Host Bex Scott invites the husband of a Pyrex collector, or hoarder, onto the show to tell what it’s like to be the partner of a collector. To protect his identity, since his wife doesn’t know he’s on the podcast, he is called Rex. This is his uncensored view of Pyrex collecting from the support side.
Host Bex Scott invites the husband of a Pyrex collector, or hoarder, onto the show to tell what it’s like to be the partner of a collector. To protect his identity, since his wife doesn’t know he’s on the podcast, he is called Rex. This is his uncensored view of Pyrex collecting from the support side.
Protected by anonymity, Bex gets Rex’s unguarded opinions on all things Pyrex. He shares that they recently had to move house due to his wife’s collecting “vintage knickknacky whatnots and doohickeys”. He answers every question you want to be answered: what his favorite pattern is, what Pyrex dish he exploded, how often he is dragged to thrift stores, why his wife is like the United Colors of Benetton, and what his most hated pattern is. This is an amazing look behind the veil of a Pyrex home from the perspective of the non-collecting partner.
Resources discussed in this episode:
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Contact Rebecca Scott | Pyrex With Bex:
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Transcript
Bex Scott: [00:00:02] Hey everybody, it's Bex Scott and welcome to the Pyrex With Bex podcast where, you guessed it, I talk about vintage Pyrex, but also all things vintage housewares. I'll take you on my latest thrifting adventures, talk about reselling, chat with other enthusiasts about their collections, and learn about a bunch of really awesome items from the past. Subscribe now on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you love listening to podcasts so you don't miss a beat.
Bex Scott: [00:00:31] Hey, everybody, this is Bex Scott, and you're listening to the Pyrex With Bex podcast. Today's episode is one that you don't want to miss because I am interviewing the husband of a Pyrex collector, so stay tuned to learn all about his side of the Pyrex addiction.
Bex Scott: [00:00:49] Hey everybody, welcome back for another episode of the Pyrex With Bex podcast. I am super excited for you guys to listen to this one today, because I have a special guest that I know you'll all love. He is the husband of a Pyrex collector or hoarder, if you will, and he's here secretly so his wife doesn't know that he's doing this podcast. So to keep his anonymity, we are going to give him an alias. And today he's going to be known as Rex. So I'd like to welcome Rex to the show today. He's going to give you a little bit of insight into his world, having a wife that is a Pyrex hoarder, a vintage lover. And I know that behind every collector and Pyrex obsessed collector and vintage lover, there is a spouse, a partner, somebody who is in the background having to put up with everything that we put them through on a daily basis. So welcome, Rex.
Rex: [00:01:52] Thanks for having me. I wish you had one of those voice synthesizers that make it even better.
Bex Scott: [00:01:58] Turn you into T-Pain on the Pyrex podcast.
Rex: [00:02:02] That'd be sweet.
Bex Scott: [00:02:03] So thanks so much for being here today, and I hope your wife isn't too mad that we're doing this if she ever finds out. But I wanted to get your take on what your life is like living with a Pyrex collector.
Rex: [00:02:17] Well, simply put, we have lots and lots of stuff in the house. We have a storage room that is dedicated to all of her stuff. We have boxes full of all sorts of different Pyrex and vintage knickknacksy whatnots and doohickeys and thingamajigs. So we are, we are surrounded from every direction.
Bex Scott: [00:02:46] That sounds like a dream for me.
Rex: [00:02:50] I thought you might say that.
Bex Scott: [00:02:53] And how would you say her collecting and hoarding has impacted your life?
Rex: [00:02:59] Well, recently we had to move, recently, and I will say here as Rex that it was because we ran out of space for Pyrex and our children. But, uh, it's very interesting to say the least. And being an older guy, it's funny how some of the things that she has found or digs up out of the archives of the 10 billion boxes that we have in the house, take me back to moments in my childhood, whether it be from my grandparents or my parents when I was a kid remembering different kinds of balls and knickknacks and whatnots that we used to have around the house.
Bex Scott: [00:03:41] Nice. So from the standpoint of it bringing back great memories of family and things that you've had from your childhood, it sounds like a positive thing, but maybe not on the side of running out of space in your home, having to potentially relocate because of her addiction.
