Fall Reflecting

So, life is good. Busy, but very good.  My husband and I have spent three of the last five weekends attending out of town weddings.  One of the many great things about the weddings was the treasure hunting in new locations.  While in Cincinnati last weekend, I scored some excellent goodies. 

We found the bar cart, the primary colors nesting bowls, the jadeite juice reamer, and the Friendship mixing bowl all for under $75. I'm super excited to put the bar cart to use even more in our new kitchen when we move in a few months.  The Spring Blossom 401 and the dishwasher damaged Primary 401 were a gift from a friend of mine I got to see at the wedding. 

I think these Primary Colors mixing bowls will become one of my everyday sets.  They are cheerful enough that they will make me smile when I use them, but they aren't in the best shape, so I won't feel bad knocking them around in my pan drawer. 

This square Horizon Blue baking dish was a gift from a man who goes to church with my parents.  He is also a treasure hunter and came across this beauty and picked it up for me after hearing about my collection. I'm so grateful and delighted by his generousity. 

This Friendship pattern mixing bowl was a steal.  Unfortunately, part of the pattern is melted off on the other side. 

  

This Florida orange juice citrus reamer is one of my favorite finds from the weekend.  I've always wanted a jadeite reamer and this one is adorable. 

These Verde casseroles were also a gift my mom found me.  

I'm so lucky to have so many generous and considerate people in my life!

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

My mother-in-law introduced me to some of my favorite cookies a few years back, Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies.  This is one of the simplest cookies to make, as there are only three ingredients.

Ingredients:

1 box of spice cake mix

1 (15 oz) can of pumpkin puree

1 bag of dark chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. Combine ingredients in beautiful vintage Pyrex mixing bowl ;)
3. Scoop using melon baller onto baking pan.
4. Bake for 14-16 minutes.
5. Enjoy!

Not only do I love these cookies, but I love my new-to-me Friendship divided casserole.  My husband surprised me with it a few days before our anniversary, which is today.

Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Cookies in Friendship divided casserole

Hope you enjoy this recipe as much as I have over the years!

Harvest Moon

In the wake of a beautiful harvest moon that hung low in the sky, I've found myself fully emerged in the season.  My beautiful city of Cleveland has taken its time adapting to 'normal' temperatures, but a heavy 15+ hour rain has brought a cool breeze.  Today we started bringing out a few seasonal decorations, and I also prepared one of my favorite autumnal snacks, candy corn and peanuts.

The combination of salty and sweet is perfect!  It tastes just like a Payday candy bar and look how great it looks in my Friendship casserole!  Hope you are all having a lovely Saturday and enjoying the beautiful season around you.

The Power of Pyrex

It's been just over a year since I started collecting Pyrex.  Over the year I've accumulated around 80 pieces of vintage Pyrex in a range of patterns and colors.   I've had a lot of fun hunting thrift stores, antique malls, flea markets, garage sales and estate sales on Saturdays, Sundays and sometimes lunch breaks.

Since I've started collecting I've attempted to participate in the online Pyrex collecting community. Sort of.  Instagram was the first pyrex community I started participating in, then I looked for Pyrex blogs to follow and keep up with.  Recently, I've joined a few Pyrex collecting communities on Facebook.   The reason I've attempted to participate in these communities is to gain knowledge, awareness and inspiration of all things vintage Pyrex.  What I've found in joining these communities is that they each provide what I'm looking for but also come with a side of drama.  Though many of the other users are there for the same reason I am, it's inevitable there will be a very few very opinionated, "know-it-all" participants who are trying to out-smart, and out-do what everyone else is doing and saying.  Now, don't get me wrong.  I'm all about constructive feedback.  But I'm not interested in someone trying to "school" another user for any reason.  When this behavior takes place I do my best to ignore it, as I do not find it to be a healthy contribution to my life.

Luckily, there is still plenty of good.

