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
Haha I love Eric’s response. I say use it for FREQUENT special meals :) That just means you have an excuse to make special meals alllll the time!
I say use it.
If I could talk that is. I am ROFL at Eric’s comment. hahahahha
I would save it. You will NOT enjoy hand washing all that cutlery after a while, and it will be nice to have a complete and perfect set when you host a holiday for many!
I say use it! It’s meant to be used daily and still look great. Plus, it’s not like it will be easily broken like good china. Maybe make a rule that it can’t be taken out of the house (for packed lunches or whatever).
USE IT! Seriously, it’s just cutlery (and dinnerware)! Think of the joy it’ll bring you.
Or, a litmus test: what will bring greater overall joy – to only bring it out on special occasions, or to see it everyday?
I can only think of the Friends episode where Chandler breaks all Monica’s china.
hahaha…LOVE that episode…”Guess I’ll be the one who dies first” :-P
I don’t get china to be honest… My Gramma was shocked when I didn’t register for a china set. Why have all this classy stuff, only to have it sit in the cabinet?
My ancient set of Corel (hand me down from hubby’s gramma) is functional, albeit, UGLY! :)
We got some nice silverware and some gorgeous high end pots for wedding gifts that I haven’t used yet, not because I’m afriad to… its just that we have fully functioning pots and silverware right now so I don’t feel the need to open the new ones ‘just because’.
Maybe I’m just too simple!
Use it, use it USE IT!!! We have used our wedding cutlery every day for the past 4 1/2 years and it’s just awesome to feel something good and well-made in our mouths, rather than something cheapy and mismatched. Also, I keep my table set all the time, even though we have a small kitchen without a formal dining area. It just looks pretty.
I have two sets of cutlery. One set for special occasions only (that I’ve used once in the seven years we’ve been married) and another set that we use everyday. If you are still using the mismatched stuff from college I say use it. Cutlery lasts a long time and its difficult to break, chances are you’ll be sick of the pattern long before they wear out.
One vote for “use it” here! I doubt any of your visitors will hate you for using the china without them. :)
I am torn! If you use it all the time, it’s not ‘special’…it’s just everyday dishes. BUT, why wait? LIfe’s short! Maybe you can compromise and use it every weekend to just make the weekend a little bit more special!
If they require special washing I would think twice before using them every day. That being said I have 4 beautiful jadite bowls that I use every day and hand wash after every use. I just feel so happy eating my yogurt out of them. I also thing the size is just so much better than modern dishes. So there. I say if it is worth it to you to wash then it is best to use what you love.
When my husband and I got engaged I fell madly in love with this the waterford seahorse collection with a platinum band and I was bound and determined to use it every day. Why buy it if you aren’t going to use it. Then we remembered that you can’t put metal in the microwave. So we had to buy a couple place settings of regular dishes. AND to top it off, because our house is sooo darn tiny we don’t have anywhere to put them since we got the every day settings, so they are still in their boxes in a closet in the spare bedroom. BUMMER!
Use it so you wear it out before you get sick of it! Get your money’s worth and when the time comes that you need a new set you will prbably be glad as I am sure your taste will have changed by then!
:)
It is true! You only live once, and if it makes you happy every day, then do it!! I’ve never been the type to buy something nice, and stare at it! Use it!
use it, everyday!
Definitely use it! I’ve always been a fan of using the things that are special to you every day because you get to be reminded of how special they are to you… every day!
hhmmm…i say COMPROMISE…if you use it all the time and Eric isn’t happy, that’s no good either…so use it MORE of the time…and kind of lower the bar on “special occaisons” lol…like, once a week for “date night” or Sundays or weekends…along with holidays, birthdays, etc….or something like that :-)
For me unless cutlery is pure silver like my grandmothers it should be used all the time. Who doesn’t want nice cutlery to go with their regular target plates. Hunni and I like to use it with out Corelle dishes on funny placemats. Makes it feel like ours.
I say use it!! I have a set of china that I have had since college that I have never used. Not once. But, I have used my nice set of silverware :) I may just have cereal in a china bowl tonight.