad. Granted, 300 is a tall order -- might take some time and visiting a bunch of stores to gather them all up. You could do all one brand of plate but with different patterns.

 

[Lucille1963]

Consider who will wash them after you purchase them and shine them up to be placed on the tables, what will happen to them after dinner, who will be washing them afterwards, who will be transporting them, storing them, etc. Dishes from rental companies are dropped off clean and ready to use and are picked up dirty. It does cost money, but saves a lot of hassle.

 

[Lucille1963]

Heck it takes a chunk of time to peel of 300 price tags, no matter where you buy them!

 

[lucyanna girl]

Thanks for all of the good ideas and suggestions everyone. I'm not sure which direction we will go but now I have some options.

Thanks again,

Penny

 

[kayrosek]

I second the plastic dinnerware. My grandmother has thrown some very nice weddings for members of the family and pretty much always uses them. Here's a few options so you can get an idea.
http://www.factorydirectparty.com/tableware/fancy-tableware/plates-bowls.html
http://www.smartyhadaparty.com/Plastic-Plates-Dishes-Dinnerware-Elegant-Disposable-c908.aspx
I really like the second site. Ther's tons of looks to choose from.

 

[writersblock42]

The environmentalist in me cringes to agree with the others but plastic is going to be so much easier. You can get some really nice ones and nobody will look down on for that. My sister did an outdoor wedding and it ended up costing more money to do it in her mother-in-law's yard (beautiful beautiful yard with a pond and flowers) than it took for my other sister to rent out a ballroom where everything was included. This was due to having to rent tables, tablecloths, napkins, glasses, tent, dance floor, and deal with lighting. We also had to deal with all those glasses. Somebody did cater it and they did use plastic plates and we had plasticware that I spent forever rolling. If you do decide to use real dishes, then I would check out Goodwill or Salvation Army. If you have enough time, you might be able to try to go for something simple like white and keep your eyes open and find them. The other option is see if something like the church could loan you some dishes.
I also wanted to mention that I purchased some hard plastic (reusable plates) from Target (they had them in all colors) and they were less than a dollar a piece. Now because you are probably not the first person to do this, I would look at Craig's list and see if they have some plates. I just looked in my area and found a whole bunch of plates listed. Good luck.

 

[writersblock42]

Just wanted to note that I just scrolled through Craig's List and found tons of wedding stuff such as chair covers, glassware, plates, candles, ribbons and all kinds of stuff. Look in your area and just keep checking back. I think you will find what you need.

 

[swilshire]

What style is the wedding? At one of the prettiest weddings I have ever attended, the caterer used unmatched china in lots of different patterns. You can frequently find china sets at estate sales for very low prices. Nobody has room to store it these days, I guess.

The mismatched china was very appropriate at this wedding, which had a lot of homey touches in the décor.

Sheila

 

[lauradis]

I second the plastic dinnerware. My grandmother has thrown some very nice weddings for members of the family and pretty much always uses them. Here's a few options so you can get an idea.
http://www.factorydirectparty.com/tableware/fancy-tableware/plates-bowls.html
http://www.smartyhadaparty.com/Plastic-Plates-Dishes-Dinnerware-Elegant-Disposable-c908.aspx
I really like the second site. Ther's tons of looks to choose from.

wow they sure make nicer plastic ware

love the idea of never having to wash 300 plates lol

 

[marthachick]

Consider who will wash them after you purchase them and shine them up to be placed on the tables, what will happen to them after dinner, who will be washing them afterwards, who will be transporting them, storing them, etc. Dishes from rental companies are dropped off clean and ready to use and are picked up dirty. It does cost money, but saves a lot of hassle.

I would also wash them before using them. So if thats the case, someone will be washing them twice. Like washing 600 plates! Whew! I think I'd seriously consider the nice disposable ones also!