Tuesday, November 14, 2006

Party Like a Queen with Mikasa Platinum Crown Expanded Set at Macy's

I am overcome with giddiness as I finish drying and putting away my still-twinkling platinum-banded china that I just acquired on clearance (stole was more like it). Can you believe I purchased a 45-piece fine china collection for only $169.99? It's gleaming white with a beautiful silver band rimming the edge, engraved with a delicate scroll design, and finished with a second thinner silver band. The cups have an old-school ladylike-ness to them which makes me want to lift my pinky as I sip my tea. Anyway, the reason this is such excellent news is that I recently returned from my honeymoon to find that almost no one had gifted us any china settings.

Now, between you and me, this wasn't a catastrophe, as I wasn't going to register for china in the first place. I've always been content with my Target Home collection yellow and blue banded dinnerware, which routinely gets mistaken for the Crate & Barrel Capri Collection (after which I can't resist quipping, "Thank you dear, it's from Target.") So why did I even register for 12 place settings of Kate Spade's June Lane silver china, you ask? Because my mother developed ulcers upon hearing that I had not gone china pattern shopping with my betrothed, and this wasn't going to do. I must have fine china to pass on to my children, she insisted. She called me every day to inquire about which pattern we had finally settled on until I caved in. And also, my friend and bridesmaid Patty -- who had been right about so many other aspects of wedding planning and married life -- told me it was necessary. What would relatives give me if, heaven forbid, I didn't register for 12 place settings of china and all the expensive accoutrements that crowned the dinner table?

So register I did. But receive I didn't. Except for a lovely creamer that arrived in the mail, 2 types of bowls (each of which I registered for separately as for some reason Kate Spade doesn't believe in providing soup, cereal, or fruit bowls in her place settings) that were a present from Patty, and finally, 2 very generous place settings from my childhood friend Candice and her parents. So this was the extent of my fine china kingdom? Two china settings, 2 random bowls, and a creamer? And this was supposed to help me become a proper hostess how, exactly? Normally, I wouldn't have fretted, but recently we had been volunteered for quite a few holiday parties and family dinners. I had the in-laws coming over for dinner in a week. We had been promising to have our friends over for a big wine & cheese party to share our honeymoon photos and treats we had brought back from Italy. Plus, Christmas dinner for the whole gang just 6 short weeks away. My paltry collection -- however pretty it looked sitting on top of my buffet -- simply wasn't going to work.

So how fortunate was it that Macy's decided to have their biggest one-day-sale of the season exactly when I was looking to grow my china collection? It couldn't have been timed more auspiciously. After all, I was registered at Macy's, so all I had to do was take back the china I had received and exchange it for something I could actually use. So, I proceeded to pack everything up, carry it into my car, and make a trip to the Macy's return counter. And how much do you think 2 place settings, 2 little bowls, and a creamer earned me? $457! Wow!! Those were some pricey pieces. The saleswoman asked if I wanted to exchange it for anything? As a matter of fact... I whipped out my folded-up Macy's flyer, turned to the dog-eared housewares page, and asked if I could please see the Mikasa Extra Values china sets.

There were 2 expanded sets on clearance: Mikasa Platinum Crown (top photo) and Mikasa Cameo Platinum (right). I followed the saleswoman to the china table and inspected both patterns. The two were equally elegant and thus worthy in my kitchen, though the Platinum Crown had just a little more bling. That made it the obvious choice for moi. The 45-piece expanded set, which consisted of 8 plate settings (including actual soup bowls), a creamer, sugar bowl, round platter, and large serving bowl, was on sale for only $199! But my luck was unstoppable that day, because the $199.99 set -- which normally retails for $380 -- was reduced to $169.99. Now that's an unbeatable value! You can't even buy a 20-piece set to serve 4 people for less than $137.10 (at least that's the lowest price I found, at Rudi's Pottery). Even Macy's was pawning each place setting for $39.99, which would total $159.96 to serve 4. So imagine what an absolute giveaway 8 place settings + a sugar bowl + a creamer + a serving bowl + a platter is at $169.99!

Without hesitating, I snatched up a 45-piece set and rushed home to unpack it. No broken pieces, no missing plates, just perfect. Immediately I loaded up the dishwasher with my new set to make sure it could take the heat. No problems whatsoever, not a scratch on the platinum band. Finally, I made room for my 45-piece set in the upper tiers of my cabinets. It all fit, somehow. Fabulous!

Now I'm ready to entertain like a proper queen! And I paid sheer pennies.

Postscript:
I just went back to try and get another 45-piece set (you never know when you'll have more than 8 for dinner) and saw that Macy's price was now back up to $199. Rats! Oh well, you can't win them all. But it's still a fantastic value at $199, so maybe I'll get it anyway...
Post Post Script:
Well, what do you know? I eschewed the post-Thanksgiving Black Friday insanity and bided my time. As luck would have it (again), Macy's sent me a friends & family coupon for 20% off. So I went back and purchased another 45-piece Mikasa set -- which was still priced at $199 -- for $167 with my discount. The 3-Penny Princess strikes again!

3-PENNY PRINCESS HOME

2 comments:

Marina said...

Bonjour. Vous êtiez le "blog suivant" dans la barre du haut :)
Dommage qu'il n'y ait pas de bouton "blog précédent", ça vous aurait permis de découvrir le mien...
Bonne continuation
Marina

Anonymous said...

Hey baby, love your blog. keep up the good work.