road trip pyrex finds

Last month I went on a three-week road trip to celebrate the release of my new craft business book. Along the way I didn't do as much thrifting as you might've expected (mainly because I recently quit my job to go freelance!). But I did make a few Pyrex finds:



The beautiful pink-on-white gooseberry casserole with lid was a gift from my friend Jessica, who is a master thrifter. The larger spring blossom casserole with white lid I found at a junk shop for $6. Last week I found two small yellow square dip bowls from the chip and dip set for $2 each.

On my road trip, I stopped by the Corning Museum of Glass, which was awesome. I stayed near Pyrex Street, no joke!





I spent a lot of time at the museum and its library doing research on Pyrex. :)

I was fully intending on taking it easy on Pyrex acquisitions now that I'm funemployed, but then I found this casserole with lid and holder today at my local St. Vincent De Paul for $7. I've never encountered this gold on green pattern before -- can anyone identify it?



— grace

My previous posts:

• a million little pieces
• a very pyrex christmas
• back from hiatus with hearts
• breaking the pyrex fast

Green Dots & Squares Bowl!

I went to an antiques flea market yesterday and saw this salad bowl set.  I'd never seen it before, so I snapped it up (even bargained with the seller to lower the price).  I offered him $5 less than he was asking and he replied, "Sure, my wife's not here right now...", with a smile.  Lucky me!

From what I've found online, this was a one-time promotional run and fairly scarce.  Do any of you know more about it -- the years it was produced, what promotion it was offered with and whether the fork and spoon came with it?  They match it VERY well!

Anyway, I've been doing the happy dance over this one!  

Can This Be Real?

I picked up this bowl at my local thrift store last week.

  It has one paint loss spot and one scratch, but...it's speckled!

As soon as I saw the speckles, I knew it was something special.  At first I thought they were grease or what I think of as 'old lady dirt' -- greasy spots that get so baked on they almost never come off.  Then I realized it was all over the entire Flamingo Pink painted surface.

I've never seen speckled Pyrex, other than the tan country type from the 1970s.  Can this be real?  I'm wondering if it's one of the experimental or limited runs that I've read about in my Pyrex book.  No matter what, I'm pretty excited!

Can any of you tell me more about it?

new to me pyrex!

i was recently gifted two new pieces of pyrex! first, the "embroidery" cinderella bowl here...

and second, the glass teapot i've been hoping to find for ages!

for the wordy version of this post, visit here. but i know, we just like looking at the pretty pyrex photos right? so there ya go. :)

ana

i made it so

Best Pyrex Finds of the Year!

Hello Pyrex Collective - it's SixBalloons here! So last week, I posted about things I regret buying at the thrift store and got some really encouraging feedback saying that I should talk about some of the hits!

Of the Pyrex finds, I have two standouts in mind:

My Promotional Pyrex Aqua Blue Scrolls bowl from 1959 - I cannot believe it was sitting on a shelf for two days at Value Village before I came and rescued it.

This glass Pyrex Measuring Cup likely from the 1930s! It has a chip on the handle but I love it because I use it EVERY time that I bake. It's my go-to liquid measure cup.

I hope everyone had a wonderful year and can share what their fave finds were too! Check out my vintage goodies of the year at Best SixBalloons Thrift Finds of the Year!

Pyrex in Action - Blue Scroll and Crazy Daisy Mixing Bowls!

Hey Everyone, SixBalloons here!

I love using my vintage Pyrex pieces in the kitchen. The other night I was prepping some roasted cauliflower, from a recipe courtesy of Everybody Likes Sandwiches.

My Pyrex Blue Scroll bowl is a workhorse in the kitchen since it's the perfect size. I mixed up the lemon juice and olive oil goodness and added the spices in the bowl for mixing. Of course when it came time for me to grab my bowl of veggies, out came my favourite Pyrex piece of all time, the 401 Spring Blossom mixing bowl gifted to me by Mr. SixBalloons.

