Are Corelle dishes a safe alternative to plastic dishes for kids?

[Jennefer@SSA]

I am replacing all the plastic in our home with glass or ceramic. I am looking for an alternative to plastic for my kids' dishes. I am not ready for them to use my good dishes b/c they've lasted 15 years and I'd like to keep them another 15. ;)

 

I think I remember reading that Corelle were lead free and more durable than other ceramic dishes? Yes? No? Better alternative that is relatively inexpensive?

[TravelingChris]

I have never heard anything negative about them. We use them at my house since I have arthritis in my hands and don't like breaking dishes unnecessarily.

[ScoutTN]

If you drop them and the break, they shatter into a zillion pieces like glass.

[flobee76]

If you drop them and the break, they shatter into a zillion pieces like glass.

 

:( This happened to us a few times. Then, I read that there were traces of lead in Corelle! We decided to go with Fiestaware. It's made in the US and all lead-free. Our youngest actually threw a plate down onto our ceramic tile and the plate didn't even chip! :hurray:

[rafiki]

.

[JenneinCA]

We have Corelle and it is working fine for us. My experience with dropping them is either they don't break at all or they break into a million pieces. We haven't had many plates break but bowls are a problem.

[WiseOwlKnits]

We switched to Corelle from plastic dishes. We have ceramic tile floors in our kitchen and the break rate when dropped is about 40%. It seems to be more the angle it hits the floor than that it's dropped. Not that you can control the angle, but just to say it doesn't break every time it hits the floor. :)

 

I also love how light they are. It makes it much less likely for them to be dropped by little hands.

[JulieD]

I like our Corelle dishes, we have wood floors (oak) and a low breakage rate. The plates don't break, but the bowls do about 1/4 of the time, maybe less, and they do shatter.

 

Undecorated Correlle should be lead-free. I like how light the dishes are and they stack very compactly, nice if you have limited cupboard space.

 

If none of your kids is in the habit of throwing their dishes on the floor, I think they would be fine. The lightness seems to make them easier for the kids to handle, too.

 

Julie D.

[Hathersage]

Extreme temperture changes on the plates raises the risk of shattering at a later date.

[Sparkle]

I love our Corelle and I don't think we've ever had any break (unlike our Pfaltzgraff). The only thing that would make me hesitate would be tile floors, but otherwise I'd recommend them 100%.

[Melinda S in TX]

My experience with dropping them is either they don't break at all or they break into a million pieces.

 

:iagree:

 

I am slowly replacing our dishes with enamelware. So far, they have chipped a bit in places but everything is still usable.

 

Melinda

[katemary63]

If you drop them and the break, they shatter into a zillion pieces like glass.

 

:iagree:I have Corelle. This is so true and very scary. I would not get it again. They DO break. I've broken several and the pieces are evil! Like razor sharp, pointy shards of glass....oh...yeah, that's what they are! Cleaning it up is nasty and getting it stuck in your finger or feet is even nastier. Ask me how I know.

 

Disclaimer: I am a clutz and break stuff a lot. I think most people would go a long time without breaking a piece of Corelle. It is very durable and even when dropped, does not usually break! However, like I said, I have broken many and when I do, it is nasty.

[Outdoorsy Type]

I have to second the Fiestaware recommendation.

 

We have tile, and only my 2yo has broken anything. Plus, with FW it's easy to replace if needed and the colors are so purty. :001_wub:

[flobee76]

:iagree:I have Corelle. This is so true and very scary. I would not get it again. They DO break. I've broken several and the pieces are evil! Like razor sharp, pointy shards of glass....oh...yeah, that's what they are! Cleaning it up is nasty and getting it stuck in your finger or feet is even nastier. Ask me how I know.

 

Disclaimer: I am a clutz and break stuff a lot. I think most people would go a long time without breaking a piece of Corelle. It is very durable and even when dropped, does not usually break! However, like I said, I have broken many and when I do, it is nasty.

 

I was so fed up with Corelle breaking that I blogged about it.

 

I have also heard that Corelle dishes just aren't made like they used to (probably less lead now than back in the day). I have also read that heating and cooling (like in the dishwasher or microwave) can do a number on those dishes, weakening them, making them more prone to breakage.

 

Yes, if you have little ones, I vote "no" on Corelle. I vacuumed for days after our plates shattered.

