Chrome Top?  Not a Product of Corning Glass Works!

A Guide to Look-Alike Accessories

In the first two years of Corelle’s existence, Corning did not produce co-ordinating serving accessories, like salt & pepper shakers, so essentially there was a gap in the market.  At that time there were many unaffiliated manufacturers who specialized in useful kitchen and dining accessories made of white opal glass with metal and/or plastic tops.  Some of the known companies who made these items are:  Gemco Ware, Dispensers Inc. (Starline), and Dominion Glass.  After all, Corning is not the only one capable of making white glass. 

Examples of items from Dispensers Inc., Gemco Ware and Dominion Glass

These glass producers recognized the opportunity to put Corelle’s success to work for themselves and went on to make their own items decorated with versions of those very popular patterns.  It is likely that this practice had begun years earlier with Corning’s other sales triumph, Corning Ware with the Blue Cornflower emblem.  All of the companies discussed here also made items with ‘blue cornflower’ designs ranging from blatant copies to something perhaps merely reminiscent of Corning’s logo.

It is possible that Corning did not have copyrights registered on their earliest Corelle patterns, because they really were the first company to dominate the dinnerware market so thoroughly.  The issue of copied patterns had perhaps never been encountered before.  In any case, the other companies generally produced patterns which are easily spotted as not the real thing, but sometimes a close comparison is necessary.

Basically, Corning Glass Works never made oil & vinegar cruets, salt & pepper shakers, cream & sugar sets or other dispenser style items with a chrome screw top lid on white glass.  These are the ‘look-alikes’.  And by calling them that, I’m not disparaging their quality, rather pointing out that these very practical and collectible pieces are not made of opal Pyrex.