H202 has it right. If you want confirmation, check what happened with Hummels.

I know it doesn't seem that way on this forum, but there are more single women in the US than married women, and those of us that are head of household, hardly have time to work and take a breath much less entertain using china and crystal. At 65 I'm just happy if the dishes make it out of the dishwasher and into a cabinet!!

After more than 30 years of lugging bone china and sterling silver for several moves and only using them a few times, we decided to get rid of them. The china was donated to charity. We looked into selling the silver but prices were so low and smelting paid much more. It is a little sad but no more storing things we don’t use.

I think that it may be kinder when if someone has an opinion that will hurt feelings, such as the deleted 'old and sad' that was above, just add 'IMO' at the end of your statement, if you must make the statement at all.

People of all ages, income levels, taste and backgrounds participate in these forums. What each of us say IS 'in our opinion'. It doesn't take much time to add to a comment that may likely offend/hurt the OP stating that it is just YOUR opinion, if you feel the need to say something hurtful at the time.

Let the piling on begin!

So we ended up passing on the china cabinet we found the other day, mainly because as a result of this process we have now selected the type of table and rug we want, and that cabinet wouldn’t quite go with it. We’ll probably start with buying the table, then the rug, then a china cabinet. But whereas we were unconvinced about whether to get a china cabinet at all before posting this question, the discussion here has helped us decide that we’ll definitely get one.

@dyhgarden - your china cabinet is AWESOME and thank you for NOT painting it.

Lest my brief, earlier comment indicate otherwise, I, too, have a china cabinet that's mostly filled with china and crystal I've inherited, along with a silver service and table linens. I always use these items when I have guests which also brings back very happy memories of the many dinners served on it with relatives and friends who are no longer around.

Alas, it will all probably end up at Goodwill when I kick the bucket. So be it. That's a younger generation's loss, not mine.

Go Vintage! Look at vintage MCM Heywood Wakefield, Drexel, etc. We have an EIK but have little cabinet space so the hutch was a great solution.

I love retro and have a hutch -unfortunately without glass but with a great combo of open and closed storage

I was very happy wnen my former MIL gave us two china sets(one for coffee one for tea) -I was in my early twenties, and another, simple set of dishes we had I didn't choose too-was a holiday present from my work, we all got same dishes))

I proudly displayed the coffee and tea service in our upper cab with glass...my first kitchen(just one wall one), one cabinet with glass insert.

and I don't think I was less busy young professional at this time)) and no one had money for ready made food or eating out either. It's now that I can eat out to my heart's content..twenty years later..

I don't have this coffee and tea set anymore-they're back at my ex's(much to disdain of his new wife..first she doesn't like them, second she thinks it's mediocre quality china))

Actually I had an opportunity to choose my first dishes-just everyday simple dishes-when I was 34 or something.

So yeah hell I'd be very happy if I had hand-me-downs

i'm very much fine with hand me downs, and with second hand, and actually the less but more inventive and "concentrated storage" pieces you have-the best you'll do in small space..and as I come from big cities and cramped quarters I kinda know how to handle smaller space.

many questions here on this very forum on how to find-very fast-rug that will go nevermind the quality of that rug, because is seen as something disposable..and art that will go nevermind whether loved or not, just the colors should match the sofa and the said rug- but that's not materialistic though, right? one just has to immediately own rugs and art as long as they go? That's a very smart spending I guess..

No, I'm very much under fifty yet, and if I'm going "to kick a bucket" any time soon,it won't be because of my advanced age, and my kids pretty much adore everything we have. Not a lot of china and crystal, but storage pieces can be used to keep just about everything if to think about it creatively.

Many folks in this country don't even come close to realize how spoiled they actually sound with "it's so eighties" and "it's so nineties" and "so outdated" and "so old" and "how I can take it from 2010 to 2017", claiming at the same time how different times are and how they need less and want less

no they want more-just differently:)

as for what's in style..everybody who opens books and magazines on design knows that hutches and china cabinets never went away. Why would they? They can be of many styles, they serve a purpose, and they're versatile.

But then after you open books and magazines on design for a long enough time you understand you can't dedicate too much effort to keep with what's going on this very moment. You'd be sabotaging yourself, at some point. And also, many different things are going simultaneously, this very moment, since Earth is big and people are many. Expose yourself to all the richness out there, breathe it in, pick your path, and follow it. Your Emerald City awaits.

Anthony, glad this discussion was useful and that you decided to buy a china cabinet. Your idea book looks like your preferences are for traditional dining rooms. Please post once your room is finished.