Rex: [00:04:01] Yeah, that part's good. I mean, we got to the point where we had a spare bedroom in the basement of our old house that had to be converted into a Pyrex knickknack warehouse. We had to put up shelving and and all sorts of tables and shipping labels and bubble wrap and those foamy popcorn thingamajigs that get everywhere. So, yeah, it was, uh, anybody who wanted to sleep over is on the couch or on the floor.
Bex Scott: [00:04:35] Displaced by old bowls.
Rex: [00:04:38] Yeah. How odd does that sound?
Bex Scott: [00:04:41] Well, you sound like a very caring and understanding husband for building all these shelves and dedicating a whole room in your house just for her. So I think she's a pretty lucky lady.
Rex: [00:04:54] The things we do for love, you know.
Bex Scott: [00:04:57] And how long has your wife been collecting for?
Rex: [00:05:00] I think it's about four years now. Four long years. But yeah, but four years.
Bex Scott: [00:05:09] Four of the longest years of your life, would you say?
Rex: [00:05:11] Most definitely.
Bex Scott: [00:05:14] And when she started collecting, did you know about Pyrex and what it was, or what were your kind of initial thoughts and your headspace around Pyrex?
Rex: [00:05:27] Well, my initial thoughts or concerns was that my wife had been possessed by a very old geriatric woman in that she had this massive obsession with matching bowls and relic knickknacks and stuff. Sorry. What was the other part of your question?
Bex Scott: [00:05:48] And did you know what Pyrex was when she started collecting?
Rex: [00:05:54] I, yeah, I knew the name. I knew it was used for like cooking and stuff because we had some clear Pyrex that we used for casseroles or whatever. So I was familiar with the name, but I had no clue that there were so many patterns and colors and shapes and all that. Like, I was flabbergasted, honestly, at how much variety there was. I don't know if it's still like that, but, uh, definitely in the old days, it was certainly a thing.
Bex Scott: [00:06:28] Yeah. Pyrex has gotten, I think, a lot more boring lately with the modern types that they're making. They definitely don't make it like they used to with the nice milk glass and the different patterns and colors. It's all very... There's Disney and they've remade some of the vintage pieces into the more modern take, the glass, clear glass bottoms with the plastic lids and it's to me not as exciting, but I guess it is a way for the company to carry on and keep making money. And it has a place in some people's homes, so that's a good thing.
Rex: [00:07:07] Yeah, I'm not familiar with the modern stuff. I'm only familiar with the stuff that's as old as me.
Bex Scott: [00:07:12] That's good.
Rex: [00:07:13] Or older.
Bex Scott: [00:07:14] That's how it should be. So in your household, who does most of the cooking?
Rex: [00:07:23] Uh, that's all on my shoulders. Yeah, I do all the cooking and predominantly all the baking and stuff, too, in the house.
Bex Scott: [00:07:31] Very nice. You have a very lucky wife then.
Rex: [00:07:33] You got that right.
Bex Scott: [00:07:37] And when you cook and you bake, do you use the Pyrex that she collects? Are you allowed to use it?
Rex: [00:07:44] Well, that's a, that could be a bit of a delicate subject, but short answer, yes. And you know, I'll admit that despite my smarty pants remarks about everything, I have a signature chocolate cake that I make that's gluten free and can be lactose free and, um, I always use the standard kind of tin cake pans, and they always would stick, no matter how many gallons of Pam you dump in it, it would still stick. And parchment paper just made them look weird. And, uh, she suggested trying this one pink and one weird lime looking colored round Pyrex dishes from 1876 and gave it a little spurt of Pam. And the cakes just came out perfect, and they came right off the bottom. There was like, almost no residue left. I was thoroughly, thoroughly blown away with how how well they performed. So I was a convert there for sure. In terms of casseroles and stuff, I sometimes will use them like for shepherd's pie. It works really well, especially for keeping the heat in after. The delicate subject was, she had this one bowl that she was very proud that she acquired, which was, well you people will know what it is, this Big Bertha, I'm not sure what the print was. It was yellow with some white flowery things on it or something. Anyway, I was, uh, making a roast in it, and I'd like to say for the record that I had zero direction on Pyrex.
Bex Scott: [00:09:25] Sure, sure. Blame it on the wife.
