Do you set a more formal table for holidays and special occasions or have you become more casual?

Ruth n Jersey

Ruth n Jersey

Well-known Member
Location
Northern New Jersey
I still like to get out the tablecloth, and best dinnerware for special occasions. I noticed more and more people are using paper everything. I have nothing against that, and several people have asked me lately why I bother with the "good" dishes as we use to call them. I tell them I like my good set, enjoy having dinner in my dining room, and use many of the odd pieces for serving that were my Moms and Grandmothers. Sometimes when I put them out I can visualize my Mom doing the same thing years ago. I even remember what she liked to serve in some of them. I get great satisfaction in doing the same thing. I don't know how much longer I will be able to do this so I am enjoying it while it lasts. The photo is of my Moms cocoa set. I display it in my china closet. cocoa set.jpg
 

>I don't know how much longer I will be able to do this so I am enjoying it while it lasts.<

Those are the key words, Ruth'n. I like to gussy-up the holiday table as well. The past few years, though, my sons and their wives have invited me to their homes for either Christmas or Thanksgiving dinner. The oldest son and spouse do a more traditional table than the younger one and his. But the younger son has a huge family (6 kids)...I'm pretty sure that if I give them one of my holiday dish sets, I will be seeing it on their table. I plan to do that this year.

Your cocoa set is lovely! I have an old tea set that my great-aunt bought in Japan back in the 30s. So very pretty.
 
Lovely set Ruth :) I did used to set the table with china. I love a beautiful table. I don't have that china anymore, so I just bought a bunch of cheap plates that I like. Our family gatherings used to get anywhere from around 30 to 50 people in the house. So... we often ended up seating people wherever and many times using plastic plates etc. I really do love a pretty table though :) I try to buy my daughters a set of Royal Albert bone china for a wedding gift.
 

Last edited:
When I had the family over for holiday dinners, yes, I went all out at least by my standards of dressing up the table settings for our gatherings. To me it was a special time and I wanted the family to feel special and enjoy the entire experience around them visually. Those were some very fun times and they appreciated it.
 
I must remember that when you say 'holidays', you mean Christmas, Easter etc.... Yes, we do dress the table for such festivals, although we don't actually celebrate them. It's just an excuse to get the best crockery and the cut glass out of the cupboard.

We also sit down to dinner at the table on Sunday - again it's nice to have a special meal once a week, even if we just use our everyday table ware.
 
When it was my own home, yes. Tablecloth, china, crystal, silver, the whole nine yards for holidays and other special occasions. Sunday dinner or company coming over still called for a tablecloth, nice tableware. Nobody ever dressed up, though...kind of weird to sit down to a well-dressed table when the kids/teens and their parents were dressed in jeans or shorts. One thing I adamantly refused to allow, though, was bikini tops for the girls/women and bare chests for the little ones and the men.

I guess I'm just stuffy:(

It was rare that we used paper plates except for picnic suppers either in our back yard or away from home at a park.
 
Love your Mom's cocoa set Ruth! We only have small family gatherings, and very rarely anymore since no relatives live in our state. But I always used a nice tablecloth, and regular dinnerware, never used paper cups or plates, even if having a barbeque. I always use paper napkins though, no cloth ones here.
 
For Philstivus I sweep and vacuum the dining table and push all the junk that's stored on it to the floor. Then I set down several layers of newspaper and put all the alcohol on one end, all the drugs on the other and of course the hallowed Philstivus hamster cage gets the honor of middle-of-the-table position.
 
I use my good dishes and cutlery and put a nice tablecloth, napkins and candles on the table. A bottle of good wine and special favorite food makes it a special occasion, even if the gathering is small.
 
FazeFour said:
>I don't know how much longer I will be able to do this so I am enjoying it while it lasts.<

Those are the key words, Ruth'n. I like to gussy-up the holiday table as well. The past few years, though, my sons and their wives have invited me to their homes for either Christmas or Thanksgiving dinner. The oldest son and spouse do a more traditional table than the younger one and his. But the younger son has a huge family (6 kids)...I'm pretty sure that if I give them one of my holiday dish sets, I will be seeing it on their table. I plan to do that this year.
Your cocoa set is lovely! I have an old tea set that my great-aunt bought in Japan back in the 30s. So very pretty.
Click to expand...
I love the older pieces that have been in the family for years. So nice of you to give your son's family one of your holiday dish sets. There will come a time when I will do that also.
 
I use all the fancy stuff but only on holidays. It gives me an excuse to arrange a vaseful of flowers for the table which I love to do. :eek:
 

You must log in or register to reply here.

Back
Top