Saturday, August 27, 2011

Unusual pieces

The Pyrex hunting --and receiving-- has been good lately. First of all, I received a belated Mother's Day gift when I visited Libby in Colorado, and I don't blame her for not wanting to mail this:


The Golden Grapes Cinderella chip and dip set from 1961!!! I SO love that delphite blue color inside. Perfect condition. Also in Colorado, I found these little ramekins or au gratin dishes:


I love red, so I just had to pick these up for $2 each. The bottoms say "Pyrex brand Tableware by Corning." A newer item.

Back in Missouri, I grabbed this item for just $11 at my local antique mall:


This is the Butterfly Gold 4-quart round casserole, with lid. Both are marked #664 and they look completely unused. This thing is BIG! I haven't seen the flat lip on any other item. Finally, try to figure out what the next item is before you scroll down to get the answer:


As you can see, it's about 5 1/2 inches long and looks like blown glass on the inside, making it weighted toward one side. It is clearly labeled PYREX / T.M. REG. U.S. PAT. OFF. / MADE IN U.S.A. and has a metal piece on the end--not a cap; there is a hole in it.

My family members made guesses about this item's function: an old IV bottle? Wine-making equipment? A baby bottle?

Fortunately, the reverse side of the price tag told me what it is: a float for a gravity-feed toilet tank. Yep, that's what it looks like, all right--a toilet tank float! This item is really old, and must have been an early attempt at making Pyrex a commercial product with applications beyond railroad lamps. I bought it, of course, and I have NO idea how I'm going to display it.

7 comments:

  1. Super finds! Pyrex made everything they could out of glass!

    Rolling pins, baster, baby bottles and now toilet tanks floaters....NICE!

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  2. Love, love, love the Golden Grapes Cinderella chip & dip!!

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  3. Vonlipi--I have seen a Pyrex baby bottle but not a rolling pin or baster. I will keep my eye out for those. I like the unusual pieces, as well as the delphite blue, like the Golden Grapes chip and dip.

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  4. ...all I can say is...LOVE THEM ALL!!!

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  5. Boy I'd say they are unusual. I love them though. I love the deep yellow one and the oblong ones I never seen those before they look like those one plates mom has..can't think of the name..don't know the names of any hardly.

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  6. The little au gratin dishes are also called "pixie dishes" - the pattern comes in four colors: bluegrass, fern green, grecian gray, and revel red.

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  7. I have one of those toilet tank floats sum1 asked has any1 seen another but mine is a tid bit different. But thanx I didn't know what it was

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