REUSE all the way!

We never use paper plates or the like, and I also hate plastic dishes and drinking glasses. When we moved and had no dishwasher for weeks, I hand washed the dishes in the bathroom sink. If I don't have enough dishes for a party, I borrow the missing pieces from my mother or a friend and run the dishwasher if necessary.

Blue Willow and white ironstone.

I use a mix of pottery inside and have a collection of enamel to use for larger family gatherings and for outside. I do use paper when we have having a large party.

This is my silly story. When I moved into my first house, after living in an apartment for 15 years, I had my parents out to visit. My Mom saw that I had a setting for 8 of the Corel Blue Cornflower, which I understand you can't get anymore. So, long story short ... she stole it ... okay, she asked if she could have it. So ... what was I going to do? Say, "No?" lol --- So we went shopping ... at StupidStore ... sorry SuperStore and bought the White Bistro settings that they have ... It's simple, good size (except for the "soup bowl") and has that restaurant feel of heft. I've broken and chipped a few pieces, but it's easy to replace. And, No, I would never used disposable dishes ... It's just dumb ... for many reasons ... but mostly, just tacky.

Both! Mostly regular dinner dishes, but after a long day of gardening/shopping, whatever, a quickie meal is great on paper plates, then they go in the fireplace (sans food scraps, of course). Our holiday dinners are early, usually 2:00pm - 5:00pm, to avoid sleeping on a swollen belly. Paper plates are great for after-holiday refrigerator raids - no plastic utensils, though - and to give the manual and automatic dishwashers a break. As in all things, a balance is easily achieved without complete anarchy of one over the other.

We use to use divided biodegradable plates for large gatherings (still do for Thansgiving - 5 divisions bc of food touching issues!) but I have found Corelle divided plates online at World Kitchen 20 for $39.00. Stacks tight easy to clean & last forever!

Clear glass plates... Inexpensive and you can add a splash of color as it fits the occasion.

I have several plate styles and would never consider using disposables. I have basic white for 25, white with a gold rim for 40 and colorful reuseable platic for 50. It takes no time to wash them in the dishwasher and most people appreciate both eating from china and also that nothing is going into a landfill. I also use old silverware sets and never use plastic utensils. If this sounds extravagant consider the cost of disposables. If you do any entertaining reuseables are the most economic choice.

When I host a large party I rent china, glassware and cutlery - I don't have to wash it (return it dirty) and it saves a huge amount of landfill!

Love my fiestaware. Have it in a variety of colors and they mix and match well. I try to pick extras when they go on sale.

I have temporarily moved to another state to assist my elderly mother and adult disabled brother with their day to day activities. In my mother's home she absolutely insists that we use paper plates about 80% of the time and paper towels for EVERYTHING except bathing! It drives me crazy because I am very much into recycling and reusing. I do all the shopping, laundry, cooking and cleaning so it shouldn't be an issue of convenience for her but nothing will change her mind. In my own home I use regular dishes and cloth napkins for everyday. I have a huge collection of rags that I keep on hand for spills, cleaning etc. I do keep a small supply of paper towels, plates, cups and plastic utensils on hand for emergencies but we rarely use them. I had an eight pack of paper towels that lasted me about 14 months. I do admit that for really nasty spills (sticky or stinky) it is preferable to use the paper towels. I am not a fanatic but do try to be responsible. My mom is careful in other ways (she is now recycling most everything else) so I guess we all pick our battles and do what we can for what makes sense to us.

In my 20s I had Pfaltzgraff. In my 30s I realized it was too heavy & prone to chips and those gray flatware marks. So I switched to the ever-versatile Corelle - the "Enhancements" pattern. Lucky enough to live near Corning NY & got great deals on all kinds of pieces in the factory store. Corelle is great, light, easy to clean, scratch and chip resistant, just about perfect. Been collecting Royal Worcester's "Evesham Vale" since my 20s but that's for special occasions [and the occasional "bad day"]. Use paper plates only for eggs and reheating pizza slices since eggs and cheese can be difficult to clean on any dinnerware.

The only time I use paper plates is when I have more people over than I have plates to serve on

Paper for picnics and large outdoor bbq parties only.