Rex: [00:09:27] Well, it's true story. So, um, there are no, uh, 1950s directions with this thing. So, anyway, I, uh, mistakenly had put the Pyrex dish on the stove.
Bex Scott: [00:09:41] Oh, no.
Rex: [00:09:42] With the roast in it that I had, uh, seared and had turned it on. And then I had a jus that I'd made that I was pouring in. And for those of you who know what you're not supposed to do, it quite literally exploded.
Bex Scott: [00:10:00] Oh, no.
Rex: [00:10:02] Yeah, that was one of my prouder Pyrex moments in my life.
Bex Scott: [00:10:07] How long were you in the doghouse for that one?
Rex: [00:10:11] Oh, I didn't hear the end of it for a good three months. Yeah. And it still was brought up to this day. So it's going to be one of those things that's kind of like, uh, a cold sore. You just, you never get rid of it.
Bex Scott: [00:10:22] And did you finally replace the Bertha for her?
Rex: [00:10:26] Uh, well she did. I'm hopeless at finding this stuff, but she managed to find a replacement and then forbade me from touching it ever again.
Bex Scott: [00:10:34] That's a pretty scary story. And hopefully you have proof of this to show people down the road.
Rex: [00:10:41] Well, I did take a picture of the aftermath, but I was trying to be all, you know, uh, Gordon Ramsay style and show off my cooking abilities. So I'm sad to say, for my own sake, that I actually videotaped the, uh, the event as I was pouring in the jus you can see the whole thing just explode.
Bex Scott: [00:11:03] That's amazing. I think you're gonna have to share that video with me.
Rex: [00:11:08] For the right price. Sure. Yeah.
Bex Scott: [00:11:12] Oh, your poor wife. It's hard to find those Berthas. They're expensive, and they don't come around very often.
Rex: [00:11:20] Yeah, there's one less Bertha in the world now.
Bex Scott: [00:11:23] That's okay. You make up for it by doing all the cooking for her. So you're redeemed.
Rex: [00:11:28] Perfect. Can you let her know? That'd be great.
Bex Scott: [00:11:30] I'll try. I'll put a memo in. And does your wife collect one particular color or pattern, or does she tend to hoard them all, like some of us do?
Rex: [00:11:43] We should really refer to her as the United Colors of Benetton. She doesn't discriminate. She loves all patterns and shapes and bowls equally, as can be witnessed by the copious boxes we have on the shelves in the basement.
Bex Scott: [00:12:00] Very nice. That sounds like a great collector. A little bit of everything.
Rex: [00:12:06] Uh, sure. Yeah.
Bex Scott: [00:12:08] You're not convinced, though?
Rex: [00:12:11] I plead the fifth.
Bex Scott: [00:12:13] And of all of the patterns that she has, do you have a favorite pattern?
Rex: [00:12:19] Yeah. Once I started to warm up to the whole thing, I started to turn, I too became, you know, I was, what's the word?
Bex Scott: [00:12:30] You saw the light?
Rex: [00:12:32] Possessed. No, no, no, it's like the demon possessing me. Pyrex demon. And she has a lot of the Homestead it's called, pattern in the blue. I like the look of it. It was cool. And when I saw it all together, like, laid out, I was kind of impressed with all the different sizes and shapes. And I ended up gravitating to using them for serving because it, yeah, you know what? It makes the table look nice instead of the way I used to do it, which is just like, you know, dinner plates with different piles of food on it. Um, presentation wise, it was great. So that when we had, like, our parents over or whatever, then it just made for a nice spread. So that was a pattern that I originally liked. But then, and I will admit this, I am very fond of the black snowflake pattern. I really, really, really like that.
Bex Scott: [00:13:28] So that is a great one.
Rex: [00:13:29] That has given her all the green light that she wanted in her life to go out and go forth and seek out and find all the black snowflake. And we have a fairly good, we're only missing, I think, a couple of the entire collection and have some doubles, but they are, they look really nice and uh, of course function great. So that's my favorite. There's a few others that are cool, like the one-offs that have the gold foil. Those look pretty neat. But the black snowflake is kind of my favorite serving dish that I like to use.
Bex Scott: [00:14:01] So I have to agree with you that the black snowflake is an awesome pattern. But have you seen the English Pyrex? The JAJ Pyrex version? That's the white with the black snowflake.