I hope you're all putting your Pyrex pieces to work too! Stop by sometime and check out my recent thrift finds at sixballoons.blogspot.com - I picked up a perfect vintage Royal Quiet De Luxe Typewriter from the 1940s the other day...!

1959 Promotional Green and Blue Leaf Twin Server

Hello Pyrex Collective! I made a great find of a 1959 promo piece...

Isn't it cheery and perfect for Spring? I have a pic of it here with a vintage 75-cent apron I found at a church basement sale.

Check out my main post at SixBalloons for completely different photos of this cute pattern!

Promotional Aqua Blue Scrolls

OK Pyrex Collective, it's SixBalloons here with my first post of the year!

I'm really excited to report that I have found another great promotional piece... Blue Scrolls!

I have been quite good sticking to my "rule" of not buying any Pyrex online, instead scouring around at thrift stores, church basement sales, etc. to find pieces in the wild. I'm pretty happy with the little collection I've put together so far.

I've got more photos and info of this piece, including a shot with a couple of my favourite Pyrex pieces here at sixballoons.blogspot.com!

Dandelion Promotional Piece for Christmas!

One of the presents waiting for me under the Christmas tree from Mr. SixBalloons was... drumroll... A Pyrex Promotional Dandelion Divided Dish!

Love the wispy thistles and random-ish pattern. I feel so lucky to have this piece and can't believe it is from 1959! I promise to be very careful with this dish but I am definitely going to put it to use. Too pretty to be put away, don't you think?

If you're interested in more photos of this piece and how much Santa paid for it, I've got more details at my full post here!

An Introduction and my Most Interesting Find....

Hello~I'm Ellen, a new contributor to The Collective, and I thought I'd introduce myself through a story of a unique find.

My creative or thrify DIY suggestions are posted on my blog "Within My Means." I thrift weekly in my neighborhood in Los Angeles, either to keep for myself, give as gifts, or often to list on my Etsy shop. I keep a keen eye for promotionals, or brightly colored, popular patterns. I was ecstatic when I came across this huge 2.5 L Cinderella Casserole dish because though an avid reader of a few blogs devoted to Pyrex, I'd never seen this pattern.

I rushed home not only to clean the dish to confirm its perfect condition, but to scour the net for reference sources like Pyrex Love and The Pyrex Files to no avail.

The design's motifs suggested a Southwestern theme to me, so I thought it was likely a more recent piece.

And I was So excited with the perfect condition of the piece, inside and out.

When I posted a few shots on the Pyrex Love group on Flickr I got some feedback on the etymology of my new find. But I was new to Flickr, and my preferences weren't set optimally, so I didn't see the comments on my photos until just recently.

The biggest surprise was that this 475-B casserole came with a bamboo or wicker holder! I probably lifted this dish out of its holder off the shelf, not knowing Pyrex ever issued something other than the common metal cradles. While I now have a name, Orange Ginger Oriental, I still don't know what year this was issued, or for sure that it's a Promotional piece.

Can anyone fill in a little more information on this piece?

The most awesome helper of all time? My puppy, Chance, was seeking attention and trying to burrow under my backdrop-blanket as I was trying to take these photos on our couch. Guess who was encroaching on whom?

The pattern in my kitchen is Autumn Harvest. It's 1980's, a bit less vintage than the most popular designs. But its fall color palette fits me. I'm also mad for any Christmas or holiday pattern.

The resources available when I need to do a little research have really opened up to me through this blog and the Flickr groups. I look forward to learning more from each other and sharing my finds! What Pyrex pages do you follow on Facebook, and do you find them useful? Please let me know in a blog comment.

Ketchup and Fudge!

Sorta...I got my hands on a Heinz promotional piece. I love the deep teal of it.

I made Peanut Butter Crunch Fudge in it.

I couldn't even wait for the chocolate to harden! I make all my fudge in Pyrex. I think it just tastes better. I picked it up on ebay. It was on my wishlist and I couldn't wait anymore.

Promotional Rooster Black Casserole

Hi Everyone, it's SixBalloons here! I scored a great $3 find yesterday at my local church thrift store:


The pattern was in perfect condition. There was no fading nor colour loss on the nice roosters and sunflowers. Not bad for a piece from 1958!