It's safe to say that I'm most active in the Instagram pyrex community, as that is the forum in which I discovered the beauty of vintage Pyrex.  It was also this community that I was lucky enough to find and connect with another local Pyrex collector.  Trisha of My Wicked Vintage is truly amazing!  She has a fascinating spectrum of interests and a great eye.   One of her collections is vintage Pyrex and she has been actively collecting it for years ( I'm pretty sure she said 20 years ).    I know I've talked about her before on here, but that's because she is totally my Pyrex idol.  She has been very kind to me at her garage sales as she selectively whittles down her collection to a museum worthy showcase.  Last week she held another garage sale and hooked me up with pieces that I didn't know I needed, but couldn't go without now.

These online communities are full of knowledge, inspiration and valuable contributors, and as long as I proceed as a positive contributor, I hope to continue to gain excellent contacts and friends.

The Weekend Haul

This weekend was unintentionally one of the most lucrative weekends I've had in my year of collecting Pyrex.

We spent the weekend in Cincinnati and Dayton and I was not disappointed.  I attended a bridal shower with my mother-in-law and sister-in-law and while we were in Dayton, my husband and father-in-law spent the afternoon scouring re-sale shops all over Cincinnati.   My husband has been incredibly supportive of my Pyrex problem and he has a great eye for pieces for my collection.  He scored me the 8 cup coffee carafe new-in-box.

He also came across this Snowflake oval casserole and clear  Pyrex for Westinghouse loaf pan with the knob lid. 

When we got back into town this afternoon, I had a yard sale on my mind.  My Instagram friend, Trisha of My Wicked Vintage, was having another yard sale within a mile of my house and she had at least one item set aside for me.  When I got there I was delighted to find all kinds of goodies.  It was her yard sale that I got the rest of the treasures you see in that first picture.  I love the promotional cinderella bowl and casseroles so much more now that I've seen them in person.  I'm delighted to have them and they look great in my china cabinet (picture to come soon).  

I'm really excited for the lime green cake pan as well, and I'm going to start putting a lot more time and energy into growing this set in my collection.  Next up, some pie pans.  I've been practicing making homemade pie and crust, so I'm due for some beautiful vintage pans. 

Ok, there's a lot more I want to talk about with these finds, but Breaking Bad is about to start, so it will just have to wait until next time. 

Happy Hunting, my fellow Pyrex fiends. 

Big Salad

In the evenings to wind down, my husband and I will watch an episode or two of one of our favorite shows.  Currently, we are re-watching Seinfeld and enjoying it very much. In one of the more recent episodes we watched, Elaine was obsessed with a big salad from their usual spot.  All this talk of a big salad inspired us to make some big salads for dinner.  We each filled our own 402 with our favorite salad fixings.

We each started with baby spinach, diced tomato, green onions, bacon and shaved parmesan cheese.  I added mushrooms to mine because they are delicious.  

Our Big Salads

The dressing is a homemade honey mustard recipe:

1/2 cup honey
1/2 cup vinegar
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 teaspoon yellow mustard or 1 teaspoon spicy brown mustard
1 teaspoon lemon juice

In a small bowl, whisk together the honey, vinegar, oil, mustard lemon juice.

The dressing was an awesome addition to our fresh big salads and we can't wait to make them again. 

Early American

Considering tomorrow is Independence Day, sharing my most recent Pyrex acquisition seems appropriate.  The Early American pattern is obviously not as colorful as some of my more coveted collections, so I never really gave it much consideration.    A few weekends ago, my husband started receiving some anxious texts from his parents who were on holiday a few hours from home in an antiquing town called Berlin, OH.  They had spotted this set at a great price and were wondering if we needed it in our collection.   

I wasn't able to respond in a timely manner, so they brought the goods home with them.   The set was in immaculate condition and they kept mentioning how cute the cat was.   Having not given this pattern much thought before, I had never noticed the cat.   My husband is a cat lover so he was stoked to add this beautiful mixing bowl set to our collection. 

