Welcome to the inaugural episode of Pyrex With Bex with host Bex Scott. Bex talks about vintage Pyrex, of course, but also all things in vintage housewares. You’ll hear about her thrifting adventures, learn about reselling, and hear interviews with other enthusiasts. Today Bex introduces her “gateway Pyrex”, the item that inspired her passion for collecting.
Welcome to the inaugural episode of Pyrex With Bex with host Bex Scott. Bex talks about vintage Pyrex, of course, but also all things in vintage housewares. You’ll hear about her thrifting adventures, learn about reselling, and hear interviews with other enthusiasts. Today Bex introduces her “gateway Pyrex”, the item that inspired her passion for collecting.
Bex came to Pyrex because of her grandparents. In cleaning out their garage at the beginning of the pandemic, she discovered a box full of carefully wrapped dishes and glassware. Three of the items were a lime green lasagna pan and two mixing bowls, one green and one red. That discovery got her hooked and sent her into research and collecting. It was her “gateway Pyrex”. In this first episode she explains the significance of the pieces she found in the garage, what collections they belong to, and which book has become her “Pyrex Bible”. Bex also shares vintage ads and recipes that may just inspire you to get your own Pyrex bowl to try baking in. Avid Pyrex enthusiasts, vintage collectors, and interested newbies alike will thoroughly enjoy embarking on this Pyrex podcast journey with Bex.
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, you're listening to the Pyrex With Bex podcast. My name is Bex Scott and I am so excited that you're tuning in. I've been wanting to record this podcast for quite some time. I am a full-on Pyrex addict. I am self-proclaimed. But also if you were to ask my friends and family, I'm sure they would say exactly the same thing. And I wanted to take this episode to explain to you a little bit about why I got started, give you a backstory, and tell you a little bit about my addiction. So I started collecting Pyrex back in 2019, and this was when the pandemic had just started and we were on lockdown. We had started to lose our hobbies, things that we loved, we couldn't see family and friends. And for many of us, it was a time where we were looking for new things to do and new hobbies to have and Pyrex became that hobby for me. I loved being able to research bowls and patterns and what years things came out and going to the thrift store in hopes that I'd find my next favorite bowl.
Bex Scott: [00:01:46] And the whole reason that I found Pyrex was because of my grandparents. I remember at the beginning of the pandemic, we had decided to help my granny and grandpa clear out their garage and they had a full single garage full of we weren't sure what, but I knew there would be a lot of vintage clothes, jackets, dresses in there. And at the time that's mainly what I was interested in. So we went over and started unloading boxes and I remember my mom took down this Rubbermaid bin. It was full of dishes and glassware that was all wrapped up in linens and tablecloths and even some old needlepoint. And I remember seeing this lasagna pan and it was lime green. And at the time I had never heard of Pyrex outside of the measuring cup that I'm sure everybody's mom or even that you have in your kitchen. I unwrapped it and I saw that it was this lime lasagna pan and I instantly fell in love. I kept unwrapping and I also found a green mixing bowl and a red mixing bowl. And I was hooked. They looked like Christmas to me. And right after we left, I immediately went on Google and started looking into what these Pyrex bowls were, what year they were from, and started asking my grandparents questions about where they're from.
Bex Scott: [00:03:18] It ended up that they're from my mom's aunt, so my great aunt, and it was all items that they had saved from when she had passed and they ended up in their garage. So this was just a few of the items of Pyrex that she must have had. And to this day, I think about what her kitchen must have looked like and how amazing it must have been. And I wish that I could go back and see it now, knowing what all of these vintage items were. So I'm doing some research and nothing that I had was really, now knowing, hard to find or rare but it was still beautiful to me. I had the lime 232 oblong baking dish. Lime was launched with Flamingo Pink in 1952. It's not my favorite color, but I have to say when you pair the lime with the flamingo pink, it really looks great in a China cabinet or on a countertop. The lime and the flamingo pieces are the ones that we use in our house on a regular basis to bake cakes. So they've seen a lot of birthdays. And trust me, if you've never baked a cake in a Pyrex dish, it's amazing. We've used the brownie dishes, the lasagna pans, and the round cake dishes or the cake pans to do them and they pop out easily and the cakes are delicious and moist, so definitely give it a try.
Bex Scott: [00:04:44] If you like the lime color, there's also a complete line of lime green, solid border, opal dinnerware. And this is pretty cool. They have a 22 karat gold band on them. So if you're into dinnerware, give that a search and check those out. So the green mixing bowl that I mentioned ended up being part of the primary set. And the primary set made its debut in 1945 and was the first time that Corning ever sold opal glass to the consumer market using the Pyrex name. And I can see why they decided to start with this primary set because it's beautiful. It's yellow, green, red and blue, and it just, it looks great in your kitchen, I think, and it stands the test of time with the colors. I also had the 404 red mixing bowl, and after doing a bunch of research, I've found that starting in the 1950s, the 404 was sold individually in either yellow or red. So if you know the primary set, it's usually the 404, the biggest bowl, starts off with yellow. But you can also get this alternate red bowl. And to me, I think I like the big red bowl a little bit better than the yellow just because it's such a nice, rich color. The downside to the red is that I've found it is the hardest to find in good condition.
