Corelle 16pc Set Winter Frost White - 4 dinner plates, 4 side plates, 4 cereal bowls & 4 mugs

It says a lot about a product like this when it's been continuously available since 1970. I've owned Corelle for most of the past 30 years. I recently bought a 17-piece set from Wal-Mart (same as this + a 1-quart serving bowl) for about $24 to replace some Corelle pieces that didn't match my Winter Frost pieces and to have more place settings. The mugs are cheap stoneware made in Thailand, not Corelle. They don't quite match the Corelle and they're going to the Goodwill along with the mismatched plates and bowls, but it was still a good deal for the rest of the set.

I love Corelle. All Corelle looks as if it was stamped out of a sheet of white glass, which is a result of the way it's made. There are no "base rings" or loop handles (which is why there have never been any Corelle mugs). The design makes Corelle very easy to wash and dry. They're very thin, and they stack with virtually no extra space in between them so they use remarkably little cubbard space. A stack of ten dinner plates is only 2" high. Try that with those heavy stoneware plates that chip every time two of them bang together. They're microwave- and oven-safe (don't use on the stove or under the broiler). And they're still made in the US.

It's as if Corelle was invented for large families with lots of kids. It's durable, so the kids won't be breaking it very easily (although it will break on ceramic tile or the concrete if the kids drop it while playing outside ;-). Second, you can easily put 8, 12, or even 16 place settings in any cabinet. If you have kids, you know why that's a good thing. Every time kids eat anything they have to use a clean dish, and they snack a lot, so they go through clean dishes at a frightening pace. With Corelle you can have a big supply of dishes without breaking the bank or using a lot of cabinet space.

Another nice thing about Corelle is that you can use the plates to cover the bowls. The small plates that come in this set are the same diameter as the cereal bowls in this set. The 8.5" luncheon plates (sold separately) are the same diameter as the 1-quart serving bowls and the pasta bowls. The dinner plates in this set are the same diameter as the 2-quart serving bowls and the 9" deep dish pie plate (which makes a fabulous pasta bowl).

The Winter Frost White looks simple, clean, and never goes out of style. Really, after using Corelle for nearly 30 years I don't have even a nit to pick with it. Get a bunch of it and enjoy the best designed dishes ever made. With any luck you'll still have them in 20 or 30 years, and don't be surprised if they still look new after that all time, especially if you go over them with Bon Ami once or twice a year.

Got a 42 piece set of Livingware in winter frost white for xmas. The plates are nice and look great on a red tablecloth, though a few were slightly warped (you can see it when plates are stacked). However, that was not such a problem as the cups, which are of terrible quality! I did not use cups on xmas and first used them today. When I took the mugs out from a box one had a barely visible crack on a side, which I did not see until poured water into it and water started sipping through the crack. Called Corelle for warranty, and they do not warranty cups! So much for a 3 year warranty! On their site and on the box it says 3 year warranty with no asterisk or additional disclaimers, but in the care instructions! there is a fine print that cups are not covered. I used to like Corelle and thought they were a reputable company, but not anymore. They outsourced cup manufacturing to Thailand and now make them out of stoneware, which is pretty much like glass. So, if you think you are buying Corelle and it will not break, think again...

First of all, I have to say that I've now received three different shipments of Corelle from Amazon and two of the boxes have been mangled beyond belief. Amazingly, the dishes have all been fine. But I wouldn't be surprised if others have received broken plates. The set itself is just what I've been looking for, something lightweight and durable that can handle my 4 year old's abuse. My stoneware plates are all cracked and my melamine plates smell weird after a run through the dishwasher, but these Corelle plates are perfect. I love how well they stack. They take up very little room. And the mugs I received are white. The white is slightly different from the plates because they're stoneware, not glass. But they are definitely whiter than the picture suggests. And mine are made by Corelle. It says so right on the bottom. So maybe they've improved the mugs after all the complaints. I would highly recommend this set to anyone with small children. And you might want to add some of the divided Corelle plates, sold separately. I don't know what it is with kids and divided food, but they seem to like it that way.