[Jennefer@SSA]

Well bummer. I was hoping everyone would chime in and say that it was the perfect solution! ;) My oldest is an Aspie and very, very clumsy so Corelle would not be good in our home. I will look at Fiesta dishes. Is there a place to get them that is much better on pricing than others? Or other options? I want lead free and no plastic.

[Dawn in OH]

:( We decided to go with Fiestaware. It's made in the US and all lead-free. Our youngest actually threw a plate down onto our ceramic tile and the plate didn't even chip! :hurray:

 

Really? I love those but was afraid my kids would destroy them!

 

I have Corelle. While they do shatter into a million pieces if you break them, they are very hard to break. So far I have been the only one to break one, and that was when I slammed a butter knife down on one of the plates.

 

Corelle used to be inexpensive. But my latest set cost more than the Pfaltzgraff dishes I had been looking at. However, I've had my Corelle for about 7 years with only one fatality (which was my own doing). My 7 and 9 year olds even hand wash my dishes and haven't managed to break anything yet. (Gosh I hope I didn't just jinx myself)

 

I'm very happy with my Corelle. My mom also had Corelle while we were growing up and there was little breakage in our home.

 

As for the lead, I don't know anything about that. I had never heard that they contained lead before.

[Ferdie]

I will look at Fiesta dishes. Is there a place to get them that is much better on pricing than others? Or other options? I want lead free and no plastic.

 

Fiesta dishes are available online at zestydishes.com and megachina.com. If you have a Kohls near you can get a place setting for $19 right now if you can find a 30% off coupon, (sale price is $26.99).

 

Also if you are not picky about the color Dillards is selling the cinnabar, (maroon) color Fiestaware for $12 a setting. I just received my order today. Shipping for three place settings, java mugs and sugar/creamer was $8. It came in about 3 days.

 

http://www.dillards.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?catalogId=301&langId=-1&storeId=301&productId=368536&view=20&No=60&Ntt=fiesta&Ntk=all&N=1000450&Nty=1&searchUrl=%2Fendeca%2FEndecaStartServlet%3Fview%3D20%26No%3D60%26Ntt%3Dfiesta%26Ntk%3Dall%26N%3D1000450%26Nty%3D1&R=02731294

 

ETA - I know you don't want plastic dishes, but I bought some melamine dishes at Target for my kids. We obviously don't microwave in them, but they use them cold food like cereal and sandwiches.

 

http://www.target.com/Melamine-12-pc-Dinnerware-Set-Red/dp/B000OW4OB0/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&searchView=grid5&qid=1279229869&frombrowse=0&fromGsearch=true&node=1038576%7C1287991011&keywords=red%20melamine%20dishes&searchSize=30&id=Melamine%2012-pc%20Dinnerware%20Set%20Red&searchBinNameList=subjectbin%2Cprice%2Ctarget_com_primary_color-bin%2Ctarget_com_size-bin%2Ctarget_com_brand-bin&searchNodeID=1038576%7C1287991011&searchRank=target104545&sr=1-3&searchPage=1&rh=

Edited July 15, 2010 by Ferdie

[LizzyBee]

I love my Corelle because I can have lots of place settings without taking up much space, and they rarely break. They are the perfect dishes for children, imo. When they do break, just put on shoes before starting the clean up. :001_smile:

[JenniferB]

Oh my, we just bought 12 place settings of Corelle. I hope we are not in for it! We bought Ikea dishes last time and they were breaking like crazy, one even broke the minute we started unpacking them. It was crazy how often they broke, and how easily they broke and chipped. So far so good on our Corelle dishes, but it's only been a few days. xxcrossing fingersxx

[littlebug42]

Kohl's has pretty regular sales on Fiesta Ware. I hope to switch my dishes from Pfaltzgraff to Fiesta Ware.

[extendedforecast]

Oh my, we just bought 12 place settings of Corelle. I hope we are not in for it! We bought Ikea dishes last time and they were breaking like crazy, one even broke the minute we started unpacking them. It was crazy how often they broke, and how easily they broke and chipped. So far so good on our Corelle dishes, but it's only been a few days. xxcrossing fingersxx

 

I switched over to Corelle from melamine plates and bowls two years ago, and none of my dishes have broken yet (knock on wood). I love that they are light weight and come in a variety of sizes. We also have fiesta ware that DH and I use. We love it. As the older children get older, they will transition to fiesta.

