Category: Resources

Vintage Pyrex is so pretty, it’s a shame to store it inside a kitchen cabinet. Instead, collectors often arrange their wares on open shelves, carts or hutches using a technique designed to show off each individual piece: stacking.

My own stacking preference is a mix of form and function: I want to be able to see and enjoy the patterns and colors, but I also want easy access so that the items in my collection are actually usable for cooking. So, precarious towers of Pyrex are not my thing. Another consideration: preventing rattles and other noises.

One fun thing about stacking is that it gives you an opportunity to mix and match complementary pieces. Recently I finally acquired enough round mixing bowls to put together my own custom set: (from top to bottom) Spring Blossom (x2), Spring Blossom 2, Verde.

Since the mixers are nested bowls, you need a little something between each one to lift it up and make the pattern visible (I used folded sheets of bubble wrap). There are lots of ways to do this for different sizes and shapes of Pyrex, so here I have gathered the best ideas I’ve seen on the internet, on social media and in collector groups:

• packing peanuts
• bubble wrap
• Ziplock containers
• ramekins
• bags of rice, beans, popcorn, etc.
• empty packing tape rolls
• inverted lids
• glass tumblers
• cheap plastic bowls
• Jell-O boxes
• chunks of lumber
• slices of pool noodles
• tuna cans (or similar)
• berry baskets
• paper bowls
• small plastic food containers (e.g., sour cream, margarine, yogurt, deli containers)
• cut up egg containers
• squares of non-skid rug protector (for stability)
• styrofoam blocks
• floral foam blocks
• old washclothes
• canning rings
• plastic coffee cup lids

Of course, these methods can work for any kind of vintage kitchenware, not just Pyrex. Corning Ware, for example, stacks really easily on inverted lids. Over the weekend we installed some new shelves to house my collection, so stacking all kinds of dishes has been on my mind.