Although I don’t have a lot of money, I love to look at magazines and websites that showcase interior decorating. I like to fantasize about how beautiful my house could be “if only” I had plenty of money and the kind of family that wouldn’t break everything within two hours of the arrival of the items I had purchased! Today I was looking around at the domestications bedding section of a website that sells home and patio decor and was surprised to see that they were selling melamine serving ware for what I would consider a hefty sum of money!
I can remember when I first moved out of my parents’ house, my first set of dishes was melamine. I bought them because they were the least expensive set I could find. I was really pleased with them because they were not likely to chip or break, and they lasted a good long time. (I don’t remember whatever happened to them – did I donate them to charity?) Anyway, I was surprised to read the descriptions of these particular melamine products, how the descriptions said that melamine was highly valued for their durability. Made me wish I still had those plates (maybe they would be worth some serious money!)
But continuing to read the fine print about melamine, I saw that it is not recommended for use in the microwave, and that hand washing is recommended. The description said you could wash them in an automatic dishwasher but over time it would ruin the finish. Thinking about how almost all of my cooking is done in the microwave, and how much I use my dishwasher to wash my dishes, pots and pans, I was quite surprised to learn that there really is still a market for melamine dishware at all!