As a matter of interest, why do Americans call cutlery "flatware"? I mean, it's not flat...

Definitely just added that swanky black set from DWR to my wedding registry. Yay for Amazon's Universal Registry button!

Well, why do you call it "cutlery"? Do you cut things with spoons?

One of the most important things I look for in flatware is heft. The knifes, forks and spoons need to have a good weight to them. I'm not sure why this is important to me, but I hate eating with light flatware.

@ kelin - is that an "I Don't Know"?
It was just a question. And actually I do sometimes cut food with a spoon or the side of a fork when I'm eating. Don't you?

As I understand it, the word "flatware" (on both sides of the Atlantic), dating back to the mid 18th century, designated any tableware that is relatively flat and made of one piece (plates, knives, forks, platters), as distinguished from "hollowware." But in the US, it has come to describe domestic cutlery, perhaps especially the flat(ish), in-one-piece kind. Silverware tends to describe the fancier stuff. And in American English, "cutlery" does often just mean knives and cutting instruments.

"silverware" where i grew up in the boston area...

I'm with you, LSUgrad03. That's why I went with the "Icarus" line from Oneida. Because I *totally* think of hubris and burning wax wings when I sit down to eat.

I use "silverware" to describe both fancy and everyday silverware. Washington State/West USA thing?

I like the olive wood set the best.

You can definitely cut a soup... Not all chefs are equally excellent.

Silverware is made of silver and flatware of steel if I understand it correctly?

I used to work for iittala many years ago and liked a lot of their production. It was also very interesting to see how people chose their favourites and what the reasoning behind a decision was.

I came to absolutely drool over the Citterio con Löw products, both Citterio 98 (only those with matte finish though since you can't see all finger prints) and Collective Tools. Even though they are extremely pricey, I still think they are worth it. They fit perfectly in the hand, even a bigger one, so that you're not halfway over the blade of the knife for instance. They feel luxuriously heavy and the knife actually works while eating steak too. They are very beautiful to look at and they work well, which is the ultimate sign of good design for me. In short, they bring me joy every day when I get to use them.

Everyday cutlery /flatware should be machine washable (if you have a dish washer) and it should have enough pieces so that you can expand it to include not only main course but appetizer and dessert as well. This was one of the reasons why I decided against collecting the other Citterio line, which had only four pieces. Don't choose anything before having tried them in your hands and give yourself time to think of your needs too, or a set of 16 or 24 pieces might soon be of no use.

I scrolled back to see the photo descriptions and wonder why the appetizer / dessert fork and knife hasn't been included in the calculation?

By 16 and 24 I meant sets that include only main course forks, knives and spoons as well as coffee spoons, with either 4 or 6 pieces of each (Hackmann/iittala standard).

Um, sorry, a slight correction *why the appetizer/dessert knife and dessert spoon*. I see coffee spoons in some pictures and dessert spoons in others, confusing.

I always found it so strange when Americans referred to casual cutlery - even PLASTIC cutlery as "silverware"! It confused me the first few times someone said "I'll go get the silverware" and then brought back plastic forks and knives. (I was expecting actual fancy silverware!) As a Canadian, I've only ever referred to eating utensils as "cutlery". Thanks for the background, Beecham - very interesting.

BTW, I love the Crate and Barrel Oona. Gonna go see if that is still available...oh yes it is! :)

I have Dansk Fjord flatware, which was reissued at some point in the last few years. Plenty of vintage Fjord trades on ebay, but for way more money than I could afford. It's not dishwasher safe, but we don't have a dishwasher, so that isn't a big problem. My boyfriend and I both love the look.

BTW, I say "silverware" for all flatware, and I grew up in Hawaii. My parents are from Colorado and Nebraska, and they also say "silverware." My boyfriend just confirmed that he grew up saying "silverware" in Massachusetts.

We have the "City" set from David Mellor. I ordered one set each of every DM pattern that Heath sells and test drove them all at home. I love the weight and feel of this set. It;s like pure luxury.

Is there a specific term for when you have the handle of the knife oriented so that when it is oriented the way the other items in the set are, the knife blade is perpendicular to the resting surface? I've been (vaguely) on the lookout for a relatively inexpensive, simple set with that kind of knife in it. (I'm pretty sure the Dave Mellor City and Embassy and maybe other sets have that feature, but they're definitely not what I'd consider economical. XD)

I have a nice set (can't remember name right now) at home that rusts. Can't dishwasher it, and have to dry after handwashing (still spotty).

I got the cheapest set Ikea has (like $4) last fall to use at work......no problems. Not a speck of rust or tarnish. I'm thinking I may try to replace my home set with their 365 line.

My husband and I have been married for 10 years now. We couldn't decide on flatware for our registry, and we still haven't found anything perfect. Sadly, we're still using hand-me-down utensils. We have 2 forks with perfect tines, and one spoon that is the prefect curve. It's amazing how picky we've become because of a few pieces we like one bit of.

@lepidoptery: Kate Spade "flatiron" stainless has a knife oriented as you describe. About $60/5-pc place setting.