 

Now that this set has been in my home for a few days, they have already gotten their share of use.  I'm always excited for my collection to grow and very pleased that so many of my loved ones are contributing to the fun!

Yard Sale Season

What an amazing weekend!  Not that we did anything extraordinary.  With some great company and new friends, this weekend was awesome. 

This weekend I had the opportunity to meet a fellow Pyrex collector and vintage lover, Trish of My Wicked Vintage.  I've been following her on Instagram for a long time, fascinated by her awesome eye for vintage Pyrex, all things medical vintage and all around positive outlook on life.   It didn't take long to realize she is practically my neighbor, so when I saw that she was having a yard sale, parting with tons of her Pyrex treasures, I was there in a heartbeat.  And even went back for a second dose.   It was so great to meet her and put a face with her awesome Instagram feed.   Trish hooked me up with some awesome pieces for my Friendship and Butterprint collection, which I'll share when the sets are more complete, and she also started my Verde collection for the fabulous price of $10.  I've had my eye on the Verde set for a while now, which is a beautiful set of varying avocado greens. 

Verde Cinderella mixing bowls

After visiting Trish on the second day of her yard sale, she recommend a street wide yard sale a few blocks down, so I couldn't help but haul my husband and our buddy Tim for a little more Pyrex hunting.   And we were not disappointed, well, I wasn't.   Within ten minutes I scored the Verde refrigerator set in mint condition for the fabulous yard sale rate of $22.  

Verde Refrigerator Dishes

These are only a few other pieces in the Verde set,  so to have so easily acquired my most coveted pieces in one weekend, within two miles of my home, well, I'm feeling pretty lucky. 

When we weren't shopping the yard sales, we did a lot of hanging out with some out of town friends, and our kick ass neighbors.  Fires in the firepit both nights and copious amounts of craft beer.  I'm loving these friend filled summer weekends!  Now if you will excuse me, my husband is popping some popcorn and putting that 404 qt. cinderella to use. 

When Shipping Pyrex Goes Wrong

One of the most convenient ways to add to my Pyrex collection is shopping online.   In the online Pyrex market the only thing I have to be selective about is how much I want to spend on items.   I've purchased from a variety of places including ebay, shopgoodwill.com and even Instagram.  All of which have been very lucrative and vital in the growth of my Pyrex collection.    Out of the dozens of items I've purchased this way, only once have I suffered any damaged items.   But once is heart breaking enough.  The item I lost was a Horizon Blue #403 2 1/2qt mixing bowl.  Luckily, the 401 and the 402 made it in one piece still.

Often when Pyrex is broken in transit, it's the fault of the shipper, however in this case, I do not believe that to be true.   I'm fairly certain that my USPS postal worker treated it like a kickball.  She doesn't tend to show us as tenants a lot of respect with any of our mail and the item was very well bubble wrapped.  Here's what I found when I opened up my package: 

Luckily, this was the first time I opted for insurance on since I've started buying online.  The cost of the item and the shipping was covered, but I haven't had the heart to bring myself to place another online order since.   In the meantime,  I'll be spending my time weeding my collection of items I'm not truly in love with.

French Daisy

This weekend my husband and I were lucky enough to spend time in Cincinnati where my husband grew up.  Our trips to Cincinnati are never long enough because there are so many wonderful people to spend time with.  We spent Saturday morning with his parents at an annual art festival called Summerfair.  This event is always held at an old amusement park called Coney Island.  My in-laws are a real riot so we had a great time.  They are also incredibly generous, so we are bringing home this beautiful wood bowl.

Woodturned bowl by Richard Ruehle

We spent the evening with some of our friends.  Our friend Andrea bought her very first house and we are so excited for her!   As a housewarming gift I gave her an adorable Colonial Mist mixing bowl set.

  

Colonial Mist Mixing bowl set

The house is a work in progress, but hopefully she will be able to put these to use  often in the near future.  In the meantime, they will sure come in handy for popcorn.

