Show I GOOD DINNERS AHEAD t Coming Holiday Season Calls for Best China Know How to Keep Your Better Dishes Looking Like the Day They Were New By MARIAN STROBEL During the holiday season you will be more apt to want to put on the dog when enter enter- More likely than not you will use your finer dinnerware However lovely china is made to be used and enjoyed as often as you set your table Its It's real value lies in its use as an attractive part of everyday family life If you leave it stored in the china closet except on special occasions youre you're losing much of the value of fine table furnishings Taking proper care of your china is very worth while for undoubtedly you cherish many of your fine pieces and would be heartbroken heartbroken heart heart- broken if anything happened to them Even when you use it every day you may expect years of service from quality high-quality ware Simply Simply Sim- Sim ply handle it carefully and wash it gently Here are some helpful suggestions on just how to take care of your dishes Use ample storing space to lessen chance of breakage and dropping Use racks where space is lim lim- For extra special care place paper napkins napkins napkins nap nap- kins or pieces of flannel between plates Place your most frequently used items on a shelf within easy reaching distance Weak Teak Point Dont Don't hang cups by their handles as it is their weakest point Removing them from cup hooks risks knocking their handles off The ideal way to store cups is on a narrow cup shelf with ledge slight curb to prevent sliding sliding sliding slid slid- ing off These are easily installed between size full-size shelves in your cupboard Foods that arc are allowed to harden on dishes make them more difficult to wash Try to wash your dishes immediately after each meal However if it is not convenient to wash them directly after the meal they should be rinsed or wiped off with paper towels to remove remove remove re re- re- re move as much food as possible Tea or coffee coffee coffee cof cof- fee cups should be rinsed Wash Vash your china in warm water comfortable comfortable comfortable comfort comfort- able to the hands bands Never too hot Be careful of the soap you choose for strong soaps contain contain contain con con- tain which tend to tarnish the glaze Washing soda and heavy-duty heavy laundry soap are taboo Separate your dishes and silver for mixing in the dishpan risks breakage and scratching And by no means use such abrasives abrasives abrasives abra abra- as steel wool or scouring powder if you dont don't want your dishes scratched And dry only one dish at a time Sli Slipping ping one under the other as you dry is likely to scratch the finish since the foot of most plates is not glazed Make sure that all pieces are thoroughly dry before you put them away Dont Don't give dishes a scalding rinse It crazes most earthenware and dulls the glaze of china Washing not scalding cleans your dishes Rinse with water the same temperature tempera tempera- ture as that in the dishpan None of us like to serve hot food on cold plates yet dont don't place dishes in a hot oven to warm or temper them Most dinnerware is not intended for tor cooking use Some stoves are equipped with warming ovens If yours isn't i nt use an electric warmer or submerge plates in warm water Teapots should be warmed with tepid water before boiling water is poured in Dont Don't take dinnerware from a cool place of storage and subject it to sudden heat Like most other things it contracts with cold and expands with heat Quick reversals reversals reversals re re- of temperature Increase danger of cracking and crazing You may think oh phooey to the dishes when youre you're tired and in a hurry but in the thelong thelong thelong long run your careful and persistent persistent persistent per per- care will pay dividends in the end for yo you'll ll always have your lovely china and things that mean so 50 much to you in perfect condition |