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Pyrex is more than just a hot commodity; it is a spark that ignites a couple.

"Life may be crazy, but spending time together to collect and learn has always been the little refreshment that our marriage needs!" a commenter named Hannah wrote on the Shiny Happy Pyrex People website recently.

"We like the history behind these works and the thrill of hunting."

Expert Timothy Loughmiller said that considering the "thousands" of variations in design, color, shape and size of old-fashioned heat-resistant cookware, Hannah and her husband's happy life looks promising. "You can't do anything. You can only collect the plates in the refrigerator and never take them away," he said.

Loughmiller added that the demand for Pyrex is "flying all over the sky" thanks to the "grandmother's influence." That set of four yellow, red, green and blue mixing bowls? "Grandma always has that," he said. "It brings back happy memories." (A good set sells for about $300.)

Retro items can be found in yard sales, thrift stores, eBay, Etsy, and social media sites, and the rarest items sell for thousands of dollars. The 1959 "Lucky in Love" round casserole dish-donated to a Goodwill store in New York State-was auctioned for approximately $6,000 in 2017.

According to Loughmiller, owner of Timothy Loughmiller Estate Sales in GTA, a set of four square and rectangular refrigerator plates with lids usually sell for $150.

In 30 years of business, he rarely saw sales that did not include at least one Pyrex measuring cup and transparent bakeware. Although the history of kitchenware can be traced back more than a century ago, what really fascinates collectors is the things from the 1940s to the 1970s. At that time, Corning Glass Factory added colors, decorative patterns and new styles.

Now called Corning Incorporated, this New York-based company produces all kinds of glasses for use in glasses to Hubble telescopes and surfaces for cultivating stem cells.

The first bakeware was born in Corning, New York in 1915. At that time, Bessie Littleton married Corning physicist Jesse Littleton. A cake was baked in a sawn-off battery jar made of glass.

In 1925, before the iconic liquid measuring cup appeared, early products such as transparent pie pans, wrinkled egg pans, and oval baking pans appeared.

In the 1930s, when new automated manufacturing processes made the brand more affordable, and promotions focused on its beauty, elegance and versatility, consumers became enthusiastic about the brand.

In the 1940s, Anchor Hocking Glass Corp. introduced the heat-resistant glassware of competitor Fire-King, which has been in production for approximately 35 years. According to Loughmiller, although Fire-King has its fans, it is not as "gorgeous" as Pyrex.

Mid-century cooking utensils are common in homes with large screens and small screens, including the 1997 crime drama film "Donny Blasco", in which a mixing bowl sprinkled with daisies is combined with Al Pacino and Johnny Depp Shared space. The friends of "Sein Fei Zheng Chuan" gobbled up popcorn from a heat-resistant glass bowl, and in "I Love Lucy", the scene of mixing with a mixing bowl is very common.

Most old-fashioned heat-resistant glass bowls and bakeware with a colorful appearance are considered to have lead paint. If the exterior is chipped, cracked, or otherwise damaged, using it may cause safety issues.

The avid collector Jennifer Ashley became addicted after watching "The Great Mrs. Maisel," which sparked the dream of searching for pink casseroles. American romance writer Ashley just wrote a resource book with the same name as her website, "Shiny Happy Pyrex People".

Loughmiller said the shiny part is the key.

"Once you lose the luster, it's done, it's a dog dish," he suggested, warning that the dishwasher is a restricted area for Pyrex.

Spokesperson Kate Morris said that on the virtual auction service MaxSold in the United States and Canada, the Pyrex package operated by GTA has attracted multiple bids, usually priced at more than $150.

"Surprise, surprise! After 34 bids, (the seller) made a lot of money from a set of old and classic dishes," she said of a six-piece batch that recently sold for $190.

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