[Mert]

We've had the "million tiny pieces of broken glass" experience with our Corelle and would not use them with our son. We use enamelware and ss plates. I finally found some cute ones... http://www.goldenrabbit.com/babyware.aspx

[Dobela]

I have Corelle and Pfaltzengraf. The Corelle has lasted 12 years with few breaks (on a tile floor and a concrete one) but the other has broken and chipped like crazy.

 

I understand your frustration though. I now have one set of dishes that I prefer for myself and plain white corelle that coordinates with it that I have the kids use. Or at least my 3 yo. I mostly use the Corelle with her due to the light weight.

[MomsintheGarden]

I am a klutz, as are most of my children. We break a lot of glasses, but very rarely do we break one of our Corelle plates or bowls. Eventually the edges chip, though.

 

What I like best about Corelle is that they are light and thin. That means we are less likely to drop the plates, etc., and we can fit a lot of them in the dishwasher. I think we'd drop heavier things like Fiestaware more often.

 

GardenMom

[KatieJ]

I will be married 35 years come September and have always had Corelle white dishes. My first set got scratched and I replaced it with a newer set maybe 15 years ago. Yes, they do shatter when theydo break, but really in 35 years I have only broke a few.

I love that I can have 18 plates in a stack that is only about 2 inches high.

[emzhengjiu]

As much as I like Corelle dishes, I won't buy anymore. We've had one too many shatter when dropped. It's hard to pick up all the tiny, very sharp pieces. I'm looking for replacement dishes now but haven't found anything I like and can afford.

[krisperry]

If I had any floor besides tile, I would get these:

http://www.zoebonline.com/kidishes-kid-friendly-tempered-glass-duralex.html (corelle is tempered too though)

 

For the super young kids, these:

http://www.kinder-ville.com/

 

Because I have tile floors that eat anything remotely breakable, I went with these:

http://www.preserveproducts.com/products/tableware.html

Make sure to read our process and safe plastics

 

These dishes are the only plastic that I have in my kitchen ;)

[Jennefer@SSA]

If I had any floor besides tile, I would get these:

http://www.zoebonline.com/kidishes-kid-friendly-tempered-glass-duralex.html (corelle is tempered too though)

 

LOVE these!!! A little expensive for what I was thinking though. I am off to hunt to see if I can find something similar but less expensive. Or maybe wait for a sale??

[angela in ohio]

Really? I love those but was afraid my kids would destroy them!

 

I have Corelle. While they do shatter into a million pieces if you break them, they are very hard to break. So far I have been the only one to break one, and that was when I slammed a butter knife down on one of the plates.

 

Corelle used to be inexpensive. But my latest set cost more than the Pfaltzgraff dishes I had been looking at. However, I've had my Corelle for about 7 years with only one fatality (which was my own doing). My 7 and 9 year olds even hand wash my dishes and haven't managed to break anything yet. (Gosh I hope I didn't just jinx myself)

 

I'm very happy with my Corelle. My mom also had Corelle while we were growing up and there was little breakage in our home.

 

As for the lead, I don't know anything about that. I had never heard that they contained lead before.

 

:iagree:

 

We had Corelle when I was a kid, and they made many moves safely. The only one that EVER broke was the one I broke trying to rurn a cake out onto it. :blush: We have had Corelle for about 12 years now (we had a ceramic set when we were first married, but they weren't durable.) We have never had separate dishes for dc; they have used the Corelle and our glasses all along. We have had one bowl and one plate break in all that time, and we use them (we have about 50 plates of various sizes because I hate wasting money on paper plates) when we have parties/ company with kiddos frequently. I like them because I am a bit OCD about dishes being clean, and the white ones look SO clean. All of our tableware is white or glass.

[milovany]

...and the white ones look SO clean...

 

After many years of going round about with what color of dishes I wanted, I returned to all-white (and we also use Corelle). I love the simplicity. My latest great Corelle find was at Goodwill -- 28 plates and bowls in the sizes we already regularly used (except for 4 pasta type bowls). I took them all up front to the cashier -- new they would have been about $85. If priced individually at Goodwill (which they WERE), it would have been about $20. The gal up front didn't want to ring all 28 pieces up individually, though, so she said, "How about $10.99 for all?" You betcha!

[LibraryLover]

What about enamel metalware...you know camping dishes? You can buy costly ones from Waldrof-type catalogues, or you can go to a camping supply place. Check LL Bean...or Walmart, Dicks etc.

Edited July 17, 2010 by LibraryLover
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