In our area there’s an organization that collects dishes, flatware, linens, furniture, etc. and gives them to anyone in need. Often these are people who’ve just moved from a shelter into an apartment, or recent immigrants, who have nothing more than a change of clothing and a few personal items. The organization has not only been delighted to get china and other housewares, but they also accept used beds and mattresses as long as there are no stains; none of the other groups will accept mattresses. Maybe there’s a similar group near you.
It would make me too sad to get rid of my grandmother’s china (unless I passed it down to my daughter or son). She loved it and it would feel disrespectful to her to just toss it. Plus I have plenty of room to store it. I use it in rotation with the other sets of china I inherited.
I have 2 sets of my own so no, I didn’t want any of the 5 sets my mom owned. My dad wanted them out of the house so I left them on the curb in front of my house and they were quickly scooped up.
My SIL will take them off your hands. She’ll just stuff them in the storage units (yes, more than one) where she put everything from my in laws’ house after they moved to assisted living & from her MIL’s place when she passed away.
Me, I have too much of my own stuff my kids won’t want. I have no issue saying no to other people’s stuff. I did keep a few assorted pieces from my parents & in laws. The kids didn’t really want anything, although S took some dishes & silverware that are still in a box a year later.
It’s tough parting with things that we know meant a lot to others, but we the memories are the most important things … not the actual “things.”
I love my china and have been using it at least one or more times each month during the pandemic and I plan to keep doing this in the future.
My MIL originally had two full sets of Wedgewood Grape Vine china (white/blue and blue/white). When MIL passed away my SIL stored the china, but kept telling H she did not want it. After all the years MIL had the china many pieces had broken or were badly chipped, so SIL got rid of those. H and I packed up all of the china during a couple of trips to Bermuda and carried it all back home as D2 said she wants it one day. I have room to store it and actually use it with my other china each month.
I was thinking about that just this week. Often things go in and out of favor, but I’m thinking that formal china use is probably gone for good. (Hopefully there are no young couples asking for china on their wedding registers… the such a vast assortment available from family, friends, thrift shops etc. If it’s all gathered in boxes well labeled, I don’t see it as a crime to hold on to it assuming there is space. But first sniff of possible interest, give it away for free.
I was also wondering about good silverware. I use my mother’s and hope my son and his fiance will want to choose that OR the new set in basement from my 25th work anniversary gift. I assume there is at least from silver content value (?), and it is small to store.
Look up the pattern on Replacements.com. You would probably get about half on Ebay. Sometimes the serving bowls, platters and dinner plates have more value than other pieces and might be worth listing. If it’s not a popular pattern, donate to charity. Unless midcentury modern or a collectible, china is not really valued much anymore. You might be surprised at what IS valuable in the house that you wouldn’t think of - vintage board games, linens, etc. Consignment shops usually offer very little. You could advertise locally for a reseller who wants to buy all of the estate leftovers to liquidate if you don’t have the time or energy to sell on Facebook or Ebay. Good luck with the clean out.
My mother has silver from her family from her wedding. She only had 6 place settings and always wanted more, so in the early 1980s when people started trading it in for the silver content, I bought a few more place settings for Christmas gifts, a carving set, and a few other pieces.
Then many years later I found a whole 8 piece place setting on ebay for $400. I bought that and it is now my silver.
The only thing of value that we all fight over (kidding!) is that silver. We all claim it as ours every time it is brought out for a meal.
None of us really care, but I may end up ‘settling’ with my siblings for the extra serving pieces. There is also a cabinet of my grandmothers NOT valuable china, several tea sets, some trivets and other weird things. Again, there will NOT be a fight over these things.
I had a friend who searched the resale shops for china for a wedding event. She said it was far cheaper to buy her own, than rent pieces! Donated them after the event.
Piano sideline: We donated my parent’s baby grand to a chapel. They love it.
My SIL was trying to get rid of her Mom’s China. She put it on Craigslist and sold for $25, that’s it.
I have my mothers small set, which is beautiful and I do use it when we sit in the dining room for holidays, or a special occasion. It makes me feel close to her.
I did try replacements.com to sell the old china I had. The shipping costs seemed high and they were going to evaluate each piece and I would have to pay for return shipping of any piece they didn’t want. It didn’t sound like I would make any money.
Out of curiosity, those who have more than a couple sets of china…where/how do you store it??? (I am the least china interested person on the planet but I do think about practical things like storage and I would be overwhelmed with having to stow several sets of dishes!)
Do we still have a quote function here? I had wanted to quote this.
I have a childhood friend (male) who has inherited various patterns of china, stemware, collectibles, etc. It’s all lovely, but it is just too much for me. Honest to goodness, he and his wife have purchased furniture for the sole purpose of holding on to all of these items. They have FOUR curio cabinets in their not-particularly-large dining room filled to the brim with china and stemware. It’s not really artfully arranged because there is too much of it. Like @kelsmom they have not one but two storage units filled with “stuff.” I really don’t get it and my suggestions of helping his daughters by dealing with it now are met with, “they can deal with it.” I am working VERY hard to make sure ds will primarily only need to deal with my clothing when I die. There will be a few other things around he probably won’t want, but I view my purging and minimizing NOW as a gift to him later.
I held onto my mother’s china for quite some time after my parents died (nearly 30 years), but we probably only used it once a year, if that. When we downsized we sold it along with a lot of other things in a living estate sale. It was 12 place settings of Rosenthal with multiple serving pieces (oh, and 18 cups and saucers), and I think the whole lot of it went for about $350.
I agree with others to either start using it for everyday use or donate it to someone who can. I like the suggestions of finding a specific charity that helps people getting back on their feet again.
We have a large utility room in our downstairs with shelves lining both sides walls. We have too much storage space for extra dishes!
Aside…the only thing my kids both want from my house is a really nice Revere Ware tall stock pot…not a style made anymore. It was purchased in 1953. Gets used a lot.
