Should I use my dead grandmother's fancy china as everyday ware? - Page 2

[asraidevin]

I put mine away because I got freaked out about possible lead. i plan on storing mine. I think my stuff is fairly old it belonged to my great-grandmother.

[Mere]

Alright, you all haven't given me any clear consensus -  I needed an answer !

It is a Lenox china set, and from what I gather it IS dishwasher safe.  However, I couldn't figure anything out about lead; I'd probably need to get one of those test kits.  Thank you for that recommendation though, as I never would've thought about that. 

Maybe I can consolidate/purge more in our kitchen and figure out a spot to store the set.  Perhaps it would be fun to pull out some different plates when it is a someone's birthday or a holiday, who knows?  Meanwhile, ds1 (6) is learning to do dishes, and has already broken two plates by bumping them lightly against the cast iron sink.  Yikes..

[cristeen]

If the compny is still around, contact them w the pattern name and ask about lead.

Personally i wouldnt use gilt as an everyday dish. But maybe a Friday night tradition, we get out the nice plates and eat our pizza off of them (or whatever silly tradition you want to make).

[enkmom]

Can you give it to a sibling or cousin who would love to have Grandma's china?  I have inherited things that were not to my taste, and I stored them out of guilt. When I gave some items away, I still got to see them being used and loved by someone who really appreciated them, and I am sure that Grandma wanted her antique linens to be enjoyed, not stored in a box in my basement.

[SleeplessMommy]

Do the lead test first.

If you need more plates, you can get them from replacements.com. You can also sell there, at about 25% of what they would sell it for, if the pattern is popular.