My dear grandmother bought us a beautiful Denby set as a wedding present and we use it every single day, for almost 12 years now. It is impossible to replace so we have lost a couple of pieces, but I have a lovely reminder of her every time I grab a snack or a drink.

I use paper only when (1) moving, (2) having very large outdoor party - more than 40 people, and (3) after surgery. If I still had a young child, birthday parties.

I only use disposable when we have a party.
Small dinner parties we use reusable and in general everyday use as well

Disposables for an outdoor picnic, but for a sit-down dinner, I prefer actual china.

my husband and I use heavy duty disposable and it drives me crazy. I dont have a dishwasher right now, so I let it go, but in a month or so when my dishwasher comes...I will try and change this habit. it is so wastefull!

I love attending my local auctioneer's antique and fine furniture auctions. There are always bargains to be had in the crockery department, and I have bought a few fine china tea sets and pretty dinner services (or part thereof) for an absolute bargain. Spode, Royal Doulton, Johnson Bros all going for a song - I guess fine china is a bit old fashioned these days, hence the lack of bidders!

For everyday and most special occasions I definitely use my everyday dishes or my china. Confession : had 22 at my house for Thanksgiving and set pretty tables (3 + a kid's table!) but I used paper plates! Pretty ones on top of sturdy. No one complained and clean up was easier.

Food taste best on real plates!!

I even do cloth napkins for outdoor dining. No plastic ware at all. I do it because it pleases my family so much! A simple centerpiece and cloth napkins and matching placements and the kids always comment how I make family gatherings feel so special. Small pleasures I guess! For major holidays I'll make a special name place setting for each and they will post their name/plate on facebook!

BTW...I went to ikea 7 years ago and bought 30 plates/bowls at less than $1.00 each. I've used them too many times to count and I don't care if anyone breaks one.

yeah.. food on plates is quite delicious &memorable for your family and friends alike !

A@rubylove2shop...food tastes better on a pretty table too. There is one problem. Now, I have to keep it up cuz the kids look forward to see how I decorate the table.

The only time I've used paper plates is at large outdoor barbeques. Even at that, I've still used my rather extensive stash of wicker plate holders that were so popular many years ago! (I just stashed the holders out in the garage wrapped up in a kitchen garbage bag.)

Darzy I agree it definitely is the whole experience of "dressing" the table and good for the environment. Most of all I find it impossible to cut meat, or anything really, on a paper plate. A wine glass instead of a plastic cup is my preference so I have plenty available for guests. I could not find pics of my table dressed out. Here are some pics of food made in my new oven on my newest plates, just love how well the food shows up.

I use real dishes and flatware everyday, all day. I save cloth napkins for special occasions though.

We have two sets of dishes, three sets of flatware, and plenty of wine and drinking glasses. We rarely use paper plates in our house and we never use plastic cutlery or plastic cups. I can't stand the thought of all those plastic products sitting in the landfills for who knows how long. I really dislike the idea of using something once and then throwing it in the trash-how wasteful!

The only times I remembered using paper plates were after bringing home a new baby and the last days before moving in the old house followed by the first days in the new one. Somehow it made taste food like at a picnic in a somewhat stressful situation.
For the rest I really enjoy setting a nice table.

There is no reason to use disposable anything, unless you are out of your home and with no facilities to wash. For example for parties I reuse wine, spirit and soft drink glass bottles, just cut them as drinking glasses, they are great and inexpensive, the best part is that you always have plenty

how do you cut them? do you have to smooth them afterwards? with what? I would like to find a use for wine bottles other than recycling bin.

I use paper plates for painting with watercolors with the grand babies
I just bought 30 plastic plates from Sur La Table for partys

@rubyloves2shop --- check this http://www.glassetchingsecrets.com/blog/home-made-bottle-cutter/

Even when I remodeled my kitchen I found it easier to use real dishes and glasses than to use paper. It made me feel more normal in all the chaos.

My daily dishes are pretty, English mismatched china. I purposely buy them this way from antique shops. Totally cute patterns & don't have to spend a fortune to have great china for every day use!

If I break one...no harm no foul & no reason to buy a matched replacement piece!