For more photos and rambling about this piece, feel free to stop by and say hello at my full post here!

In and Out

 I've said it before that I have to cull some pieces to make room for others. As much as I want to own every piece I see I have to set limitations. My husband is a pretty patient guy but he's asked me to be watchful on how much Pyrex is coming in. I mean after all he did get me this.

So the patterns I am keeping are the unique promo pieces:

and the ones I'm saying adios to are these guys:

 I put them in my etsy shop if anyone wants to give them a forever home.

Does anyone else go through their Pyrex and let some go? How do you decide who stays and who goes?

The Pyrex Goddess Was Smiling on Me Today ...

... Unfortunately, she chose to bless me with some patterns that aren't my absolute favorites, but since this was thrifting I (mostly) chose not to ignore her bounty.

The Royal Wheat promotional casserole was found at our closest Goodwill, and it wasn't there yesterday.  I was really happy to find it and am already imagining it on the Thanksgiving table.  But other than that, no Pyrex.

So we piled into the car and tried a neighboring Goodwill where clearly someone had recently cleaned out a kitchen.  We found the 401, 402, and 403 mixing bowls in Forest Fancies and a 404 in Old Orchard (it took some sleuthing to figure that one out).

I was happy to find this 441 in Butterfly Gold I.  I actually have a lot of Butterfly Gold and the white pieces are my favorites.

I first started collecting fridgies for food storage, but I find that I am more likely to reach for a round bake/serve/store or Cinderella casserole.  I found this Woodland 474 (I had a lid at home) and this tannish orange 472 (also my lid).  (Anyone know what it is?  It isn't as gold as the Daisy casseroles.)

This Homestead 401 snuck home with us as well, although we left a 402 in the same pattern at the store.  I've decided that I'll pick up 401s in any color/pattern; it's an easy/cheap/small way to collect a lot of different patterns.  I'd love to do the same with 471s but those are hard to find.

I've started being able to resist buying Pyrex that I don't adore, at least on days that I am broke strong.  But when something like that Old Orchard 404 is $3 I'm hesitant to leave it.  I'm starting to think that we need to have a Southern California Pyrex Collective Meetup and Swap!

Shining Pyrex - Thrifting in the Dark

The hubs and I went thrifting today, and it was kind of late by the time we got to the last stop. They actually turned the lights out on us while we were in this humongous 3-story antique mall, where we remarked to each other it wouldn't be the worst place to get lost and have to spend the night. So we kept wandering a bit, seeing what we could see with what little light drifted in through a window or door here and there.

I had just hit my favorite seller's booth when the manager appeared. He sighed and gave us a look that said, "What are you still doing here?"

He quickly herded us through the maze of booths to the cash register, where I paid for the piece of Pyrex I had just picked up before being busted but hadn't had much time or light to inspect yet.

I think it was a good buy.

It's a 2-1/2 quart Cinderella bowl in a pattern I hadn't seen before. A quick Google search indicates the pattern is called Embroidery and it may have been a 1958 promotional item (what exactly does that mean?). Does anyone have any other info on it?

I sure love the color.

Hello :)

Friendship Cinderella Bowls, originally uploaded by jenib320.

Just wanted to pop in and introduce myself!

George, originally uploaded by jenib320.

I'm Jeni! I blog over at In Color Order. I am about to start my senior year in college studying marketing and studio art. I've been collecting Pyrex for about 1.5 years :) Along with Pyrex I also collect Cathrineholm enamelware, Dansk Kobenstyle and vintage floral sheets. I love to sew and hang out with my pet bunny, George. He likes Pyrex too!

Pink Stems - The #1!, originally uploaded by jenib320.

My very favorite Pyrex patterns are Friendship and the delicious solid colored turquoise pieces. I also can't resist the pink, but who can? I love to use my Pyrex with the exception of a few found new in the box and those extra special pieces!

I am excited about posting here on this blog about my adventures in Pyrex! Happy Thrifting! :)