No Fat Furniture!

In the past year, I have been shopping with my partner, Jeremy, a number of times for furniture.  Before we enter a store, I invariably whisper, "no fat furniture."  I have an aversion to large, over-sized, stuffed furniture.  The first time I did this he looked at me like I was crazy. I had to explain that as American's waistlines have expanded, so has our need of overstuffed, overly plush, super-wide bottomed furniture.  And its not just our furniture, its our houses, our cars, and yes, even our dinnerware.  Scientists have found a direct correlation between our expanding waistlines and the ever growing implements of our environment.  In recent years, as our obesity epidemic reaches fever pitch, dietitians have encouraged us to eat each of our meals on smaller plates, which make our portion sizes appear larger than they are.  Research done by Cornell and Penn State Universities concluded that the more food we are presented with, the more we are likely to eat.  Likewise, the larger the plate we use, the larger the portion size we are likely to dish out.

Replacements is here to help you avoid eating too much and loose the weight that you need to lose to live a healthy life.  How, you may ask?  The answer is simple, Replacements, Ltd. carries a wide variety of the all-but-extinct piece type known as the "luncheon plate."  In my home, the luncheon plate is the new dinner plate.  A single serving of brown rice, broccoli, and a boneless, skinless chicken breast seems more filling on a plate that measures 8 1/2" in diameter, than one that measures 10 1/2" in diameter.  Consider Haviland's top 3 patterns, "Apple Blossom (c.1940)," "Rosalinde (c.1940)," and "Ranson (c. 1893)."  Each carry luncheon plates with a diameter of 8 5/8", 8 3/4", and 8 5/8" respectively.  That's an average of 2 less inches than the dinner plate and 6 less inches than the chop plate in each of these popular patterns.

Another pitfall is the glass from which you drink.  In my house, we have a 16-piece set of modern, over-sized glassware consisting of 8 large tumblers and 8 small tumblers (or juice glasses).  These "juice glasses" can hold almost twice as much as the footed juice glass in Fostoria's "American-Clear (c.1915)" pattern.  Twice the juice means twice the sugar and calories.  So there you have it!  We eat too much from our over-sized dinner plates, we drink too much from our over-sized glasses, and then sit on our over-stuffed couches to make us feel smaller...all the while, we are getting larger.

You can break the cycle.  Invest in a set of luncheon plates to take the place of your dinner plates (your waist and heart will thank you).  Invest in footed juice glasses like those from Tiffin and Fostoria for sugary drinks like soda and juice.  Use larger glasses (like the iced beverage glass) for water.  Who knew that completing your grandmother's tableware collections could be the key to a thinner, healthier you.  Of course, exercise and eat a diet that is rich in nutritious food.

As always, feel free to email your questions and comments to me at garon.anders@replacements.com.  I always enjoy hearing from you.