I’m in my early 40’s with children from 3 to 25 years old. There was no “grandmother’s” china for me to inherit and I didn’t grow up in a house with a china cabinet. That said, I have acquired a lovely collection of vintage crystal and plain white serveware that gets used almost daily and all goes into the dishwasher after. Will that ruin some items in the long term? I don’t know and don’t really care. When we sit down to eat together it makes every day feel a little special, especially for the little ones. My china cabinet came from Craigslist. There were many lovely options from quality furniture houses plus antiques at good prices. I say do what YOU like regardless of whether something is “in” or “out” of style! Our homes should be havens where memories are made, not showpieces of current fashion! Merry Christmas, All!

Merry Christmas, Zabba! Yes, whenever I make deviled eggs, I use my cut glass egg platter. Do I need to, no, but it just makes them seem special.

I, too, am currently buying a few Arhaus pieces for our almost-finished-construction of a "rustic, industrial Craftsman" farmhouse. As we are downsizing, furniture is currently "auditioning" to make the move with us. For example, my mother's wash basin (which sat in a corner and was dusted for decades) got the Annie Sloan treatment with a drop-in copper sink to be the vanity in the guest bath off the foyer:

Unfortunately, not everything is so easily repurposed, but I am obligated to keep my mother's China hutch (which is currently in its stained pine style, but once it is out of storage, it will be getting Annie Sloan'd like the one below to make it more aesthetically aligned to my taste):

... and my grandmother's China cabinet like the pictured (which will be a free-standing linen cabinet in the master bath):

Not out of style, but you must have a room large enough to handle it. Too many dining rooms are small and then put a large piece in it and everyone is running for the door because the room is claustrophobic with the large piece in it. I found mine at an antique store, its rosewood with an Egyptian revival theme. I have a transitional/traditional home and I punch up the more traditional aspects of the dining room with a cork wallpaper.

I am going to point out something because I'm in the older (over 50 but under 60 set), I hate TJ Max and Home Goods. During the 1960's everything was glam with formal dinner parties in a Camelot inspired generation. Then came the 1970's and everything went Hippie style with free flowing flower children and everything "formal" was out. Then came the 1980's with oak & the Reagan's and formal was back in - with Dynasty style very much in vogue. Then we headed into the 1990's and this was much more a transitional period with formal entertaining and casual entertaining co-existing. Then came the 2000 to present when shiplap and benches like a picnic dining came into vogue. So to the OP who says that formal dining is out......wait a bit, it will be back in style at some point and then all that old furniture, china and crystal will be so in that the stores will be cleared out. People enjoy change and I suspect that the casual dining craze will die its due death for something else.

I purposely made my dining room large when we built this house. It is 16X13.

I actually have 2 china cabinets and 2 side boards! Along with my Duncan Phyfe dining table. We use them and my china at least every Sunday for "Sunday Dinner".

My son and DIL asked if we could have Sunday Dinner as a way to reconnect each week in our busy lives. Now that we have 2 grand daughters, I could not be happier.

The oldest grand daughter likes to eat in the "pretty room".

As Maggie pointed out, this generation's "Mama's junk", complete with eye roll or groan if you can manage it, is the next generation's vintage or antique sentimental treasure. When I was a very little girl, my uncle owned some wooded acreage way out in the country. People were always dumping stuff out there. When we went for a picnic, I always found something really neat. I found children's books from the 1930s, Shirley Temple paper dolls, I can't even remember everything. One day, we were way back in the woods when we heard glass breaking. We headed up to the little dirt road, and there were two middle-aged women throwing a whole collection of depression glass out of their car, deliberately smashing it. It had belonged to their aunt, who had recently died and left it to them. I my own self have 2 china cabinets, neither of which live in the dining room. They do contain bits and pieces of China, but mostly they have all my favorite doodads. A couple of McCoy vases, a compote that I was given as a wedding present in 1973 and which has lasted better than that marriage did LOL, a few Cherished Teddy pieces that an elderly friend gave to me shortly before she died, some special books, Etc.

Put me in the category of no china cabinet wanted or needed. I gave away all of it, the huge cabinet and the china. Why leave the burden of all your little collectibles and fine china that no one wants for your poor kids to sort out and deal with? I know too many people stuck with that task when a family member dies.

Jet-lagged in Edinburgh, and I found this discussion interesting. I guess I'll chime in, since everything is closed right now, even the hotel bar! Anthony Johnson, most furniture stores, even big box ones, still carry china cabinets. Your selection will be pretty limited, though, since they are not exactly best sellers.

