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Here's my advice - stay away from "sets." There are rarely any sets without B.S. pieces. You don't need a "double boiler" and you'd have to eat a lot of steamed food to warrant a steamer insert.

Scope out whatever pieces you decide you really need. Make them good quality brands, and stick to that list. i.e. a Le Creuset French Oven, a good stainless steel saute pan, a good stockpot, a stovetop griddle a Lodge cast iron skillet. Make sure you include one relatively small nonstick pan for cooking eggs. It doesn't have to be expensive, but keep it separate from your other pans and the lining will last a long time. (Wipe clean with paper towels.)

If anyone I know is trying to purchase cookware for say, a college student or someone who doesn't cook much but wants a decent "set" of cookware, I steer them right to Sam's Club. Wolfgang Puck has a great set (lots of useable pieces) for not-so-expensive. They can take a beating - I used to use them in a professional environment and never broke one. These pans meet all my criteria which should be the deciding factor for you - not so much the brand name stamped on them.

Look closely at cast iron. It is relatively inexpensive, lasts forever, and can be as non-stick as the most expensive brand name Teflon-like pan (and some is even made in the U.S.A.). It also doesn't give off toxic fumes if you overheat it, and if you screw up a cast iron pan, you only need to reseason it, not toss it in the trash.

My collection is insanely eclectic. At least half of it is from thrift stores and garage sales (slightly dinged Le Creuset, original Calphalon), the rest are stainless steel saucepans from All Clad and some lower-level brands. The All Clad saucepans are excellent, with one flaw: they are hard to pour from without making a mess.

chiff you are so right as usual. Also one piece of Lodge cast iron. I bought mine at good old Walmart 16 years ago. It did not come seasoned. They do however now sell them already seasoned. Go with the biggest fry pan you can work with. I think my pan is 14". Heavy but works oh so good on some things.

I would appreciate getting one really amazing piece.

if you want to get your sister one really amazing piece {i agree totally, watchforbears} i highly recommend the all clad three quart saucepan. i couldn't live without mine. i also agree that nothing beats a lodge cast iron skillet. they are completely non stick after they are seasoned and used for a while, they cook meat and fish like a dream, and they're not all that hard to care for. a brand new one sells for about 25 dollars and will last through several lifetimes.

I have the WP set, got it as a gift, and it's fantastic! But if you want to give one really great piece (which I think is a really good option, especially for a gift), I would say get a Le Creuset enameled Dutch oven. We got one as a wedding gift (a 9.5-qt.) and we use it constantly. It's far less pricey than an All Clad set, but expensive enough that she might hesitate to buy it for herself. Plus, it's a great piece, so versatile, and she'll have it forever.

I've never bought (or received) a set but but my favorite piece is a 5-qt dutch oven made by Le Creuset. It usually retails around $140 but I got it for just under $100 on ebay including shipping. It was new in the box as they say and came from a retailer in Canada. Pricey, I know, but I use 4 to 5 times a week. You can make soups, stews, etc., in it and also saute to your heart's delight. The only slight gripe I have with it is that the white interior has become stained.

I was given the Emerilware set as a gift about 4 years ago and I have been thoroughly pleased with it. It cleans up well and holds up to a beating. Also unlike some of the other sets I've seen out there, I use everything in the set. There aren't any pieces that gather dust in my kitchen.

Also like everyone else, I highly recommend a seasoned lodge cast iron skillet. And finally in lieu of spending the big bucks on a le creuset dutch oven, I purchased a much cheaper lodge cast iron one, and it's been great. And now with lodge coming in colors...it can even look fancy too.

If I were buying cookware from scratch knowing what I know now, I'd have much less cookware, and it would be higher quality. Here is what I would get:

5-7qt Enameled Cast Iron Dutch oven. I find 5qt is big enough for me, but
if you have a larger family you might go bigger. It's good for braising, frying, making soups, and boiling water for vegetables and pasta. I like
Staub, but Le Creuset, Lodge, and the Mario Batali will all be fine.

10-12" Cast Iron Skillet. This is cheap, and unless you really can't handle the weight, go with the 12".

10-12" Non Stick Skillet. I love my 11" Swiss Diamond pan. Lifetime guarantee, accepts metal utensils, and although it isn't as slick as Teflon, it's more than slick enough. If you don't want to spend this much, go cheap here and get something like T-Fal and be prepared to replace it every couple years.

A Cheap Stock Pot. I got one at Target that is 16qts. I wouldn't buy one less than 12qts. Stainless steel is preferable for the material as it's cheap and easy to take care of. Just remember you shouldn't be doing anything in this pot but simmering and boiling, so quality is not that important.

Every thing else should be cladded stainless steel. Brand is unimportant, as I've found that the performance of cladded cookware is all pretty similar. Get what is comfortable and in your price range. One thing to consider is that you should get induction compatible pieces. It's not a big deal now, but this cookware will last your lifetime (if not a few other lifetimes as well), and induction cook tops will be the future. You really need only these three pieces:

12" covered saute pan. You can go bigger if you like, but I find this is a good size.

2 sauce pans or saucier. I prefer a saucier because of the curved sides, but this is just a personal preference. I would recommend a 1 or 2 qt and a 3-5 qt. You could probably get buy though with just having a single 2.5 or 3qt model. I find the smaller to be better for things like melting butter and making quick sauces. I suggest two rather than one because it never fails that I need to make 2 sauces at once.

Other items to consider:

A Roasting Pan. Just don't get one that is non stick.

A Grill Pan. It's nice to have, I just don't find it much better than a skillet.

A small (8" or less) non stick skillet for eggs and or crepes. You can also get a carbon steel pan for this. If you make lots of eggs or crepes, you'll want one. The restaurant supply store will be your friend here.

Don't worry about:

A Wok. Unless you have an outdoor wok burner, it's next to pointless. If you do have a burner, then a cheap carbon steel wok is all you need.

Any other non stick cookware. The coating comes off, and most recipes perform better in traditional cookware anyway.

Double boilers. You can put a bowl over any sauce pot.

If there is a Le Creuset outlet nearby, you can get most of their line discounted. Also, they sell "seconds" (pieces that dont pass quality standards) for much cheaper. Some of the pieces have noticeable flaws, but MOST do not. If you take a little time to examine the piece you're buying, there should be no real problem.

what about the KitchenAid set here? it is getting gobs of really good reviews...anyone here have any thougths?

I agree wholeheartedly with CookiePie and Stephanie. I own a Staub Dutch oven and it's probably the most useful item in my kitchen. And it's a fantastic gift because -- like me -- it's not something one usually buys for themselves due to the price.

However, if you'd like to invest in some high-quality All Clad for them, www.cooking.com is offering some great deals on individual pieces of All Clad right now: Yay! for cheap All Clad.

Also, tmj529 has a great point about restaurant supply stores. If they have any Ace Marts where you are, those are a fantastic resource.

My husband came with a full set of Calphalon, which I have supplemented with a few favorites:

1.

I hate to say this but E-Bay is my friend for finding cookware. I have a huge set of Calphalon Commercial that I've put together and most of the pieces were stupidly cheap meaning even my new in box 3 quart saute was only $45. But that said if all you have is a 12" cast iron skillet, a 3 qt covered saute, 2 qt sauce and an 8" non-stick omlette pan you can do 80% of what is in any cookbook. A dutch oven and stock pot would be the next phase for set completion.

Calphalon Commercial isn't nearly as pretty as All-Clad but they are great pans. I have 14 of them and love them dearly.