is not to put it off for a later date!
Our William Ashley’s china arrived yesterday via Purolator.
We were really excited to unpack it until we discovered how it was packed…
In a hay stack. :( We filled 4 garbage bags of this stuff!
Our supervisor:
It took us 2 hours to unpack everything, check it, count it, and then clean up the huge mess!
While we were unpacking, we had the when are we going to use it discussion.
You may remember my Use Your Good Towels rant a couple months ago.
We already decided that our china would indeed be reserved for special occasions. But we aren’t going to limit its’ use to holidays only. For example, if we have a nice dinner together, we might use the china. (We’re crazy like that!).
However, we also got some stainless steel cutlery sets that we are in love with. And we started a hot debate about what they would be used for.
I said I wanted to use them on a daily basis, while Eric disagreed and said we should keep the cutlery for special occasions only.
Then I got thinking about my Good Towel post.
And I was like, ‘Why shouldn’t we use our gorgeous cutlery right now? We have been using mismatched hand me downs since university (it is honestly horrid what we use!!!). And we have been waiting for so long to have a nice set.’
But Eric’s reply was that it would no longer be special if we used it everyday.
So I pulled out the what if I died card with a big grin on my face, ‘What if I died next month and you had to live with the fact that I never did get to use the cutlery I loved so much?’
Eric, grinning back, ‘Well I would march that over-priced cutlery right back to William Ashley’s and get my money back!’
Quite cheeky isn’t he? ;) We had a good laugh.
So the debate goes on.
What do you think? Should nice cutlery be saved for special use or do you take the ‘you only live once’ approach with it?
I have always, always been a ‘save special things for special use’ kind of person. But more and more I am starting to toss that idea out the window. So many times I have not used things that make me happy because I am scared of ruining it. Would it really be that big of a deal if we did accidentally ruin a set? Probably not. They were expensive but not that expensive that we couldn’t replace it at some point down the road.
I say use it. We’ve been using our good towels for months now and have never looked back! They make me happy every single day. The only drawback I see with using it is that it has to be hand washed (well, it says it is dish washer safe but I wouldn’t trust it). I hate hand washing dishes, so that might be a pain in the butt. Decisions, decisions…
Better three hours too soon, than one minute too late. ~William Shakespeare
You do only live once. Use it and enjoy it. Your taste will probably change as the years go by, so why not use it now while you still like it? What are you saving it for? Every day is a special day!
if it’s stainless, i say use it. silver you save for special occassions because it’s a pain in the ass to polish + you can’t put it in the dishwasher. but stainless is fine to use all the time (and put in the dishwasher)!
Yup I agree. We purposely did not buy silverware for that reason.
my parents use their wedding china allll the time; holidays, birthdays (which when you consider we do US and canadian thanksgiving, easter, christmas, new years, mothers day, fathers day, and six birthdays means at least once a month)plus other random nice dinners.
And, in the 38 years they’ve been married only one plate has been broken.
by me.
whoops!
i’m still trying to get my fiance on board with getting wedding china-his parents were they never use it types, so he doesn’t see the point.
use it!
Why not reserve it for a weekly dinner basis? Kind of a compromise: still “special” but used on a more frequency that you’ll get to use it before you die. :D
Is this a boy thing? Because my boyfriend is the exact same way! He bought the car of his dreams last year, and two days after he bought it I caught him driving his old beat up car he planned to get rid of. When I asked him about it he said he didn’t want to take his new car out because it was raining!! But what’s the point in having the damn car if you never drive it!?
I’m a “use it” type person. My belongings never last as long that way, but I at least get my money’s worth ;)
I say use the cutlery! I see the argument for using fragile things for special occasions (I have my grandmother’s china packed away) but cutlery, you should definitely enjoy every day. I agree with Deb, use it while you still like it!
I used to be a “save for special occasions” girl, too, but…no more. We only live once–your hard-earned money was used to buy it, so make great use of it! Get your money’s worth!
Loooove the Sketchie pictures, as usual! :-D
I am de-lurking to make my first comment. First, I do love the blog!! Thanks for all the great updates. Second, USE IT ALL RIGHT NOW! When I married we decided to skip the fancy traditional china to get great everyday china that we could use immediately. Why buy something you will basically store for most of the year? Here in America there seems to be so much consumerism, which is really sad. I know I don’t want my house to be a big storage unit. I want to enjoy the things I have.
USE the cutlery!!
I am totally a ‘save special things for special times’ kind of person too, but I’ve been trying to change that about myself.
Each day you are alive is special (although it may not seem that way some days!), so use the nice things…
I was always afraid to ruin those special items too, but now I kind of try and look at it in a “Better to have loved and lost than to never have loved at all” perspective.
If it gets ruined…save up and replace it!
USE the good cutlery (and put it in the dishwasher too!)
;)
Sorry Eric, but Angela wins. USEEE ITTTT. And pack up that old, mismatched stuff & donate it to a Goodwill or Salvation Army!
Use it! If you’re not using it you’re just storing it. Life is too short.
Use it! :)
Definitely use it! Why pay so much money (or have other’s spend so much), on these things if you rarely get to enjoy them! I think you should use them and enjoy them everyday!
I say use it for special weekend meals when you really get the time to make soemthing special and you can both enjoy it :)
Until you mentioned that it has to be hand washed, I was all for saying everyday.
Handwashing cutlery every day would be such a pain. I say special occasions only :)
Use it! If you wait to use it, you just won’t. That’s how it happens! Like saving an amazing cookie or something so you can really enjoy it, and then it goes bad.
Enjoy it, and make up a reason to celebrate. My husband and I toast at every meal, and it feels like celebrating. It could as simple as getting in a good run, taking a cute picture of Sketchie or talking to a girlfriend you haven’t seen in awhile. No matter what, just celebrate!
I say make it a happy medium. Don’t use it for EVERY thing, but reserve it for meals you all have together. That way it is sort of special but still gets used more often than special occasions ;-)
I say use it too! Why have it if you can’t use it! You never know what will happen in life, make the most of each day. Every day should be a special occasion!
alright, I have the solution. Angela…you get to take out a spoon, fork, and knife for yourself. Eric..you can use whatever you please. when you have that special dinner,Eric can use the good cutlery….hahahaha..marriage is all about compromise! (but yes Angela, you will be the classy eater..sorry Eric.)
Just my own little story. We got beautiful stainless steel cutlery for our wedding, I stuck it in the china cabinet to save for special occasions…. and kept on using my not-so great looking ones I had. Then I thought, WHY I am I not using something I love and instead saving it for that RARE (VERY RARE) occasion when I get to use it for something special?! If you love it, USE IT! It will be special because you love it, regardless of how much you use it, you will still love it.
Just my 2 sense. ;)