<p>Have a set of beautiful white dishes I have used for years. They are starting to look a little worn (chipped, missing pieces due to breakage, etc). I love them but I am very tired of
scrubbing off the nickel marks that appear when silverware scrapes against the surface of the plates and bowls. The cleanser is also caustic and since I am allergic to latex, wearing rubber gloves is an issue as well.</p>
<p>Does anyone have a suggestion for a new set? I want something with many serving pieces and different sized bowls and hopefully scratch resistant. I also prefer white dishes if possible. </p>
<p>I know this problem is insignificant in many ways (thankful to have food to PUT on the dishes!) , but still, I would appreciate any ideas. Besides as we all know, CC has the best advice!</p>
<p>Last year I got a new set of everyday plates at Crate and Barrel that are just plain white – I really like them. There are bowls, salad plates, etc, that go with them but it is all open stock by the set. I also found some bowls I really like that match exactly at Target and my old french ramekins match as well.<br>
No problem cleaning them, they go right in the dishwasher and come out fine.</p>
<p>How much do you want to spend? I would check out the dishes from the Longaberger Basket company. Those will be the next set I buy…but they are not cheap.</p>
<p>Kind of embarrassed to admit this, but we recently bought a set of Corelle for everyday use.</p>
<p>Never thought I would buy Corelle…it reminds me of some tacky 1970s stuff we had.
But after years of heavy, scratch laden crockery stuff, the Corelle is magical.</p>
<p>We got white with a simple royal blue ring at edge. It is SO light (yes, I’m old), brilliant white, fits in the DW easily, stacks in cabinet so nice. NO scratches in the finish, stays shiny, reflective clean.</p>
<p>MANY colors and patterns to choose from, including plain white. Some VERY busy, ugly to my mind choices as well. Open stock at Walmart on my set so I got extra dinner plates we never seem to have enough of.</p>
<p>We have pfaltzgraff and aynsley china for company but the Corelle is working fine!</p>
<p>It totally depends on your sensitivity to price and how much time you want to put into this. For example, we use Spode everyday because china goes on really big sale and it all dropped into the rational price range. We also have a big pile of very nice Dansk dishes that we picked up at one of their many outlets. They seem to have taken up permanent residence in a cabinet and now I’m afraid of waking them up for use. Both have worn very well. </p>
<p>You can find pretty darn cheap but nice looking stuff at Target and many other places. Taste is so personal.</p>
<p>I’ve got another set of everyday white dishes that are from Johnson Brothers (Heritage pattern). H and I bought these when we got married (almost 30 years ago) and they still look good. I have been able to replace broken pieces by using the Replacements.com website.</p>
<p>HeartArt, I was in the same boat a couple of years ago-- tired of the “scuff marks” on my everyday dishes and wanted a crisp white replacement that would always look brand new. My mother told me that a porcelain plate would not pick up marks the way stoneware does. Like lololu, I found the perfect open stock set at Crate and Barrel and they look brand new two years later. Good luck with your search.</p>
<p>I’m on my third set of china since getting married 23 years ago. The set I have now is from Target and I love them! They are nearly indestructible. They don’t chip and I have had them for about 1 1/2 years and have dropped many of them and only one has broken. The set I have is deep red on the inside and black on the out and very simple with no designs. They look a bit homemade. Anyway, they were very reasonable. I want to say less than 50 dollars for a boxed set of four place settings including soup bowls. I think they have a variety of color choices, too.</p>
<p>My last set was from Pier 1 and they chipped if you so much as looked at them. Sometimes expensive doesn’t equate with quality.</p>
<p>Since this is a college website, budget may be an extra big issue for many of us. But if you are a person who can go for durability and longevity rather than a lower price, consider Simon Pearce Pottery in Vt. They have a website as well. We splurged on cereal/salad/small soup bowls years back and we have used them daily. They do not scratch or chip and tolerate the dishwasher successfully every time. When I am ready to splurge on dishes, I would buy a set and expect to have them functional and attractive for the rest of my life. The bowls are about $25 each and the dinner plates $30-$35 ish. They work well for daily use as well as more formal occasions. I am glad I didn’t save them for special events as they don’t require pampering. I am not affiliated with the company.
I have a large set of white dishes (which were not inexpensive and a “good” name brand) and they all have those nickel marks. Most frustrating. What do you use to clean them off? Good luck making your decision. I wonder if Consumer’s Reports rates major brand of dishes.</p>
<p>I think the scuff marks has more to do with the glaze on the dishes than whether it is stoneware or porcelain. But generally, porcelain has less porous glaze, so maybe that’s why it doesn’t mark up as much.</p>
<p>I’ve had various pfaaltzgraf and other stonewear patterns–and I’m guessing if you have the problem with marks on them that it’s the same thing. I bought the Aspen line from Crate and Barrel. It’s very reasonably priced porcelain so it can even go in the oven. I decided that plain white dishes just make the most sense and look the best in the long run. So far, they’ve held up nicely, but I’ve only had them since last summer.</p>
<p>I don’t have any actual recommendations for you but just found this page that shows a great variety of all white casual dinnerware options sold at Bed Bath and Beyond:</p>
<p>I love Corelle! Never considered it cheap, it compliments my good white Pt rimmed china at big dinners (Thanksgiving just past and I used it for some of the serving dishes). Light, durable, many different sizes of extra dinnerware to add to the basic settings. Winter white is nice since we like contemporary- sent about half of my accumulation with son to his apt this fall- after many years it isn’t quite as nice- good enough for the 2 of us and for a college kid. My first Corelle set (got enough for 8) was wihen I finished residency and finally had the money to replace the old garage sale melamine; it had little green flowers on the borders and I eventually gave it to my father. I did give away the Corelle set I had for our condo- knew son wouldn’t want the pastel flowers (my treat for myself, H and S didn’t sem to care). So much dinnerware is so heavy and clunky. Do consider what the food will look like on the plate- one reason basic white is so nice. PS- a detour to the Corning factory is worth it to see the glass works if you can be in upstate NY sometime.</p>
<p>Today is Macy’s last day for tis 25% off and free shipping “friends and family” deal. Also, Overstock.com had a lot of good choices with little or no shipping. You might find some nice choices there. Good luck!</p>