I don't know if china cabinets are "out of style" per se, but displaying china, crystals, and silvers are not popular for people in my age group (30s-40s), at least anecdotally. In my circle of friends and acquaintances, those who have married have registered for practical items or asked for donation to a selection of charities in lieu of gifts. I have seen china cabinets re-purposed as display shelves for those who cannot afford built-ins, used to display books and other trinkets, not china.

There are always going to be exceptions to the rule. One will always find anecdotes of a 20 or 30 something wanting china, silver, crystals, and a china cabinet to display those items. But the general trend I've observed is a changing lifestyle that does not include formal dining. And when formal dining is in the picture, very infrequently is china/silver/crystals part of the picture. It just isn't the norm anymore. This is true even when people move into more space. I have many friends who now have children and have moved to the suburbs for more space and better schools. None of them has china/silver/crystal on display, if they even own any.

No China cabinet here. It's not that i don't like the look but I don't need 2 sets of dishes and linens stored away for months at a time. That's just more for me to clean. I do have 2 sideboards I brought over from the UK that occupy my formal living room (which is only used to walk thru). Inside them i store art supplies lol. we are 29 and 32 with two young kids.

I have a triangular hutch for a corner. The top part, glass fronted, could hold my good China (which used to belong to my parents).

Instead, I keep the China in the base, and put the knick knacks I love that I don't want the cats to knock over/destroy, behind the glass. The only visible plate is one I painted and fired when I was about 20 (southwest native American themed). Um, it also holds a couple of Hummels my parents bought for me when I was much younger....

My parents had a big China hutch back in their day. When they downsized in 1999, my house had no space for it. Nor did I want it. My brother took it. He eventually gave it to one of his daughters, who does have the space for it. I've only been to her house once, so I can't remember what she has in that hutch. (She's in her early 30s.)

Interesting reading everyone's takes on this, I'm feeling like I live in a different world.

I treasure my 14 place settings of hand painted porcelain including the plates, soup bowls, desert bowls, salad plates, cups and saucers and at least 12 different serving pieces. Each piece was hand painted by my Irish Grandmother, signed and dated. She didn't drive so took the bus to the location where there was a kiln, one piece at a time. It took her many many years to complete the set.

I felt so lucky to be the recipient. First it went to my Mother, and then to me (my sister got other beautiful things). Since other family relatives want this entire set, it is one thing that I've spelled out in my will as to who will inherit them

They are priceless to me and yes, they do get used. When I chose a buffet and hutch, this complete set was foremost in my selection. Call me a sentimentalist. I love things with a family history. I took a photo of just a couple serving pieces.

I think it’s wonderful you have heirlooms that have meaning for you. Observing the changes in trends and lifestyle is exactly that, making observations. Times change. These changes influence commerce and design for sure, but they shouldn’t diminish your connection with the heirlooms you love.

petlover, your china is priceless.

Pet lover, I too have my grandmother's hand painted china along with several others (my mothers and mine). For those of you too scared to use it, here is what I have learned. Yes it can go into the dishwasher, just turn off the heat. So can the sterling and it won't tarnish. Keep the crystal out of the dishwasher or it will etch. And yes everything drinks better out of a pretty crystal stem. Live life, live large, live graciously and be kind.

Lots of generalizations here -- few that ring true.

Here's what I can say for certain: My 23-year old daughter, who has been married for less than a year, hosted Christmas Eve for the family this year. I offered to help her any way I could, and a couple days before the event she started laying out dishware on the dining room table /labeling what was going to be used to serve this-or-that ... and that's when she started calling me: MOM, I NEED TO BORROW A LARGE PLATTER AND TWO GRAVY BOATS AND ... the list went on. I toted a load of stuff over to her house the day before the party. Silverware she has 'cause her Daddy and I gave her a set for 18 + loads of serving pieces as her wedding gift, and dinner plates she has a-plenty ... but she doesn't have all the little things that people collect over the years.

She's motivated to accumulate more china and serving ware now.

For what it's worth, I don't have a ton of clothes or knick-nacks, etc., but I do love to set a pretty table, and I have 7 sets of dishes and tons of lovely serving dishes of all types.

You know there is lead in the crystal glasses, serving dishes and decanters right? I wouldn't use them everyday or store my liquor long term. Just saying.

Well made china cabinets with both glass and solid doors will never go out of style. Never. Even if you have plenty of cabinets for dishes and flatware, old china cabinets make great curio cabinets.

