TikTok Loves Vintage Pyrex, Here’s Where to Find It

Jul 13, 2023

By Michelle Mastro

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Despite all the ridicule about boomers, the traditional values instilled in them by the generation that raised them might not be as outdated as we’d like to believe. For this discussion, I’m specifically talking about vintage Pyrex, the retro kitchenware that’s suddenly making a comeback. The brand was known for its durable glassware that could go from oven to table to freezer and was also quite fashionable for the time. Adorned with trippy florals and vibrant colors, Pyrex was very common in the midcentury, but with resurgence of mid-century modern (or “mid mod”) styles, Pyrex is now cool again.

According to Food & Wine, ​​80% of households in the U.S. currently own Pyrex. If you go on TikTok, #vintagepyrex has been viewed 251.1 million times. Collectors like Jamie Hardisty (Pyrex Girl), and Pretty Pyrex (who wishes to remain anonymous) show off stacks of their colorful kitchenware on the platform and on Instagram. Their stunning collections are organized by color and type. The brand made so many pieces with specific functions, from chip-and-dip bowls to multiple sets for storing leftovers, so it’s easy to accumulate a variety of vintage Pyrex pieces in every hue.

Pretty Pyrex came across her first piece in an antique shop: It was a cute turquoise casserole dish that turned out to be a model Butterprint 473. “It was then that I discovered the colorful, beautiful world of vintage Pyrex,” she says. Jamie also loved the “soft midcentury colors and patterns.” As the pandemic took its course in 2020, both collectors noticed a huge uptick in followers. “My first TikTok had over 100,000 views,” Jamie recalls. She was surprised because she felt her video wasn’t of good quality. “The lighting was bad, and the camera was shaking, but it made so many people happy!”

Pretty Pyrex organizes her collection in rainbow order. Having so many pieces of Pyrex, she has transformed bookshelves into storage spaces.

Pretty Pyrex had a similar experience after starting her account in 2019. “I honestly didn’t expect anybody to follow it besides my mom,” she admits. “It was about a year later, in 2020, that I experienced significant growth in followers.” Viewers liked the nostalgia of Jamie’s videos and would comment that they took them back to spending time in their grandma’s kitchen. “Pyrex reminds me of a simpler time when families would all gather together for dinner and share the events of their day,” she adds.

The colorful cookware lining the women’s kitchen shelves certainly harkens back to another era. The glass that would become Pyrex was first made in 1908, when Corning Glass Works created a borosilicate glass capable of surviving extreme temperatures. Termed Nonex and used in railroad lanterns, the material’s strength meant the glass would rarely need replacing, so the company looked to other uses for the glass.

As the story goes, the year was 1913 when a woman named Bessie Littleton, accidentally broke a baking dish and asked her husband, a Corning scientist, if she could experiment with a Nonex glass. She baked a sponge cake in the Nonex glass, and it turned out so well the company started fashioning the glass into cookware. By 1915, the company had its first Pyrex line, which included several pie plates, leading to the name Pyrex, a blending of pie and Nonex.

Jamie Hardisty, a.k.a. Pyrex Girl, displays her collection with nutcrackers painted in the bright colors mimicking her colorful Pyrex.

Today, new Pyrex can be made from either tempered soda lime glass or the original borosilicate glass. The brand switched its formula in the 1950s to the soda lime glass, but recently started reintroducing borosilicate glass. Although both glasses are heat-resistant, borosilicate glass does better with extreme temperatures, making the vintage Pyrex pieces highly coveted by collectors. “I started collecting before it was cool,” Jamie says. “A pink Daisy 043 would maybe be $12, and nowadays it would be at least $75 in good condition.” A few years ago, Corning released a collection of clear glass bowls for its 100th-year anniversary that are modern but with vintage Pyrex designs on them. “I still think there’s nothing better than vintage though,” Pretty Pyrex adds.

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If you’re interested in starting your own vintage Pyrex collection, the content creators recommend looking at antique stores first. “While you’re there, let the shop owner know you are a Pyrex collector,” Jamie explains. “They may have a seller that they know of that has rare pieces. Antique sellers don’t always display their best stuff.”

Other times, thinking outside the box is key to landing the best vintage Pyrex pieces. Tell friends that you’re on the hunt and visit your local Goodwill, thrift stores, garage sales, and estate sales. Online places like eBay, Mercari, Etsy, and Facebook Marketplace are also great for finding some of the most rare and coveted pieces in the Pyrex catalog. Jamie notes that there are also local and regional groups on Facebook for Pyrex where members will “share and swap Pyrex.”

Naturally, there are certain dealbreakers that collectors should be on the lookout for. “Watch out for DWD which means ‘dishwasher damage,’” Jamie warns. “Vintage Pyrex cannot be put in the dishwasher. It ruins the finish and becomes faded and chalky. There is no way to bring a DWD piece back to life.” But a little cosmetic damage doesn’t have to make or break the Pyrex. To bring less than sparkling pieces back to life, Jamie typically uses Peek or Bon Ami. “They are safe to use on Pyrex, but also tough enough to remove even 50-year-old baked on grime,” she notes. And always check for scratches—this can be done by following the Pyrex “light test” which involves simply “holding the piece up to a light to expose any scratches you might not otherwise notice.” Of course, the vintage pieces are still beautiful, and the minor defects can equal snagging coveted Pyrex at a steal of a price.

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