Rex: [00:14:15] Yes. As part of my, uh, Pyrex indoctrination by my wife, I have learned about there being an alternate Pyrex universe across the pond, and, uh, she showed me how they have a snowflake one, but it's sort of like the inverse, I guess, of what is here. One of my grievances that I can't voice because they stopped making them back before I was born, was that they didn't seem to have a butter dish or a gravy boat that matched the black snowflake that we have now, to kind of compliment like a turkey dinner or whatever. And, um, yeah, she showed me that there's these butter dishes and gravy boats over in the UK that are the sort of inverted snowflake version of what we have, which I would really love to get. They look super nice, even though they are kind of the flip side color pattern. It's crazy though, like you can get the dish for 10 or 15 bucks, but then it's like $30 shipping or something ridiculous or, so I mean, as much as I'd like to have those, it seems a bit excessive to pay that much money, so hold out for when we have a friend going back to England or something. See if they can't fill a suitcase full of--
Bex Scott: [00:15:36] -- that would be great--
Rex: [00:15:37] -- Pyrex to bring back.
Bex Scott: [00:15:38] Yeah, yeah. It's funny how there's the JAJ in the UK and then they have Aggie Pyrex as well, which I believe is from Australia, and they're beautiful dishes. And like you said, there's a whole other universe of these dishes out there, but it is quite expensive with shipping and you don't find them here as often as you would just because they're made over there. And we have the US and the Canadian Pyrex here. So it's always fun to look online and see what you could purchase from Etsy or Poshmark or eBay, but that shipping really kills you. So not as fun on that side of things. So you've talked about Homestead, the black snowflake, is there a pattern that you really dislike that your wife has either bought, brought home, and forced you to look at or you just know exists? And you, she may not have any of it, but you just really despise.
Rex: [00:16:41] Well, we do have the, uh, Space Traveler's Guide to Pyrex book that she that bought shows all the different patterns and whatnot, which again blew my mind as to how many different things have been produced. But of all the ones I - and if anybody takes offense to this, I'm sorry, but you know, with therapy and counseling, you'll get past it - the Verdey or Verde, that green one with the weird sort of like round, smudgy fingerprint flower thingies on the lid, like...
Bex Scott: [00:17:12] That's a beautiful description.
Rex: [00:17:15] It's just so ugly. I just, it's a color I just can't get past. And she has a bunch of it, which, you know, it'd be a shame, but, you know, a box may fall on the concrete floor one day.
Bex Scott: [00:17:28] Uh oh. The Pyrex graveyard with the Bertha that you destroyed.
Rex: [00:17:33] Yeah. But, you know, in fairness, she's broken her fair share of dishes, too. So. And not from cooking, just from, you know, hacky sack, the bowl, or butterfingers or...
Bex Scott: [00:17:46] I can understand that. I've broken a ton of them myself. So the graveyard is getting bigger and bigger every day.
Rex: [00:17:54] Well, if you could, uh, you know, impart some skills and ideas on how she could improve our graveyard here, that'd be amazing, because then we'd have so much more space.
Bex Scott: [00:18:04] Well, there are people who make jewelry out of the broken Pyrex so you could scoop up--
Rex: [00:18:09] So I'll grab my sledgehammer and just give her.
Bex Scott: [00:18:13] Yeah and then send it away and have some jewelry made for her. There, I have solved all of the problems.
Rex: [00:18:18] I'm sure she would just be so happy with that.
Bex Scott: [00:18:21] I bet she would. So is it just Pyrex that your wife collects and hoards, or is it various other vintage items as well?
Rex: [00:18:31] Well, in staying true to the theme of Benetton, she doesn't discriminate with just only collecting Pyrex. She collects anything and everything that's old and dusty and musty and is, in quotes, vintage. So we have, oh my gosh, we have glasses and mugs and shirts and magazine holders and ashtrays. What else? There's just Christmas lights, old Christmas lights, old Christmas ornaments, you name it. We're, yeah, we're like a vintage thrift store.
Bex Scott: [00:19:10] That sounds amazing.
Rex: [00:19:12] I figured you might say that.
Bex Scott: [00:19:13] And is this all in your basement, or is it kind of decorating your house, or do you live in a very vintage-y, musty, dusty house as you describe these items?
