How thick is the layer of dust on your wedding china? Pretty thick? You’re not alone. Here’s where I can help. I’m going to show you how to use that ignored, lonely, beautiful china as everyday dishes. Read on to see how I was able to transform one of my neighbor’s wedding china and another friend’s Great-aunt’s formal china into something that they were able to use on a regular basis.
Aunt Edna’s Wedgewood China
Intricate and lovely, but too formal to use as an entire place setting
So pretty and delicate, but these dishes are not exactly fitting for a casual meal. Here’s my trick for using formal china in your everyday dish rotation: Use one piece at a time. The entire set makes this fancy, but when they are separated into individual dishes, they become much more usable.
By using just the dessert plate and adding pink and blue, it becomes a more usable dish
By using just the dessert plate here, I layered a carved white wood charger, a pink casual dinner plate, and a blue beaded salad plate beneath it. An amethyst pressed glass tumbler and goblet and rose gold flatware lend to the soft pastel palette. A jeweled pink napkin ring and pink and white daisies are the perfect finishing touch. Transformation complete!
It Takes a Village
How can we incorporate this into a casual setting . . .
How charming are these dishes? They depict quaint villages in Europe, which I fell in love with, but a bit busy for everyday use.
The green hue in the salad plate provides the inspiration for this setting
I played off the beautiful aloe hue in the salad plate by using hemstich green linen placemat and coordinating green napkin. Make it a bit more edgy by adding a black rimmed ceramic charger, matte black flatware and a black goblet. Succulents and a cactus votives give a fun vibe to this playful theme, but keep it from being too childish.
Your Typical Wedding Registry China
Gold and silver china – pretty, but way too fancy for most
Although this is gorgeous, it’s your average wedding china – white with a silver and gold rim. I’d never use this for one of my typical dinners and I can say that wholeheartedly because it’s my own! However, I deconstruct this collection all the time by taking one piece and incorporating it with my other casual dinnerware.
Blue, gold and white gives this a nautical theme with the desert plate china
Inspired by a nautical theme, I used a seagrass charger beneath a gold acrylic charger, and layered a glazed indigo blue plate and bowl in between the dessert plate from my china collection. White and gold flatware, a blue glass goblet and a geometric wood napkin ring keep it interesting. White marble votives and a single hydrangea complete the look. Using different elements of straw, stone, glass and metallics help make this more causal and less formal.
Romantic wintery textures allow the china salad plate to blend into this place setting perfectly
With the same china collection, I took the salad plate and incorporated it into this rustic winter setting. How cool is the peacock feather velvet placemat? Wooden flatware and a flax linen napkin compliment the theme while the burgundy mums and amber faceted glassware provide some contrast.
I’d love to see what place settings you can make with china!
I hope I’ve given you some inspiration to try this with your china or formal dishes. Be sure to share your pictures if you do!
Xoxo
Great ideas! I’m a certified “dishaholic” and you have given me some great ideas for using my collections. Thanks so much!
Hi Rachel! I’m so glad I could help give you some ideas for using your dishes more often! Thanks for the feedback. P.S. There’s no shame in owning lots of dishes! 🙂 xoxo Lory