Anonymous wrote:There’s no right answer, it depends on how you use the house and your preferences.

Fair point.

We have 1-2 couples stay with us on occasion, but we also invite other people to join for dinner. If the weather is accommodating in the summer, then we sit outside. But there can be rain and I don’t want to use the melamine then.

Get extra. They break.

A nice sterling silver silverware set is key for dinner parties. Many sets should be for 18 +/-people roughly, so get that many plates.

Twice the number of plates as places for heads in beds.

We have 10 at home and it's not always enough. I like lots of salad plates and sauces for random snacks etc. but my 5 year old will get a plate to put a cookie on to eat.

There’s no right answer, it depends on how you use the house and your preferences.

How many are typically staying at the house?

How often do you run the dishwasher, and what is a full dishwasher load also considering the items used to prepare the food?
That and the number of people you regularly have saying there should give you your answer.

We have a weekend home we mainly use in the summer and have melamine plates for the hardscape and the feet. But I’m now turning to the inside as we are out here more in the winter and eat inside. Serving for 8? 12?

TIA.