Rex: [00:19:29] Well, most of it is contained within the room, but it does seem to find ways to sneak out at night and place itself on various countertops, couches, floors. Yeah. Railings? Yeah.
Bex Scott: [00:19:46] Like vintage booby traps?
Rex: [00:19:49] Exactly. It's like, you know, like the movie Gremlins. Like, they just seem to multiply and they're everywhere. That's dating myself. But yes, if anybody's familiar with the movie Gremlins, that's what it's like. Somebody spilling water and there's little vintage gremlins everywhere.
Bex Scott: [00:20:04] And does she keep all of the vintage items or is she a reseller?
Rex: [00:20:10] She is a reseller. She needed a bit of a push to get going on the reselling because she was just more focused on the hoarding part. And then when the kids were having to sleep with Pyrex bowls and vintage shirts, we realized that, you know, she needs to start, uh, parting ways with some things. So. So she's gone into, um, listing the bowls and other vintage knickknacks that she doesn't like as much as her coveted - what the heck is it called? The pink and the turquoise Pyrex? Like, that's her, those are her babies as well as the, uh, primary color ones. But other ones she, like I can tell you one thing. Those Verde ones are not moving fast enough, but, she--
Rex: [00:21:05] They're haunting you.
Bex Scott: [00:21:05] -- no she does sell it. They do. I have, I'm in therapy right now for it because I've had to talk about it. So now when she goes, finds things, it's not necessarily stuff that she wants, which is what she used to do. It's more kind of like things that she thinks other people might appreciate.
Bex Scott: [00:21:24] That sounds like the right way to do it for reselling. It's tricky when you tend to buy things that only you like, and then you try to move them, and nobody wants to buy them because it's your taste instead of kind of predicting what the market out there wants. So that's a very savvy way of reselling. And how did she find all of her items?
Rex: [00:21:49] For the most part she frequents the, you know, Goodwill, Salvation Army, Vallue Village up here in Canada for anybody's from the States, just another sort of, uh, thrift store. There are sometimes these one-off ones that she comes across in different towns and cities that she'll go in and see, but that's probably the main way. She's, uh, also got big into watching estate sales and, uh, online auctions because it seems that there's a lot of old stuff that gets sold in those things, just mostly because there's only a a small group of you crazy folk who want that stuff. So a lot of people, that's why I find it kind of surprising, honestly, like she found a snowflake dish, black snowflake dish the other day. Like, was it a couple of weeks ago, maybe, in one of the stores and I was blown away that she found it, because I just find it surprising that - maybe it's just because it's the pattern I like - but that people would just donate it and not even look to see if it's worth anything. But I guess if you're, you know, sadly, clearing out a loved one, like grandparent's, house or something you don't want to be belaboring your grief by going through all their stuff like that. But anyway, so it's nice that people will donate that stuff so that other people can enjoy it.
Bex Scott: [00:23:15] Yeah. The estate sales are, they're definitely fun. It is sad to think that somebody may have passed and these are their belongings that are being sold. But the way I see it is I'm collecting them to kind of help keep that memory going. And all the Pyrex dishes that I keep, I love each of them, and... It really does sound like they're my children. Jeeze, maybe I am a crazy person. On that note...
Rex: [00:23:48] I'll plead the fifth again.
Bex Scott: [00:23:52] Has she ever taken you to the thrift stores when she's gone?
Rex: [00:23:57] Oh, my God, all the time. Yeah. No, it's, uh, it's become a mainstay of our routine. Buy food for the family, go to the thrift store, get gas for the car, go to the thrift store. Go to the thrift store. Go to the thrift store. Take the kids to swimming, go to the thrift store. Yeah. So we, uh, go frequently, but it's, you know, I've been somewhat infected by it. It is pretty fun. Uh, sometimes, like I will, you know, with shame admit there is one time we were at, I'm really quite enamored with the carnival glass stuff that looks, I like the look of it, it's really quite cool.
Bex Scott: [00:24:38] Yeah. It's pretty.
Rex: [00:24:38] And we were at a Vallue Village one day, and I was looking down the aisles and I got all giddy like a school girl when I found this gigantic carnival glass punchbowl with 14 carnival glass, like it was all intact except for the spoon, I guess. The serving spoon or ladle. It was beautiful. And, uh, I was quite excited about that. So I showed it to her, and I think she was quite happy that I was all excited about it.
