Heather from Chesapeake, Virginia emailed me yesterday with this question:

"I was wondering if you could email me or blog about where to buy white dinnerware dishes. I am looking for a set and there are so many on the market…but I don’t want to spend a huge amount of money!  I saw in your ’Five Fall Savory Soups’ post that you have a nice set.  Could you please tell me where you bought them?  I am looking for a durable set on a frugal budget."

Sure Heather!

First, let me say I can’t remember the last time I bought a dinnerware set with plates, bowls and mugs.  I prefer to buy open stock plates rather than have extra mugs or bowls I won’t use.  Matching basic plates is perfectly fine for everyday, but when it comes to holidays or dinner parties, I say mix up your settings for more visual appeal. 

That said, it’s so helpful to have a good set of plain white dishes that you can work with on a daily basis, or a basic white dinner plate that you can use when setting a special occasion table.

Here are a few choices:

I like Crate and Barrel’s Essential White plates you can purchase by themselves.  Six white dinner plates will run you $28, the salad plates are $4 each.  Z Gallerie’s St. Helena dinner plates are on sale for $28 for four, salad plates are four for $24.

Read the rest of this entry »