My cutoff is 12. That’s how many nice plates I have! 
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Nice picture. Most seem pretty casual, lots of plaid(which I like).
Holidays call for Chinet! I don’t have or care to have special dishes.
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We have a fairly small family so have never used paper plates at holidays. But, I can imagine if you have more than a dozen or so people at your home, it could be a big help.
I love Chinet; I’m actually using it as I type 
I have 4 sets of dishes, 2 from my mom: platinum band china and spode Christmas, my original china and my new stoneware I just bought last week to go with the new kitchen BUT I hate doing dishes, so I usually end up using pretty themed paper or chinet. I keep seeing the idea of using divided trays for holiday meals; thinking it’ll solve my family’s desire for more plate acreage and my desire to keep my food separated. Not sure which will win
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For up to 8 or 10 people, we can use the good china from my mom for a nice dinner. If more than that (for non-family entertaining … not that much family in CO), I switch to Corelle. LOTS of dinner plates, French White and various other white patterns. Some I got as cheap as 25cents each. They are thin, easy to put lots of them in the dishwasher. For groups more than 6, we usually serve from the breakfast bar as a buffet.
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If you go the disposable plate route, please consider paper instead of plastic!
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Hefty does a compostable eco-save line that is a good weight plate and there are companies that use pressed bamboo. Lots of good movement in the single use industry.
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I found compostable lunch trays!
100% Compostable Paper Plate 125-Pack 5-Compartment Bagasse School Lunch Tray, Heavy Duty Quality Disposable Tray, Eco-Friendly Made of Sugar Cane Fibers https://a.co/d/9EmcakQ
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I’m aghast at the paper/plastic! 
We may not dress to the nines, but our table sure does. No matter how many, all the shine and sparkle comes out. But, we’ve never had more than twelve. I do draw a line somewhere.
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I have 6 of everything, that’s the limit. This year we will reach the limit.
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One of my sibs and I switch off. It’s possible this year that my niece and her partner will host thanksgiving in their remodeled home, but it’s only the 15th, so who knows? 
The china, silver, and good glassware come out to play.
Honestly, these days we dress pretty casually. There’s typically some cooking still going on, and some of us are working too close to the gravy and carving to want to mess up the good clothes, aprons notwithstanding.
Some dresses and tights, twill trousers, button ups, henleys, stretchy step-above-leggings, tunic tops. Always decent, but never formal.
I kind of miss the days when the girls and the niblings started out in fancy dress on holidays, but not enough to force anyone to change it up.
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Thanksgiving is the one time all year we pull out the china, silver, cloth napkins, etc. That said, I have china settings for 16 (thanks, Mom) and some years when we had more guests we had to use Chinet. We didn’t want some of the guests getting the “real thing” and some not.
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We’re pretty casual. I might not wear my oldest pair of jeans but it will certainly be jeans 
. Probably not a sweater if we go to my MIL’s because she keeps her place very warm.
Lord knows what my kids will wear. My youngest has some goth ideas about fashion.
Their cousins are all older than them but super casual. Hoodies and logos are a definite possibility.
I would probably refrain from a logo myself but that’s about it. I hate getting dressed up and the holidays are very stressful or me as is so I definitely don’t go adding dressing up to my stress load.
But you do you! If dressing up 
makes you feel good go for it, but please realize dressing up makes some of us feel really bad so let other people do their own thing too.
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We gather at my sister’s home on Christmas Eve. Since many of us go there right after Christmas Eve church services, most are dressed up a bit. Thanksgiving and Christmas Day, pretty casual, jeans, hoodies, etc.
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Not quite pjs, but comfortable casual clothes is the norm. We typically get together with a few close friends for thanksgiving, xmas and new years eve. We hosted the new years eve parties for several years and there have been times when I’ve asked folks to “dress” up a bit - not formal, but just wear a nice sweater or a dress. There was one time when all the girls wanted to wear dresses and we decided we’d do family pictures - so everyone was nicely dressed and we took great pictures of each family.
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Thinking about it, my grandmother always made everyone dress up (I remember having my hair forcefully combed and painfully braided with ribbons!) and also always took a lot of staged family photos at any family holiday or event (everyone required to smile, pose, etc). That is probably why my mother encourages PJs, and resists ever having family photos taken. If someone tries to take a holiday family photo with my mother in it, she generally makes a rude face or gesture! But she loves cooking and getting out all the fancy china and dressing the table…
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I’m at the stage in life where comfort is key. But I do love to dress up. So holidays usually have two modes: Comfort Caftan (during the lounge/prep time) and then Glamour Caftan for the actual sit down portion of dinner.
I highly recommend…especially since my time in the kitchen is usually sipping a drink and keeping DH company as he works his culinary magic whilst the children assist him.
Some good caftans (in case anyone is interested in joining the movement):
The first caftan would be part of my lounge, the second one would be for the ‘fancy’ sit down portion of dinner.
We do go full out with china, wine glasses, silver ware. None of my stuff matches though because I pick stuff up at estate sales and then mix’n’match. I think it looks pretty that way.
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I appreciate all the replies!
Seems that casual is more popular than formal.
And, when I say I like to get dressed up, I don’t mean I want to don a green taffeta formal and tiara for a holiday dinner (though, TBH, I wouldn’t mind that one bit!).
I think it is the jeans, tennis shoes, baggy college sweatshirt look that is just too much for me. What many of you are describing as smart casual would be ideal to me. But, not everyone in dh’s family dresses that way. It is what it is.
Y’all can flame me, but I find pjs and a formally set table with fine linens, china, silver, and crystal to be incongruent.
But, absolutely to each his own!!!
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Even on Christmas morning?
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