Sunflowers

The more into vintage Pyrex I get, the more of my loved ones join in on the fun.  A few weeks ago our awesome neighbors/friends acquired 3/4 of the Butterprint Cinderella mixing bowls set.  I had an extra 444, so I shared the love and gave it to them to complete their set.  Check out her awesome capture of this beautiful set here.

My mother has also joined in on the fun of collecting vintage Pyrex.  She was on an excursion with a few of her girlfriends last week and she picked me up these fabulous Sunflower casseroles.  

They go perfectly with my Daisy Orange-Yellow mixing bowl set!

Sunflower Casseroles,  Daisy Orange- Yellow mixing bowls, Daisy Orange-Yellow Refrigerator Set

Daisy Orange-Yellow Mixing Bowls

I tried getting out my DSLR this morning to truly capture all of their beauty, but I'm having trouble getting it to read SD cards, so it will be a little while before any high quality images are uploaded.  

Not only did my mom pick up those Sunflower Casseroles for me, but she also splurged on a Primary Mixing bowl set for herself.   She is pretty excited about rediscovering the practicality of this set and the beauty it brings into her kitchen. 

Pyrex this Memorial Day

Happy Memorial Day!

I can't help but get emotional when I really start thinking about the importance behind this day.  I'll spare you all of that and say Thank You to those who served our country.   Today is dedicated to Pfc. Devin Grella.

We are getting ready to head over to my parent's house for a cookout and I'm so excited!  I don't get to see my family nearly enough.  Plus, I'm trying to cherish all of my precious time with all of my friends and family.   I baked some Chocolate Chunk Cookies with walnuts for the festivities!

404 from the Daisy Orange- Yellow Mixing Bowls

My 404 4qt  Daisy mixing bowl works perfect with my hand-mixer.   I use a melon scooper to easily scoop and size out my cookies. 

 503 Daisy Refrigerator Dish with the finished product

The cookies were delicious with the freshly ground walnuts.  I had to take a few out to put the lid on them, but this refrigerator dish is perfect for traveling with these delicious treats. 

Pyrex in Action

Here are a few of my Pyrex in action!  The black one with the snowflake pattern has mac and cheese with brussels sprouts in it, recipe from Brit.co.   I tried it in an attempt to limit my mac and cheese consumption, but it turns out, I really like brussels sprouts.

Snowflake Oblong Space Saver Casserole

The white bowl with the red birds on it is one of my absolute favorites!  This pattern is one of the most popular to collect, as it is so pretty.   I used it for a house salad that was served next to a crockpot roasted chicken.

Friendship cinderella bowl

There will be more pictures to come, so stay tuned!

Some of my favorites

I'd like to share some of my favorite pieces in my collections so far:

Orange and Yellow belong to the Daisy Refrigerator and Freezer
 Set, while the blue belongs to the Horizon Blue line.  

Horizon Blue Oval Divided Serving Dish

Here we go!

Over the last year I've discovered the beauty of vintage Pyrex and I'm ready to start sharing my journey with the world.   Not only is vintage Pyrex beautiful, but it's also incredibly functional.  There isn't a dinner that goes by that we aren't putting at least one piece to work.

Butterprint Refrigerator set and Butterprint Casseroles. 

My collection is still far from complete, but building it has become one of my favorite pastimes.  My journey takes me to thrift stores, estate sales, antique shops, flea markets, garage sales and church rummage sales every chance I get.   Often, working and life get in the way of getting to these brick and mortar locations, so I find myself utilizing the Internet for satisfying my desire.  Sites like ebay, shopgoodwill.com and Instagram are all excellent resources for finding these vintage treasures. 

There is a good chance we have a big move in our near future so instead of spending this holiday weekend adding to my collection and the items I have to worry about in the move,  I'll be spending it catching up this blog with my favorite pieces from my collection.