CorningWare
CorningWare was introduced in 1958. It was made of a glass ceramic material that could be used in the oven or on the stovetop.As with many inventions, CorningWare was a lab mistake. A malfunctioning furnace heated to 900° instead of 600°, and amazingly, the glass inside did not melt. A chemist later dropped the white glass, and surprisingly, it didn't break. These accidents lead to the creation of Pyroceram and the very first pieces of CorningWare in 1957.
Though long out of production, the Blue Cornflower pattern remains synonymous with CorningWare for most (including me). It seems like everyone's mother had CorningWare pieces with this dainty blue pattern.
As a child, I remember playing with miniature CorningWare toys made to mimic our mothers' bakeware and coffee/tea pots.
These pieces will always hold a special place in my heart.
I think I'll start a collection...
images (top) amazon.combottom: flickr.com
Labels: Jason and his world, pop culture parade
posted by Jason Stockl @ 2:03 pm
11 Comments:
I still have a Blue Cornflower CorningWare bowl, of the square variety. It's as old as I am, if not older, and still manages to hold my udon noodles quite well. :-)
Yet another collection?! I agree, we all grew up with the little flowers... so many mistakes pave our souvenirs.
Ahh, we have this classic, too! Though, only a few pieces are still in service. You wouldn't think a little blue flower would bring back so much nostalgia, but it does!
It sure does...
oh yeah!
we had those too.
i still use a couple of bowls with the green flower pattern
Since this post, I've inherited 2 square dishes, one of which was can be seen on my TV Dinner Party post.
My mother still has her cornflower CorningWare. Like Pyrex, Osterizers, and MixMasters, they're kitchen classics. When I did my wedding registry, I insisted on including a CorningWare set (the new stuff, alas) just because it's tradition to have a set. We use them often enough.
And like Pyrex, etc. there's a collectable market for them.
Do a search on eBay, there's tons...
Thanks for your comment, Puck.
See, my parents go and throw out their old vinyl records from the 60s, and stuff like Pyrex and CorningWare. I tell them they should let me at it all first, so I can find stuff either for me, or to sell on eBay. I'd make a fortune.
I have rather good collection of Cornflower Blue Corningware. I love it! My mom gave me all of hers when she moved to Florida. I have picked up many other pieces at thrift shops and yard sales. It is very common for me to find it around my town. We had a Corning factory for many years right down the road. It made TV tubes and all the workers could buy Corningware at a discounted price. In fact I am doing my kitchen in Cornflower Blue and white so everything matches. I also collect old mixers and they will be displayed as well.
Thank you for sharing, Alysheba!
Post a Comment