That said, if I were building a new home and the budget were not a factor, something like this would be my preference:

https://i.pinimg.com/736x/17/64/51/176451affce6026f321195dc23dfbe16--glass-cabinets-glass-shelves.jpg

First off, I love my China, I bought it myself before I even met my husband. I think that here in New England, people do entertain more formally than in other parts of the country. I have a built in very much like the one posted at the beginning of this thread by suzyq. BUT when I had a stager over recently, she told me that if I want to sell my house, I should remove the China and silverware from display, and put books in the glass cabinets of the built ins!

That’s good advice from your stager. Also, you don’t want any accidents to happen during an open house, or worse, discover someone has stolen a cherished piece.

LOL what sort of accident would happen to a china cabinet at an open house? If it has stood in place for years, with stood family/friends parties, gatherings...I think your stager was going for hip, younger...since you are moving anyway and need to pack the china away it is easy to accommodate--but in the grand scheme of things it is a milk toast suggestion and will not be the tipping point of selling a home EVER. I am sensing the answer to the original question is DO WHAT YOU WANT. If you love a cabinet invest--but know it will not necessarily end up a treasured family heirloom passed down to ANYONE.

Just wanted to add that I love china cabinets (and china, for that matter!) My current house has built-ins, which are incredibly practical as well as beautiful. I think a display of china, glassware, and other pretty pieces is just lovely.

arcy_gw, it’s generally advisable to leave out of an open house items of value that can be stolen or broken easily. You never know what sort of clumsy person or kleptomaniac will come through an open house. You can love fine china, you can love to display it in your own home, and still exercise caution. Besides, an open house is not a venue to showcase your personal taste. It’s just business.

My DIL and son host Christmas brunch each year. When I downsized, I gave them my Noritake 'Holly' Christmas china. They love using it and are looking to buy additional pieces. So, this Christmas I told them I have more china (Noritake 'Heather') and crystal ('Noritake Rhythem') in china storage bags. They told me that they want it! I was so surprised! They love modern furniture, but they also like to entertain.

Well, I'm late to the comment party, but I still thought I'd put in my two cents. I do think that china cabinets and china itself is not on trend for the current younger generation, and being in the furniture industry for decades I can testify that fewer and fewer companies are including china cabinets in their dining groups. But having said that, I'm almost 50 and have collected three cabinets, 3 complete patterns for 10 place settings, and odds and ends of other patterns that I'm debating on. But when I was 25 I had a four place setting group that all came in one box from Target. But I've always loved china and formal dinner gatherings. It's my thing. We change our daily use pattern with the seasons, and just had a dinner party for 8 over the holiday using the winter pattern. I don't have kids, so who knows what will happen to it when I'm gone, but for now, I still want it. I know my niece in law doesn't want it, because she said to my face that only old people who have to host family gatherings need china. But that's ok, because I find myself purposefully going against the trends these days. I was rebellious in my youth, and I guess I still am, but in a different way.

While a lot of you may have china cabinets or sets of inherited china, your anecdotes don't change the overall trend (and response to the original poster's question): no, china cabinets are not in style! You may love your china hutch, but that room is definitely not "in style". And that's okay -- our homes don't need to be competitions keeping up with the latest styles. But if one *does* care about style (as the original poster appears to), then don't do a china hutch! (unless you're going for a french country look, which is fairly on trend).

Also, lots of commenters on here saying that their adult children or grandchildren are just begging for their antique china. But on the other end of that bargain, i think there's only been one or two adult children on this post who have stated they actually want this stuff. And there are definitely lots of 20 and 30-somethings on this site, so it's not like they're not here. In other words, grandma is convinced her kids want this stuff; but i'd harbor a guess that the kids don't feel the same way. I'm guessing a lot of these kids are telling grandma or mom what she wants to hear, and by age 35 be wondering how much longer they have to hold the stuff.

Also - it's not a space or busy-ness thing. I'm 40 with lots of space and we cook every night and entertain. We have a limoge set of 12 everything from the 1930s. It just doesn't fit our everyday style at all, and for the several times a year when we do "formal", i just can't be bothered to haul it out when i already like my everyday set so much.

Again, i don't think it's important to stay with trends so i'm not trying to ruffle feathers! Just pointing out the difference between a trend versus an anecdote!

HA! i suspect you are right about fewer younger people actually want their grandmother's things... but that is fewer, not 'none' so we'll leave the grannies' dreams in place. 'i'm sure YOUR grandchild really wants your china, and its only other people's grandchildren that don't.' ; )

thats not to say they want nothing that belongs to you... you'll never guess what keepsake would mean the most. could be a small side table, could be a pair of candlesticks. my 29 year old daughter has quietly been putting 'dibs' on some of my things.