Bex Scott: [00:06:11] I don't know whether it's that people just use the red more often. I've also heard, this might just be a rumor, so don't quote me on this, that there's something in the red paint that made it so that it couldn't withstand the test of time like the other bowls did when they were being washed. But like I said, it could be a rumor, I heard it in a Pyrex group, but if you know otherwise or if you know if this is true, make sure you let me know because it's something I've been wondering about. So I would love to know which bowl was the first bowl that you ever collected or as I called the ones that started it off for me, the Gateway Bowl for you. Which do you love the most? Which pattern are you collecting? Let me know. Find me on Instagram at Pyrex With Bex. Send me a DM. I'd love to chat about what got you started with Pyrex collecting or vintage collecting. So back to 2019, I had started my collection with these three bowls, and this kicked things off full steam ahead for me. I started buying bowls like crazy, but the primary set was the main one that I had focused on, and I think that I had ended up with maybe 5 or 6 primary sets. Regardless, way too many Pyrex dishes. There's no reason I needed five full sets of them, so I did end up selling them on Marketplace and finding homes for them. But to this day, the Pyrex primary set is still one of my favorites.
Bex Scott: [00:07:47] And if you're a new collector, you need to go out and grab the Pyrex Passion book. It's by Michael Barber. You can buy it online. This has been the biggest help for me as a collector. It goes through all of the colors, the patterns, when they were released, and descriptions for all of them. It will be your Pyrex Bible. And I remember getting it for the first time on my iPad, I bought the online version of it, and it was so cool being able to flip through and see all of these bowls. I not too long ago invested in the paperback copy, which I think is a lot better than doing the online version because you can put sticky notes in it, you can mark it up as you collect bowls, you can check things off in pencil if you want, and just carry it with you and have that paperback copy that you can just hold in your hands. But in this book, Pyrex Passion, I remember seeing one of the very first Pyrex ads for the primary set. It said special $3.50 Pyrex ware color bowl set only $2.49. You save $1.01 limited time only. World's most famous mixing bowl set at almost a third off just in time for Mother's Day. Here's your chance to get America's favorite mixing bowl set at the lowest price in history. And just in time for Mother's Day, think of all the help these big colorful bowls will be for mixing, baking, serving and storing. Think how bright and gay they'll be on the table. Easy to wash clean, too, and they nest together to save space on your shelf. This special bargain offer ends June 30th, so don't wait. Get your Pyrex ware color bowl set and save $1.01 at any housewares store.
Bex Scott: [00:09:40] I thought this was pretty incredible to get a whole set for $3.50. Think about how much prices have gone up since that time. I know for where I live, I'm in Canada in a small town in Alberta and a primary set goes for around $100. That's for all four bowls in great condition, no dishwasher damage. Another thing I found really cool, which kind of ties into the primary bowl set or any mixing bowl, is in this vintage Pyrex prize recipes book that I have. I was flipping through and I saw a picture of somebody tipping a 404 red mixing bowl over and a full on angel food cake is coming out of it. So I've used the regular brownie or lasagna or cake pans to do cakes, but I've never baked a cake in a mixing bowl. And this is something that I'm definitely going to have to try.
Bex Scott: [00:10:38] So the recipe says, Angel food cake in a hurry with strawberry frosting. One package prepared angel food cake mix, prepare cake mix in a Pyrex mixing bowl according to the directions on the package, being sure that egg whites are beaten so stiff they do not slide when the bowl is tipped. When folding dry ingredients into egg white foam, have spatula or spoon reach the very bottom of the bowl. Leave the batter right in the Pyrex mixing bowl and bake. Turn the bowl upside down on rack to cool before removing cake from bowl. Ice inverted cake with strawberry frosting or sprinkle with confectioner's sugar. Time bake about 35 minutes. Temperature 350°F. Moderate oven. Amount one cake 9.75 inches in diameter. 12 servings. Dish Pyrex four quart mixing bowl. So I don't know if any of you have ever used a mixing bowl to bake a cake, but please let me know because this is something that I think is really cool.
Bex Scott: [00:11:38] You know a little bit about me and my Pyrex addiction. I'd love to know about yours. What was the first bowl that you ever collected or the first Gateway Bowl, as I like to call it, that started your Pyrex collection? Feel free to find me on Instagram at Pyrex With Bex or check out my website PyrexWithBex.com. Shoot me an email on there and check out some of the vintage items that I have for sale.