Chipped plates

I am currently drinking tea from a very pretty mug with a chip on the base. I will continue to use it until, at sometime I drop it or knock it off the table and it shatters.

Anything cracked goes straight in the bin, but a small chip on a bowl or plate will still render it useful for something in the kitchen. Bizarrely, I have a mug with a chip and no handle that I have kept for some years as, when full, it holds just the right amount of rice to cook for two of us.

my mother, whom I looked up to v much, said cracked plates must be smashed as the cracks keep dirt which harbours germs. she worked in hospitals during the war. nothing was carelessly wasted then. so I would use the same principle re cracked crockery. the glaze is broken, so can they really be effectively cleaned, even in a machine I don't know. anyway I am a one item person, so its not a problem. I always point out in a café if I see a cup/glass with a crack/chipped and tell them it must be thrown away.
if I get a piece of cutlery that is not clean enough, I loudly throw it on the floor in café, and say I dropped it and ask for another. perhaps I should do that with cups, but it a bit tricky if they contain liquid.
my mother was a strong person. would have been good as a warrant officer in the army. clear, authoritative, intelligent, self-assured. wish I'd been more like that. or something

In use plain white plates for everyday so any chips and they go in bin and easy to replace from Tesco.

I don’t like waste either, so try and find a use for chipped crockery if possible.Large plates are useful for under plant pots and smaller ones I give to friends who have cats and I used to pass them to an animal shelter where we used to live.

Nothing much goes in the bin here. If we can’t use them as containers for flowers, paintbrushes etc, badly chipped crockery goes to the local Scouts for the china smash stall at their local fundraiser.

My friend collects vintage plates from charity shops. She has to hand wash them (not dishwasher proof) - so I wouldn't bother as I'm lazy. Any 'rejects' with chips she uses in the garden for plant saucers and overlapped as (unusual but pretty) lawn edging.

HettyMaud. No matter - it is a good idea.

It is relatively cheap to replace crockery sets nowadays for everyday use, so yes i would put in the recycling bin. Obviously if you have a treasured set then it would be more upsetting to dispose of.

Straight in the bin.
My mom said they harbour germs which does actually make sense .
I did once nip my finger on a chipped saucer so that's another reason to bin them.

I would bin them. In fact I sometimes replace things without chips.

Mugs go.
Plates stay.
But no cracks - they go.

A very tiny not very noticable chip is ok by me. Cracks go in the bin immediately. Apart from germs if the item suddenly split you could be scalded or have a messy spill.

I take a hammer to them and use the fragments for drainage in plant pots.

Witzend, there are several websites for finding discontinued china , just google ‘ discontinued china uk’ and several pop up . I’ve used one to find Denby patterns , with good results .

I will use them for family if the others are all dirty/in the dishwasher, and replace now and then when there are more than one or two, and if I happen to see my Portmeiron (sp?) on sale anywhere. (Which is never in my local John Lewis, they don’t stock it any more, too un-trendy.)

The TB thing is surely an old wives’ tale? Which makes me wonder why it’s always old wives’, and not old husbands’ , or just old men’s.

I use chipped( not cracked) plates and bowls in the garden as pot ‘saucers’ , but always throw away chipped or cracked mugs. I’m wary of the cracks finally parting and hot tea all over everything. My mum was an artist and used chipped plates for mixing paint and chipped mugs for storing brushes etc .

Oh sorry, Ngaio1, you've said this already.

I have given away chipped crockery on Freecycle. Some people use it for mosaics.

My favourite large tea mug has a crack down it. It leaked to begin with but has now sealed up again, probably with tea deposits. I get attached to my mugs and as I am the only person here, it doesn’t matter!

Goodness! Don't know what I did there! Shall start again: I don't used chipped plates etc., make a small collection and then advertise on freecycle to be taken as mosaic pieces. Ma maintained that cracks held germs and would not keep them in the house.

wait until I have a few and then advertise on freecycle as bits for people to use as mosaics on plant pots etc. Always taken. My Ma always said that the

I tend to keep them. Small chips don't bother me, and i use the 'good plates' for company so it is just me and DH using them.

It just strikes me as terribly wasteful to throw something away just because there is a small chip in it, especially if it is not visible unless you look.

I don't keep them either, just don't like to see chips or cracks.