The Unexpected Value Of Your Vintage Pyrex Today

Everything old is in vogue again, including vintage Pyrex. You may have thought you'd baked your last casserole in a Pyrex "Forest Fancies" mushroom-printed piece of culinary history from the 1970s. However, the home-cooked scent of nostalgia is filling the air for generations old and new. Much like the drive behind collecting valuable vintage cookbooks, collectors are trying to cook up feelings of comforting cuteness with a mix of memories and machine-made glass.

Vintage Pyrex was once built with tempered borosilicate glass to withstand the heat of the oven and the chill of a refrigerator, and apparently is made with quite a few bits of the sands of time. Today, vintage Pyrex dishes have gained a cult following. This means collectors of all ages and cooking abilities prowl attics, estate sales, and online marketplaces in hot pursuit of playful Pyrex patterns. Serving dishes, drip coffee pots, glass dutch ovens: if food could be cooked or stored in it, chances are, Pyrex put a daisy on it at some point, especially throughout the 1950s and '70s.

Perhaps you've even walked past a vintage shop proudly displaying mixing bowls you or a family member used throughout the years, bearing a price tag that would make your eyes water more than your mouth ever did. Some vintage Pyrex pieces sell for a song, while others can reach amounts that would put their original low prices to shame. Some vintage Pyrex shapes and patterns are rare, while others are popular still beloved, and in demand.

Multiple shapes, colors, and patterns of vintage Pyrex products exist. Manufactured since 1915 by New York-based Corning Glass Works, Pyrex items were frequently released in limited-edition batches. Seasonal patterns and an ever-rotating new designs mean there are more vintage Pyrex patterns that you can shake a "Butterprint" Cinderella bowl at. Of the multiple vintage-Pyrex fan websites that exist, The Pyrex Collector lists 173 vintage Pyrex patterns in its database.

While no design names were ever official, collectors tend to refer to patterns by their dominant motif. Popular designs include "Pink Gooseberry," "Turquoise Butterprint," and the bird-buddy patterned "Friendship." Some of the most popular patterns collectors chase after were created during the '50s and '60s. Think: anything that would look at home in a set from "Mad Men" or "The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel." Midcentury modern Pyrex designs like the atomic "Eyes" or "Starburst" pattern can even command hundreds of dollars for a single piece.

Other rare pieces include promotional items made in partnership with other companies, and patterns made for employees only. Test-batch, or prototype Pyrex, is also rare, like "Barcode" stripe casserole dishes in blue and yellow, or the "Pink Stems" small oval casserole dish, the only shape made in the sought-after pattern. Collectors also keep an eye out for fridge-friendly vintage Pyrex shapes, and highly collectible accessories that once came with promotional pieces, such as holders, trivets, and candle-warmers.

The collecting base for vintage Pyrex is about as vast as the product line itself. Die-hard collectors may spare no expense for a chip-and-dip set with a rare hot air "Balloons" pattern. Casual collectors may simply drop $20 for a replacement green '70s-era "Dots" bowl. The better the condition the Pyrex is in, the better the price sellers can get for it. Online marketplaces like Etsy and eBay feature scads of searchable vintage Pyrex products, while many fan sites feature forums dedicated to Pyrex passion and the hunt for particular products.

Pyrex sells at a range of price points. A green "Spring Blossom" butter dish and lid sold for $20.99 in December 2024. Compare this to a rare orange "Barcode" casserole dish that sold for $1,995 in November 2024, or a rare "Butterprint" dish featuring the Lady on the Left that sold for $3,050. Complete sets regularly sell for upwards of $500. Sought-after single pieces can sell for $200 and up.

Vintage Pyrex has a unique edge on many other collectibles. Unlike valuable sports memorabilia, Pyrex seems destined to be used. The built-to-last, often handed-down kitchenware can likely be found in your kitchen right now, or at a nearby thrift store or estate stale. Whether collectors young or just young at heart desire a bit of beauty to store their blueberries in, or a cake-walk down memory lane, vintage Pyrex puts the "fun" in functional food storage.