Bex Scott: [00:25:12] That's a great score.
Rex: [00:25:13] It was a smoking good deal. It was, I think it was like $14 or something or $12 for this entire thing. So.
Bex Scott: [00:25:21] That's awesome.
Rex: [00:25:22] I haven't had a chance to use it yet, but, uh, maybe this coming summer, next summer we'll bust it out.
Bex Scott: [00:25:28] Very cool. And has there been anything weird or strange that you've come across? What's your best Value Village or thrift store experience?
Rex: [00:25:42] Oh my gosh, there's so many. There is so much weird stuff there that I'm surprised that they can even sell it. More to do with clothing, but, uh, I don't know. Sometimes you see stuff in there that you're questioning why they're even trying to sell it, because the condition of it is just so bad. Like there's those cornflower metal, I don't know what those are called, those big metal cooking like, I guess, a crock pot in a way, maybe?
Bex Scott: [00:26:14] Oh, yeah. Like the roasting pans?
Rex: [00:26:16] There was one, yeah, exactly. And there was one that I saw and it was just chipped to death like it'd be horrible to cook with. And I was a bit surprised to see something in that poor condition on the shelf. Especially, it was quite expensive too, it wasn't all that cheap. It was like 25 or $30. And I was just kind of like, that seems like a lot of money for something that's so used and abused. One thing I've found in all the multitude of stores that we've been to, there are definitely some that just, you know, they put a price tag on it and they just sell it for whatever seems reasonable to them. And there's others that seem to be more savvy with the value of the Pyrex world or the cornflower world or all this vintage stuff. And I've learned through my wife, like some of these prices are, they're just kind of ridiculous, especially from a resale standpoint. But even from a non-resale standpoint, like they're just, some places are just kind of a little out to lunch or maybe, I don't want to, I feel bad calling a thrift store greedy, but for the sake that they're doing stuff for good, but it's like if you really want to move the items, you have to be, you know, somewhat reasonable with your pricing. So it's just been funny to kind of see the disparity between different locations because obviously some people that work there are dialed in and others aren't. And so yeah.
Bex Scott: [00:27:44] Yeah, and I think a lot of them have gotten savvy to people coming in that are collectors and resellers, and they Google the items that people have donated to find out the prices and they jack them up. Even when I've gone, I've found certain shelves that you can tell the staff have been hiding items on behind things. So I've found PlayStation games and Pyrex dishes in totally the wrong aisle. But it's likely because somebody works there that knows somebody who would want it and they hide it for them. So I've gone back 3 or 4 nights in a row, and it's always in that one spot that they're hiding something, and the price is really low so that this person gets a good deal. So it works out well for me. But there's definitely some shady stuff that goes on.
Rex: [00:28:35] Yeah, it's good when you've cracked the code, hey?
Bex Scott: [00:28:38] Well, so in closing, Rex, what would you say? As words of encouragement for anyone living with a Pyrex hoarder that may have a partner that's one, a friend, a family member, that they have to endure on a daily basis.
Rex: [00:28:56] Well. Be strong, for one. You have to be understanding and considerate. But, you know, let's be honest here, this is a golden key for you to do your own thing and have your own obsession or your own thing, and they can't say anything about it. So in my case, I have a big car hobby fetish and yeah, so it's like a get out of jail free card. I can do it all I want. And she doesn't have any recourse because of, well, look at our storage room. So my words of encouragement are if you are wanting to have some sort of a vice or hobby or addiction of your own, and you have a Pyrex hoarder in your life, now is the time.
Bex Scott: [00:29:48] That is spoken like a true survivor of a Pyrex hoarder.
Bex Scott: [00:29:57] Well, thank you so much, Rex, for being on my podcast. I'm sure it was very enlightening for my listeners and myself even, to hear about the other side of the Pyrex collector world.
Rex: [00:30:10] Well, my darling wife, it was my absolute pleasure and pure joy to be on your show today, to share my side of my life with you. And it's amazing and interesting and definitely never dull. So. But I have to go, dinner's almost ready, so don't be late. Love you.
Bex Scott: [00:30:29] Well, thank you for supporting me through my addiction. And I'll help you through your car addiction as well. And I will see you in the kitchen. Love you.