The Vintage Dishware Brand You Should Always Snag From Thrift Stores & Estate Sales

Vintage dishware can be a great way to bring your kitchen retro charm. Vintage dishes not only have a sense of history, but can be far more unique in design than many modern pieces. Many also have unmatched durability that has made them popular in kitchens for decades. Pyrex is a vintage dishware brand you should always snag from thrift stores and estate sales. These dishes are well known for their beautiful colors and intricate designs, making them a very popular score for avid thrifters and mid to late 20th century vintage aficionados. You can spot these gems in thrift stores, estate sales, and other secondhand venues, some at very reasonable prices that make them great finds to pick up.

Once a popular brand to see on the shelves, in recent years, these colorful pieces have become rarer and more expensive due to demand. However, you can still find pieces for a bargain in certain colors and designs, as well as imperfect pieces that may need a little restoration. While full sets can be costly via secondhand vendors, the individual pieces can be a budget-friendly way to decorate and outfit your vintage-style kitchen.

Pyrex, as a durable glass material, was manufactured by the Corning Glass Company in the early 20th century, with the first pie plates appearing in 1915 after previous industrial applications. The colorful dishware we now know as Pyrex was manufactured between 1948 and 1985 at a time when many American kitchens often harbored at least one piece of the popular brand. The bowls and bakeware were created in an array of colors with embossed designs in white or another color that complemented the base. Others were white with color embossed designs. There were also solid color sets in red, yellow, blue, and green.

The glass was typically a cloudy white on the inside with color on the outside, ranging from vivid pastel pinks and blues to more subdued earth tones, and mustards, oranges, and greens that delightfully complement midcentury modern design kitchen schemes. They were often sold in sets, like a group of mixing bowls or lidded casserole dishes of various sizes. Other Pyrex items included butter dishes, coffee mugs, and covered refrigerator dishes.

While the demand for some vintage Pyrex pieces has skyrocketed in recent years, you can still find affordable pieces in your favorite thrifting haunts to elevate the look of your kitchen. Some colors are more valuable to collectors and resellers than others, like pink and turquoise. Earth tones and more subdued colors like gold, orange, or green are usually less popular and more plentiful. Some designs are also rarer and more desirable to collectors, like the Golden Sunflower Daisy, Cinderella, and Pink Duchess designs. In good condition, these can net thousands of dollars even without the whole set. Others, like the solid primary color pieces, were far more common and therefore can be found in abundance and for cheaper.

Condition of your Pyrex often matters when it comes to resale value, but you can also occasionally find pieces with cosmetic flaws that are still beautiful and useful. Some stellar pieces have lost their originally glossy sheen from the dishwasher, but can be restored in shine with a little coconut oil. An easy way to clean Pyrex is to use soapy water and gentle dish soap.