Do people still buy china? FB prices are absurd!

[Anonymous]

Buying new china is silly. Find old quality sets in antique stores or online.

The best "China" that's affordable comes from 1950s and earlier Japan.

[Anonymous]

OP, I did recently, more settings for my China. What I did was keep an eye open on FB marketplace until I found what I wanted close enough to me and a reasonable amount. They aren’t all priced the same…I think I paid $400 for 8 settings and a ton of serving pieces.

I wouldn’t trust people to ship china. No recourse if it all breaks along the way.

[Anonymous]

The best way to gauge actual value on eBay isn’t by looking at the price the items are listed, it’s by filtering for “sold” items.

There’s often a big difference!

I come from a long line of fine china enthusiasts, and I’d love to add to my collection, but I never see real bargains for old Spode or Royal Doulton or Wedgwood bone china.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Do people still register for china and/or but it themselves?

I’m in my early 50s and know it was a thing when we got married in the 90s, but do people still spend that kind of money on “fancy dishes”?

I was on FB marketplace and noticed someone is selling my china pattern for nearly $1k. I think it might have been 8 or 12 place settings (can’t recall). Seems absurd for FB marketplace despite the fact that more mainstream retail replacement services essentially charge an arm and a leg for pristine sets.

Just curious if there’s really a market for such things.

I’m also curious if people with “fancy dishes” reserve them for special occasions?

My dishes have always been on display in my china closet (is that even a thing with young people these days?) and used for the holidays and dinner parties when we eat in the dining room. Because our family is growing as relatives are getting married and having kids, I was toying with the idea of buying dinner plates in my pattern…until I had sticker shock. (I inherited three other sets of china, so I’ll just use another pattern at the kids’ table.)

I’m more curious about whether people still put clear plastic coverings on the “good” furniture in the living room, & then never let anybody use that furniture.

IME certain ethnic groups of a certain age still do.

And what ethnic groups would that be?

[Anonymous]

We got married 16 years ago and did not register for China because it seemed like a waste of money. We bought nice every day dishes and only just gave them away last year because we had broken a few over the years and no longer had enough plates. It would have cost $1000 to import replacements from Portugal because they're no longer sold in the US, so we just moved on to cheaper, basic dishes.

Regarding the market for fine china though - there is a subset of millennials that are living like our grandmothers! My 35 year old SIL has only antique brown furniture (that she got for a steal because nobody else wants it) and not one, not two, but THREE sets of fine China she received from two grannies and her godmother. She also quilts and has old lady artwork and bedding. And she's not alone, all her friends are like this, too!

[Anonymous]

Start a regular dinner party with your girlfriends, rotate houses and use ALL your good stuff.

[Anonymous]

I will pay quite a bit to complete my collection of favorite dishware, since it's not produced anymore. And by "replace" I mean I'm prepared to buy a whole other set, since we use them regularly and pieces will get broken at some point.

So I think the vintage market in china always does steady business.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We got married 16 years ago and did not register for China because it seemed like a waste of money. We bought nice every day dishes and only just gave them away last year because we had broken a few over the years and no longer had enough plates. It would have cost $1000 to import replacements from Portugal because they're no longer sold in the US, so we just moved on to cheaper, basic dishes.

Regarding the market for fine china though - there is a subset of millennials that are living like our grandmothers! My 35 year old SIL has only antique brown furniture (that she got for a steal because nobody else wants it) and not one, not two, but THREE sets of fine China she received from two grannies and her godmother. She also quilts and has old lady artwork and bedding. And she's not alone, all her friends are like this, too!

Grandmillennials, we call them.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I use my wedding china everyday. Kids starting eating off it when they were just over toddler age and are now teens, and no pieces have been broken. Best thing is that they don’t have metal rims, so they go in the dishwasher, microwave etc.

Having sets of fine china that are never used is pointless! Enjoy them!

Exactly, the point is to use the stuff you get from your wedding

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Replacements has always had a stiff markup. They need it to pay for their advertising and their giant warehouse and corporate service reliability (vs. independent little sellers and homeowners). Their customers are people who just need one rare piece or who are very price insensitive.

Replacements pays very little to buy and is very picky. I've heard and read that it's pointless to try to sell to them. The cost of shipping is about equal to what they offer to pay if they want the pattern (garage sale prices), and they don't offer until they've seen the goods.

I've been told that sets are near impossible to sell. I have 3. Banged up late 1800s Wedgewood (chipped but sentimental from great-great grandparents), a fine Wedgewood set from grandma (1950s), and a 1960s German cabbage rose set from a great aunt.

My sister wants to get rid of another great aunt's Noritake but it might have lead in it. She offloaded our grandma's large set of off-brand holly Christmas china to Goodwill before a recent move. I wouldn't take it.

Eventually, we'll have my mother's "not supposed to go in the dishwasher" gold-edged pattern.

So far I've never hosted a large holiday meal since I'm still in a child position. And I'm in my 50s. I'm honestly not sure what to do about the several additional sets that might be inbound. Since they are worth so little but are very storeable, I'm okay to wait to see if fashions will change. But they probably won't.

OP, I have two pieces of advice for you.

1) Call the FB seller and tell them you're looking for X plates for $200 and to contact you if they are ever interested. Maybe you'll end up with the whole set when it doesn't sell. Just don't ask upfront for the whole set for a pittance - that makes people upset.

And 2) try setting up a search on eBay. If I wanted to add pieces, I'd be looking for pieces from a set that was being parted out by a small China & Glass Ebayer or an individual clearing out their own stuff. That's where you can get the best prices in my opinion.

