Where to Find Antique Dinnerware

Collecting antique dinnerware happens to be a bit of a hobby with me. I love the retro prints and designs, the unique shapes of the serveware, and the little bit of history that usually comes along with an antique dinnerware set.

If you are interested in starting your own collection of antique dinnerware, you will glad to hear that finding antique dinnerware is amazingly easy. Before starting your shopping trip for antique dishes however, I recommend spending an afternoon perusing the collectible dinnerware resource guides at either Barnes & Noble or Borders. These collector guides list thousands of patterns of antique dinnerware, and make it quite easy for a beginning collector to acquaint herself with what is available. Once you find a couple of patterns that you might like to have, the shopping can start.

Replacements.com is the premier site for finding just about any pattern of antique dinnerware ever made. Replacements.com has been around since 1981 and advertises themselves as having an inventory of over 13.8 million dishes in 340,000 patterns. Replacements.com sell their dishes by the piece which is a great way for replacing dishes that are broken. From my experience in purchasing dishes from this company, the dishes have always been in beautiful condition and expertly packed. For collectors trying to assemble an entire dinnerware set, be forewarned that Replacements.com prices are on the high end.

Tabletopsetc.com is another site I've used in the past. While they don't have quite the extensive inventory of Replacements.com, they tend to be a little lower in price and carry a few lines not available elsewhere. Tabletopsetc.com also sells by the "piece."

For local shopping, antique stores are an obvious place to find a set of antique dinnerware. Prices here tend to be quite reasonable since the dinnerware is being sold as a set instead of individually. One advantage the antique stores have over on-line merchants is that a prospective buyer can actually look at the dinnerware and handle it before purchasing. And if the set is missing a few pieces? That's where a replacement service like Replacements.com or Table Tops Etc. can help.

Estate Sales can also be a great resource for finding antique dishes. The drawback here is that the first 25 people in line always seem to be dealers, which means the odds of snatching up a deal on antique dishes at an estate sale is pretty remote.

Thrift stores are my absolutely Number One place to find antique dinnerware. The volunteers who store thrift store donations aren't antique dinnerware experts, and will price valuable dinnerware sets at giveaway prices. I rarely see an antique set priced higher than $100, which makes shopping for antique dinnerware at the thrifts almost always the best deal in town.