Employing a replacement service can be an easy way to obtain information on your set and replace or add new pieces.

Difficulty Level: average      Time Required: 20 minutes

1. Locate a china replacement services in home magazines, your local yellow pages or by visiting the Ceramics and Porcelain links on this site.
2. Before making any calls, look on the back of a dinner plate or serving piece for the manufacturer, pattern name and a pattern number, if shown.
3. Give service you contact as much information as possible about your set, including the information you previously recorded from the back of a piece.
4. Be prepared to write down information they provide in return, such as dates of manufacture, where it was produced, etc.
5. Ask the service to put your name on their future mailings for your pattern to receive information on additional items they add to stock later.
6. If there is no marking on the back of your pieces, take a photo, photocopy or draw the pattern. Be sure to note the color as well.
7. Send the picture to the matching service you chose for visual identification.
   

1. Have as much information as possible ready before you call a service to make the process more efficient for you and the person helping you.
2. Even if you haven't recently broken or damaged a piece, the lists sent out my matching services will tell you about hard-to-find pieces and allow you to add to your collection.
3. Replacing pieces doesn't undermine the original value of an heirloom set, but having a piece repaired can often be less expensive.
   

Related Features:

• Playing the Match Game