This saddens me that you’ve never hosted a holiday and you’re in your 50s. I refused to travel for Christmas once having kids and have hosted anyone who would come yearly. But we also have big dinners for all our kids birthdays too using the formal dining room. My grandparents on both sides are in their mid 90s so I don’t think it should matter that you’re in a child position. I hopefully will be a child until I’m 70, but by that time my kids will be long gone and wouldn’t have memories of my holidays. My mom often helps me host and we love to cook together.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I will pay quite a bit to complete my collection of favorite dishware, since it's not produced anymore. And by "replace" I mean I'm prepared to buy a whole other set, since we use them regularly and pieces will get broken at some point.

So I think the vintage market in china always does steady business.

Right! I’m mid 30s but if my favorite set comes up I would buy it. It’s a hundred years old though.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Replacements has always had a stiff markup. They need it to pay for their advertising and their giant warehouse and corporate service reliability (vs. independent little sellers and homeowners). Their customers are people who just need one rare piece or who are very price insensitive.

Replacements pays very little to buy and is very picky. I've heard and read that it's pointless to try to sell to them. The cost of shipping is about equal to what they offer to pay if they want the pattern (garage sale prices), and they don't offer until they've seen the goods.

I've been told that sets are near impossible to sell. I have 3. Banged up late 1800s Wedgewood (chipped but sentimental from great-great grandparents), a fine Wedgewood set from grandma (1950s), and a 1960s German cabbage rose set from a great aunt.

My sister wants to get rid of another great aunt's Noritake but it might have lead in it. She offloaded our grandma's large set of off-brand holly Christmas china to Goodwill before a recent move. I wouldn't take it.

Eventually, we'll have my mother's "not supposed to go in the dishwasher" gold-edged pattern.

So far I've never hosted a large holiday meal since I'm still in a child position. And I'm in my 50s. I'm honestly not sure what to do about the several additional sets that might be inbound. Since they are worth so little but are very storeable, I'm okay to wait to see if fashions will change. But they probably won't.

OP, I have two pieces of advice for you.

1) Call the FB seller and tell them you're looking for X plates for $200 and to contact you if they are ever interested. Maybe you'll end up with the whole set when it doesn't sell. Just don't ask upfront for the whole set for a pittance - that makes people upset.

And 2) try setting up a search on eBay. If I wanted to add pieces, I'd be looking for pieces from a set that was being parted out by a small China & Glass Ebayer or an individual clearing out their own stuff. That's where you can get the best prices in my opinion.

This saddens me that you’ve never hosted a holiday and you’re in your 50s. I refused to travel for Christmas once having kids and have hosted anyone who would come yearly. But we also have big dinners for all our kids birthdays too using the formal dining room. My grandparents on both sides are in their mid 90s so I don’t think it should matter that you’re in a child position. I hopefully will be a child until I’m 70, but by that time my kids will be long gone and wouldn’t have memories of my holidays. My mom often helps me host and we love to cook together.

I have had a few at-home Christmases. Finally bought my own full set of Christmas tree ornaments and lights in my mid-40s. But we have a small house and our elders have the big house. And we are healthy and calm about winter driving. My only sibling just moved to the other side of the country. So that's a new wrinkle.

Life is sometimes different than we expected growing up. And that's okay. Though that doesn't help the fine china market much. We still have holiday traditions and fun things. They're just usually done at "Grandma's house".

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Do people still register for china and/or but it themselves?

I’m in my early 50s and know it was a thing when we got married in the 90s, but do people still spend that kind of money on “fancy dishes”?

I was on FB marketplace and noticed someone is selling my china pattern for nearly $1k. I think it might have been 8 or 12 place settings (can’t recall). Seems absurd for FB marketplace despite the fact that more mainstream retail replacement services essentially charge an arm and a leg for pristine sets.

Just curious if there’s really a market for such things.

I’m also curious if people with “fancy dishes” reserve them for special occasions?

My dishes have always been on display in my china closet (is that even a thing with young people these days?) and used for the holidays and dinner parties when we eat in the dining room. Because our family is growing as relatives are getting married and having kids, I was toying with the idea of buying dinner plates in my pattern…until I had sticker shock. (I inherited three other sets of china, so I’ll just use another pattern at the kids’ table.)

I’m more curious about whether people still put clear plastic coverings on the “good” furniture in the living room, & then never let anybody use that furniture.

Sort of funny but I have all the good furniture. I have Schumacher wallpaper and drapes, Baker dining set. I put plastic over my kids’ chairs (it’s actually a nice chair covering I bought) and depending on the meal, plastic over my favorite tablecloths (kids loooooovee crab legs or some red pasta dishes).

I’m a big believer in just putting plastic on it if it makes it more enjoyable for everyone. Plus it’s less cleaning for me.

Kids have very fond memories of using the formal dining room.

And I’m white. It probably is a white person thing.

[Anonymous]

I do not agree with OP’s premise that the FB China is overpriced. It is underpriced, if anything.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I was married 20 years ago, and decided not to register for China because my husband had a set he inherited from his grandmother. We’ve used it less than 10 times in the 20 years.

Since then we have been offered five other full sets from elderly relatives, and even an elderly neighbor.

I’m shocked you are finding them so expensive on Facebook. I see sets pop up in our buy nothing group, and cheap on Facebook regularly. And I’ve seen multiple sets at yard sales.

I've been offered so many sets of china. When I cleaned out my parents' house, I had access to so many more. Too much.

We decided to use our china every day. But stopped using our wedding china when children were small and never really returned to it.