Will Break for Bargains...

I am a crazy bargain hunter.  If I need something, unless it's absolutely critical, I will do without it unless I can find it on sale.  Then, there is the category of something I'd like to have but am not willing to buy unless I find it for really cheap.  Sometimes I purposely seek out an item -- I know it's on sale or clearance and I intentionally go out to  buy.  Then there's my (probably) psychotic habit of gleaning for bargains when I am out hunting and gathering for other purposes.  That's what I consider my "I Break for Bargains" shopping method.

Tabletop - Yellow, Green & White

 This is our table setting for tonight.  We're having Jim (from the Art of Gardening) and his wife (blogless & my BFF) over.  I have made the spinach salad appetizer and TBG is making Alton Brown's meatless stronganoff, featuring portobello mushrooms.  Earlier today, I baked an apple pie for dessert.  Our table is yellow and green, using thrift store, dollar store, Pier 1, supermarket (Wegmans), heirloom and modern bone china, plus every day stainless steel flatware elements.

Out With the Old, In with the New

It was time to sort through our collection of cloth napkins and refresh the stash.  There were styles and colors that represented different phases of our table-top lives and while many were still in good condition, others were quite ratty.  Ready for a change, last week I grabbed 12 cloth napkins found while perusing the clearance shelves at Wegmans.  Wegmans carries a plethora of tabletop accoutrements that are decent quality and designed to be cycled out of merchandise at the end of every season.  Trolling their clearance merchandise is one of my favorite activities.

Old/New, High/Low

 I love the versatility of the new plain white bone china we are using for our everyday tabletop.  The plate to the left is Mikasa "Solitude" which we registered for approximately 30 years ago.  I picked it because I thought it had a timeless look.  Yes, it does look a little bit "80's and the pattern is now discontinued, but there are still new patterns like it designed today.  It isn't too fussy but it does look "fancy." You can't easily tell the difference between old and new here.

Give Me the Bone!

China, that is.  For dinnerware, bone china is my first choice.  In it's purest form, it's white, translucent, streamlined, durable and neutral.  Are you looking for an everyday dinnerware solution that can be dressed up, dressed down, put in the dishwasher and microwave, that looks good on just about any table?  Then consider going with white bone china for your tabletop.

When we first moved to our small house, I enjoyed eating on our fine china on a daily basis.  The big drag was that it couldn't be cleaned in the dishwasher.  Our formal pattern has a silver rim which makes it impossible to microwave and unsuitable for the dishwasher.  In order to save space in our cabinets, I moved on to clear glass plates, bowls and mugs.  That made sense at the time because they were affordable, durable and essentially "neutral" in color and design.