Greetings from 92F heat and 80% humidity! It’s hot and steamy but, oddly enough, I am having a great time. I currently type this from the pleasantry of my air-conditioned bedroom while looking out the window at a house painter scraping down my window. Yes indeed – this house is getting painted (AND IT WAS A LONG TIME COMING). This has me excited as not only does this mean I get to paint my front door magenta, it means I’m excited to have people come over and hang out in the yard while basking in the shadow of a newish looking 100 year old home. More details on the painting stuff down the line, but in the meantime, I’m talking about entertaining outdoors. Y’all know I love a good dish, but you know what I love more: unbreakable dishes.
That’s right – they look like ceramic, but they aren’t. They are Q Squared NYC. And they are fabulous!
These are going to make you want to set those floppy paper plates on fire. Which is good because it’s s’mores season and mama needs some kindling.
These plates are terrific for outdoor eating of all varieties. I’m talking picnic potlucks. Patio barbecues. Sandwiches at the beach. Bonfires. Clambakes…
Or in my case: brunch in the yard.
I hate brunch in restaurants. Too much waiting. Too crowded to hear anyone. Too much paying $23 for 33 cents in eggs. But I love brunch at home. Why?
Let’s talk about this…
Five reasons why hosting an outdoor summer brunch is a good idea.
1. You don’t have to cook a dang thing. No chopping. No ovens heating up the house. Just buy muffins or pastries, sliced fruit, and some fresh squeezed juice. The only ‘cooking’ involved is mixing bloody marys, and that is optional. Maybe. In the winter you can get your omelet situation going, but these days, it’s too hot to bother. Keep it light. Nobody will notice you didn’t spend all day standing in front of a pancake griddle.
2. You don’t have to clean the whole house. People are eating outside! Sure – maybe tidy up the bathroom and kitchen. And you can totally make the kitchen look nice because, what’s that? Oh yeah: YOU DON’T HAVE TO COOK.
3. You can be outside before the sun takes over and bugs come out. Because fireflies are nice until one shows up in your margarita. That ain’t cute.
4. You get your house back by the afternoon. Minimal cleanup and nobody is keeping you up past your bedtime (read: watching Stranger Things on Netflix – have you guys even seen that show!??!!!)
5. Know what happens when you don’t have to cook anything? You have time to make the table look nice. All those times you had people over and meant to set the table, but didn’t quite get there in time because you were busy cleaning or cooking…yeah, that doesn’t happen. Put on that full spread with a tablecloth (in my case – this incredible quilt from my friend Kitty Quimby), some mason jar juice glasses, put the butter in a little glass, and of course…unbreakable dishes. These ones from Q Squared NYC are the cat’s pajamas. Or, since this set is nautical, maybe I should call them the ship’s barnacles. Or the sailor’s beard.
I digress. My point: these plates are rad.
Evidence: Video of me trying to break them a couple years ago…
They don’t break. They are sturdier than most of those melamine plates on the market – they don’t feel cheap. You would never know they aren’t ceramic until you hold them in your hands.
In fact, here is a wall of Q Squared plates I hung up in my house. The palm leaf is still a personal favorite. And everyone thought they were ceramic.
This is one of their newest collections – it’s called Portsmouth.
It’s a mix of blue and white with compasses and anchors. If you or a loved one is big on costal decor or owns a boat invite me over you are going to love these! I live in the midwest and I still love them. Nautical = classical. And a girl can dream of her land yacht!
If you are interested in getting your hot little hands on any other items from Q Squared NYC, use AUNTPEACHES20 for 20% off everything on qsquarednyc.com now until Labor Day. My personal favorites; royal lapis, madison bloom, and the white peony plates are great for all occasions – I have a few of these in the salad size and they are the only plain white plates in my house. They work great for lots of stuff (including kiddos) but the rippled rim makes them also look really good layered over full size formal china.
Many thanks to Q Squared for sponsoring this post (and several others over the years). Many thanks to you for supporting the brands that make this site possible.
All opinions expressed within this post are my own. Seriously y’all: I love this product, I use this product, and I love getting compliments from people when I use this product. It’s terrific stuff.
That’s fine – I’m just going to sit over here and sulk because I live in the UK where a) Q Squared don’t appear to be available and b) there are only 3 days in an average summer where it would be possible to eat brunch outside. But that’s ok, you just carry on, don’t worry about me… (passive aggression to fade).
I’m in Australia and I want to get some of these beautiful plates too! I’ve looked under the FAQs on the website and there is an email to send requests to for overseas shipping and queries – help@qsquarednyc.com. Happy shopping!
Well now Aunt Peaches, three issues with this post.
1. There is no protein in that there brunch. I recommend lox, bagels, cream cheese, onions and capers instead. You want your guests to feel special and also nourished, don’t you?
2. The one downside you so neatly skirted? Unlike with paper plates, you’ve got some dishes to wash here. However. These do not go into the landfill. These do not clutter up recycling (because to my knowledge you aren’t supposed to try to recycle paper plates that have had food on them). So washing may be the green thing to do. And the fact that these are unbreakable is a very good thing for outside. So iAM thinking it over……
3. Those poor poor painters deserve a lovely cool glass of lemonade and some croissants and fruits and cold cuts on a cool break. Oh, and a tip too! That is hard hot work!
Whether you are throwing a St. Patty s party or just adding a touch of the Irish around your home, you can make fun St. Patrick s Day projects without spending all your gold.
Hey Aunt Peaches! Where are you?
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