The OP reported back that this thread helped him decide to get a china cabinet.

I got the impression that the OP was already in search of a china cabinet but was just having a hard time finding one to his or her taste. Selection is going to be limited because they aren’t exactly popular. Glad the OP was able to find a suitable piece.

I got the impression that the OP was already in search of a china cabinet but was just having a hard time finding one to his or her taste. Selection is going to be limited because they aren’t exactly popular. Glad the OP was able to find a suitable piece.

I got the impression that the OP was already in search of a china cabinet but was just having a hard time finding one to his or her taste. Selection is going to be limited because they aren’t exactly popular. Glad the OP was able to find a suitable piece.

I got the impression that the OP was already in search of a china cabinet but was just having a hard time finding one to his or her taste. Selection is going to be limited because they aren’t exactly popular. Glad the OP was able to find a suitable piece.

I got the impression that the OP was already in search of a china cabinet but was just having a hard time finding one to his or her taste. Selection is going to be limited because they aren’t exactly popular. Glad the OP was able to find a suitable piece.

I got the impression that the OP was already in search of a china cabinet but was just having a hard time finding one to his or her taste. Selection is going to be limited because they aren’t exactly popular. Glad the OP was able to find a suitable piece.

His update, upthread:

But whereas we were unconvinced about whether to get a china cabinet at all before posting this question, the discussion here has helped us decide that we’ll definitely get one.

wife bought me a china cabinet, i keep my bourbon collection in it.

That’s great. Hope the OP will find one that’s suitable. Even china cabinets need love from someone.

Anthony Johnson

So we ended up passing on the china cabinet we found the other day, mainly because as a result of this process we have now selected the type of table and rug we want, and that cabinet wouldn’t quite go with it. We’ll probably start with buying the table, then the rug, then a china cabinet. But whereas we were unconvinced about whether to get a china cabinet at all before posting this question, the discussion here has helped us decide that we’ll definitely get one.

The OP wrote this on Dec 19th. This thread has kinda morphed into a life of it's own for everyone's opinion.

Dhygarden, pretty china. The Noritake Rhythem is similar to the Noritake Princeton that we got from my MIL. I also have Theodore Haviland NY Pink Spray from my grandmother, and a no-name Christmas china set purchased by my husband for me one Christmas. He has no idea about china, but he picked one that would go with my Christmas tablecloth.

Your son and dil, might keep an eye on Ebay for extra pieces. Just read carefully and look at the rating of the seller. They will be much more reasonable than Replacement's.

To the OP: you did the right thing in passing up a cabinet when your vision of the table/rug/etc. isn't yet clear. I suggest picking out everything (at least the look you want, if not the actual pieces) vs. piece-by-piece so you don't decorate yourself into a corner.

Thank you to everyone for sharing your cabinets. They are lovely. My sister and I both have them, but I need to fill mine. I want to say goodbye to our wedding china because it is far from complete and I don't like it enough to spend the money to get more. My dream is a vintage set, though I do worry about possible lead poisoning because I'd want to use it often. The lead thing is what's stopped me. Right now I only have some display items inside, and use the bottom to store tablecloths. (Which are also out of style, but a must for me!)

You might look for either Mid Century Modern furnishings or, my favorite, Amish furnishings -- uncomplicated designs without the ornate carvings and geegaws that date other styles.

https://www.hudsonsfurniture.com/item/hutch-and-buffets-shaker-hutch-and-buffet/1305720613

https://www.google.com/search?q=Amish+china+cabinets+&tbm=isch&ved=2ahUKEwiZxY_f3IDuAhUlwCkDHZh3CfwQ2-cCegQIABAA&oq=Amish+china+cabinets+&gs_lcp=CgNpbWcQDFC7LVjOS2CMV2gAcAB4AYABhQOIAb0VkgEIMTUuMS4wLjSYAQCgAQGqAQtnd3Mtd2l6LWltZ8ABAQ&sclient=img&ei=XjnyX5meJaWAp8kPmO-l4A8&bih=626&biw=1366&client=firefox-b-1-d

Something you might consider is check for Estate Sales in your area and/or check out any used/antique ... and even thrift stores ... in your area. I've seen really nice china cabinets and entire dining sets at our local Habitat for Humanity occasionally -- even some of the well made actual wood ones ( though many are veneer ).