To use disposable dishes simply because you don't have a dishwasher is crazy. I don't have one either, but I have this really cool thing built into my kitchen...it's called a sink. They really work quite well!

hey anjin12 thanks for that link ! I checked it out and will get hubby to help me set this up so we can give it a try on our wine bottles...

Always reusable.

Reusable for many reasons, but most importantly the environment. Reduce, reuse, recycle.

Normal every day dishes are used all the time and I do use small paper plates here and there for quick snacks. Never ever use a foam plate/cup- that stuff is so gross!

Restaurants and food vendors here use foam plates and containers for carry out. Presuming they're in good condition, I wash and save them to re-use for occasions when I'd normally want a disposable item (e.g., giving a worker baked goods to take home). I'm not fond of plastic, but anyone using my back patio and pool drinks from a re-usable plastic glass. That includes me. If we don't break the glass, my dog is guaranteed to do so.

Thank you if you take time to read this. I'm not perfect "but" have made conscientious strides in this area of environmental ease where I can (home, camping versus take out). If I can change one mindset from disposable to reusable, it's a step forward.

For use at home I have inexpensive everyday plates plus better
china that can accommodate gatherings up to 20. I purchased inexpensive
reusable utensils and have a mix of glassware and plastic glasses used for both
indoors and outdoors. Honestly if something breaks (and it has), it's just
stuff, keep the memory of the special dish, move on, perspective. For camping,
we do bring paper plates but our group has switched to reusable serviceware for
most of our needs. We try to wash the plastic solo-type cups for more uses
(refer to not perfect above).

I don't have as much of an issue with the use of paper as I do
with "disposable" plastic. When you throw out "disposable"
plastic plates and utensils (both Solo brand and other), what exactly do you
think is happening with them? Where do you think they are going? (http://recyclenation.com/2015/03/how-to-recycle-solo-cups).

Serviceware and utensils labeled as biodegradable have to go to
a commercial composting facility and if your area doesn't have one, putting
them out to the curb for recycling means they go into the landfill. People
think they can be tossed in their home compost pile but they need more heat to
break down than your backyard compost can produce (Google it).

If you have a huge gathering you don't want to rent dishes for,
then I understand the benefit of paper but please don't buy plastic! There is a
cost and environmental savings in purchasing inexpensive reusable serviceware
versus purchasing disposable every time you need them. If you buy disposable
because you can't be bothered to wash them or it's just easier for faster clean up, that's another
issue entirely. I'm aware of the water being used for washing versus where
we are putting our garbage. You have to weigh the pros and cons for yourself.
We only have so much land space and the ocean (and lakes) should not be a
dumping ground but sadly is. It's also difficult to envision this from the convenience of our kitchens. It only takes a bit of awareness and conscience to
make a better choice.

It's much better for our environment to use everyday dishes instead of paper or plastic. Plus, food always tastes better on Corelle, glass, or china! We only used disposable plates when we moved to our house last year until we got moved in and had time to set the kitchen up. We did have to wait until my husband installed the dishwasher to use it since the people that lived in the house before us did not have one.

Yes. Reusable plates for 99% of the eating. Kids party, paper. Big, casual house party, paper. A million guests, paper.

bigrockfarm makes some valid points. I don't use disposable anything if I can help it. Outside the undeniable. As Bev said things taste better from real dishes as well. I do it more for environmental reasons . We moved to a small city from a very large one. I grew up seeing trash in the streets and waste. It disturbs me and I don't wish that for the next generation. We haven't set up our compost yet but we're getting the rest in order. We have to think about what we are leaving behind. Will it be dumps full of old diapers, plastic bags and red cups , or green gardens and trees. I'm hoping we can do better.

I probably have 15 or so different patterns,.3 are full sets of 8, 4 or 5 sets of 4, lots of 4 plates or bowls all kinds of dishes, I love them as you can tell. And,, we use them all! I can't remember the last time in used paper plates. Napkins are real too.

We used to have more but we had to down size when we moved. Moved two thousand miles. We had to decide how much to carry with us. I want to start hitting the flea market to collect them again. It's fun to display them too.