joannqn Posted May 31, 2009 Share Posted May 31, 2009 The idea of paring everything down to the minimum has always appealed to me...in some areas, at least. One area that has alluded me is the kitchen. We have two partial sets of cheap dishes. Each set has pieces missing and other pieces are chipped. The idea of paring down to just what we need, as in one set of dishes, enough cups for our family, enough utensils for our family, etc. is appealing. So, if you only have one set of, say 8 place settings, what do you do when you have guests? One family we invite over occasionally, has 6 people in their family. Add my 5 and I need 11 place settings. As it is, I don't have enough bowls, cups, or certain utensils so I always end up buying disposable stuff when we invite them over. I wouldn't feel comfortable doing this with everyone we know, though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heather in the Kootenays Posted May 31, 2009 Share Posted May 31, 2009 I ask friends to bring their own when my supply of dishes and utensils aren't going to do it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TXMomof4 Posted May 31, 2009 Share Posted May 31, 2009 I went and found some nice, cheap dishes and bought 16 place settings. That's just 2 boxes - about $30 at Ross. Then I don't have to do dishes every meal, all of my dishes are nice enough for company, I don't have the odds and ends dishes just hanging around cluttering up the cabinets. I think of it as more streamlining than downsizing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Impish Posted May 31, 2009 Share Posted May 31, 2009 At the risk of offending the ecofriendly, disposables are handy when hosting another family. I have an incredibly tiny kitchen, no dishwasher, and a single sink. There's no way to even have HELP with doing the dishes, since you can't put another body in there to really dry even. Disposable plates saves hours of clean up, and ensures enough plates etc for everyone, right through dessert. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lgm Posted May 31, 2009 Share Posted May 31, 2009 (edited) Onetime in college I was in a furnished dorm w/EIK with just a place setting per person, two serving spoons, a paring knife, and two pots for 4 people. That minimal is frustrating...washing after each meal and any snack was a must. Planning the meals out for the two pots was also not a joy. Frequently we found ourselves having to wash the utensils from the place settings after cooking and before eating (invariably we ended up using a fork or spoon from the place settings in the cooking prep). I didn't pare down that far for my household..I keep 12 place settings for a 4 member family as that means I have enough that I can wait and run the dishwasher on full rather than have to wash after each meal or snack. It isn't a lot of extra sq footage in the cabinets. If I had more folks over than I had place setings, I'd borrow from the camping set (the mismatch of what we had in melamine and coffee mugs plus cheap silverware), then friend/relative. Edited May 31, 2009 by lgm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
melissel Posted May 31, 2009 Share Posted May 31, 2009 The idea of paring everything down to the minimum has always appealed to me...in some areas, at least. One area that has alluded me is the kitchen. We have two partial sets of cheap dishes. Each set has pieces missing and other pieces are chipped. The idea of paring down to just what we need, as in one set of dishes, enough cups for our family, enough utensils for our family, etc. is appealing. So, if you only have one set of, say 8 place settings, what do you do when you have guests? One family we invite over occasionally, has 6 people in their family. Add my 5 and I need 11 place settings. As it is, I don't have enough bowls, cups, or certain utensils so I always end up buying disposable stuff when we invite them over. I wouldn't feel comfortable doing this with everyone we know, though. I struggle with this too. We have extra dishes/glasses/utensils that we use when we have company (we're the centrally located house with enough space to accommodate everyone), and in between times, I pack them up in boxes and put them in the garage. Would that work for you? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joannqn Posted May 31, 2009 Author Share Posted May 31, 2009 At the risk of offending the ecofriendly, disposables are handy when hosting another family. I have an incredibly tiny kitchen, no dishwasher, and a single sink. There's no way to even have HELP with doing the dishes, since you can't put another body in there to really dry even. Disposable plates saves hours of clean up, and ensures enough plates etc for everyone, right through dessert. I have a similar issue. While my kitchen is big enough to fit another body, the workspace is not. I have a single sink that is placed up against the wall. The only counter space, on the other side of the sink, is about 3 feet long. I have 4 cabinets, 2 deep drawers about 12 inches wide, and 4 shallow drawers about 12 inches wide. We're able to function with so little storage because our stove is from 1957 and has two drawers that fit our pots/pans...though that means our oven is exactly 16 inches wide (no Costco take and bake pizza for us). We also have a tiny "nook" that we put cheap Ikea shelving in. It holds all of our staples in tupperware, all of our small appliances, the dog's food, the cats' food, the litter box, the cats' bowls, the recycling, the trash, and large grocery items that can't be put away for lack of space (ie. paper towels). I struggle with this too. We have extra dishes/glasses/utensils that we use when we have company (we're the centrally located house with enough space to accommodate everyone), and in between times, I pack them up in boxes and put them in the garage. Would that work for you? Our garage isn't attached and isn't weather proof, so I'd have to wash them every time we used them. It's a dump of junk too big to throw in the trash can, lawn care equipment, various tools, spider webs, spiders, and who knows what kind of other lovely critters. It gives me the creeps to go in there. Perhaps, after I finish decluttering I can find a place inside the house for extra settings. First, I'd like to find a place for the stroller, vacuum, and telescope so they aren't just sitting in the middle of a room somewhere. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carrie12345 Posted May 31, 2009 Share Posted May 31, 2009 First, I'd like to find a place for the stroller, vacuum, and telescope so they aren't just sitting in the middle of a room somewhere. Wait, vacuum cleaners aren't furniture? :lol: I feel your pain. One of my favorite things about summer is that our winter coats don't have to be stored on our living room chair (or on my bed when we have company). We don't even have a place to put a coat stand! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris in VA Posted May 31, 2009 Share Posted May 31, 2009 Joannqn, I think you are already down to the minimum. I think of decluttering as getting rid of what you don't use, and it seems to me yours is a reasonable amt. I have a df whose house is simply overrun with what she doesn't need--I think those are the folks who need to simplify, not you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MamaT Posted May 31, 2009 Share Posted May 31, 2009 I went and found some nice, cheap dishes and bought 16 place settings. That's just 2 boxes - about $30 at Ross. Then I don't have to do dishes every meal, all of my dishes are nice enough for company, I don't have the odds and ends dishes just hanging around cluttering up the cabinets. I think of it as more streamlining than downsizing. This is what I did as well. It has simplified things for me and cuts down on stress when I do have company. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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