Bread & Butter Plate– Depending on the product line, Corelle bread & butter plates are 6¾ inches or 7¼ inches. They might be referred to elsewhere as salad plates or dessert plates, but this can be confusing. It really depends on how much salad versus dessert one likes to eat. At first Corning labelled them ‘Small Plates’ and years later began calling them ‘Bread & Butter Plates’.
Corning– On this site, the usage of 'Corning' is as a company name, as in 'Corning Glass Works' or 'Corning Incorporated'. This is the company which produced various glass products under the Corelle, Pyrex and Corning Ware brand names. Corelle and Pyrex are not companies, but they can be thought of as divisions of Corning. Backstamps often say Corning, but it is just a brand name; 'Corning' is not a material. Items marked with 'Corning' can be made of Opal Pyrex, Suprema, Centura or Corning Ware. (Corning Glass Works)
Corning Ware - Introduced in 1958, this is the brand name of cookware made of glass-ceramic. Extremely durable, it has remarkable resistance to heat shock and can go directly from the freezer to the stovetop. You can’t do this with Pyrex and Corelle, and even Visions does not advise this. Corning Ware is noteworthy for surviving house fires and is known historically for its usage in protecting rockets from the extreme temperatures of atmosphere re-entry. It is very tough stuff. (Corning Ware vs. Corningware)
Cup - The difference between a cup and a mug could be described tediously in terms of capacity, shape and proportion, leaving much room for exceptions to the rule. The most unambiguous characteristic of a cup is that it is used with a saucer. If it originally came with a saucer, then it's a cup.
Dessert Bowl - Corelle dessert bowls are 5 3/8 inches and hold 10 ounces. At first Corning labelled them ‘Small Bowls’ and years later began calling them ‘Dessert Bowls’. There are many other names for this kind of bowl, it depends what you like to serve in them.
Dimension IV Livingware - A product line of Corelle dinnerware introduced in 1980, and last available in 1985. It encompasses several banded patterns in a rimmed shape with different colour schemes: Citrus, Almond, Cinnamon, Slate, Heather, Cobalt and Onyx. Chestnut, Indigo, Dusk, Meadow Green and Allegro are related in design but have a coupe shape, and were introduced in 1986. (Dimension IV)
Expressions Livingware - A Corelle product line launched in 1977 and discontinued in 1986. It includes several multi-coloured patterns with a central design and bands on the rim. These are: April, Blue Heather, Indian Summer, Meadow, Wildflower, Batik, Strawberry Sunday, Forget-Me-Not, Desert Blossom, Windsor Rose, Misty Morning. All these patterns are coupe, except for Forget-Me-Not.
Flip-Top– Some Gemco cream and sugar sets have hinged lids that must be lifted. There is no spring involved, and the lid doesn’t close automatically, unless by gravity. (Gemco Ware)
Glass-Ceramics- Corning Ware, Centura and Suprema are examples of glass-ceramics. To put it briefly, they are materials that are initially glass in structure, but after heat treatment they become a ceramic. For example, an item such as a casserole is first formed from melted glass, then it is re-heated and cooled under controlled conditions. It is the heat treatment which grows crystals within the glass turning it into a ceramic which vastly improves the strength of the item. Read more...
Gravy Server– Usually they are called gravy boats, but ‘Gravy Server’ is Corning’s wording on the original boxes. The set also includes an oval saucer, or underplate.
Livingware 2 - A Corelle product line introduced in 1983. These patterns are one-colour with a central design and bands on the rim. There are only four patterns: Colonial Mist, Floral Spray, Oriental Wood, Solitary.
Luncheon Plate– Depending on the product line, Corelle luncheon plates are 8½ inches or 9 inches. They might be referred to elsewhere as salad plates or dessert plates, but this can be confusing. It really depends on how much salad versus dessert one likes to eat. At first Corning labelled them ‘Medium Plates’ and years later began calling them ‘Luncheon Plates’.
Milk Glass- In theory, all white glass is opal glass, and all opal glass is milk glass. However in practice, “Milk Glass” is a very well-defined category within the realms of early pressed glass and/or depression glass. Highly prized pieces can be those which are very, very densely white, and alternatively, delicate translucency can be a desirable trait as well. Milk glass items are usually purely decorative in nature, like vases, ornamental bowls and ‘hens on nests’. Occasionally however, a set of Monax dinnerware can be found amongst a milk glass collection, and some items are of a practical nature, such as fancy salt & pepper shakers. A genuine milk glass collector doesn’t usually enjoy heat-proof heavy-duty kitchen ware like Pyrex. Two popular manufacturers of milk glass are Fenton and Westmoreland.
Mug - The difference between a cup and a mug could be described tediously in terms of capacity, shape and proportion, leaving much room for exceptions to the rule. The most unambiguous characteristic of a mug is that it is used without a saucer. If no saucer was provided, then it's a mug.
Opal Glass- Opal is a term used in the glass industry to describe white glass. It is made by adding an ingredient, an opacifying agent, to regular glass to achieve an opaque appearance. In terms of ovenware like Pyrex, how opaque the glass can be made has to be balanced with the required stability or strength of the resultant product. Glass can be made very densely white, but this improvement to its appearance can impair its resistance to thermal shock. Opal glass can be either oven-safe or not, it depends on its method of manufacture and the intended purpose of the individual piece.
Opaque - Not translucent or transparent. These are comparative terms, and if a material is described as opaque, then light will not pass through it easily.
Sandstone– First seen in the 1980s, this is the term for Corelle which has a beige background rather than white. The colour appears to be only in the outer skin layer and if the piece is chipped the white core glass is exposed. Plain undecorated dinnerware of this colour is given the pattern name Sandstone, and all the patterns in the Cornerstone product line and some Livingware patterns also have a Sandstone background. The advent of Sandstone Corelle also gave rise to ‘Transitions’ which is usually available in open stock at the Corelle outlet stores.
Spring-Top– The dispenser style cream/syrup pitchers made by Gemco and Dispensers Inc. have a spring mechanism that automatically closes the top when released. Some thumb action on the lever is required to pour the product. Choppers also have a spring mechanism. See the 'Chrome Top Guide' for makers of spring-top items.
Sunrise Collection - A line of Corelle Livingware first seen in 1984. It was a combination of the existing one-colour patterns with two new patterns, presenting them as a cohesive group. These were: Winter Frost White, Butterfly Gold, Spring Blossom Green, Old Town Blue, Woodland Brown, Morning Blue, Burgundy, Ribbon Bouquet.
Traditions Livingware - A Corelle product line introduced in 1981 and last available in 1983. The designs appear on the rim and include either two or three colours. There are only four patterns: Flirtation, Harvest Home, Spice O' Life, Sunshine.
Transitions – These beige/off-white/ivory coloured dishes are sold only in open stock at Corelle factory outlets. The colour is actually somewhere between pure white and Sandstone and it is produced as a consequence of changing over the batch of glass from white to Sandstone or vice versa. It is more efficient to just add in the new colour on top of the old and keep the furnaces hot and production moving, rather than stop and thoroughly clean the equipment and start up again. So the dishes keep coming out and the ones in the middle that are judged to be neither Sandstone nor pure white are labelled Transitions. Colour variations do occur from piece to piece. A fairly wide selection of different Corelle pieces is produced in this ‘pattern’, but there are of course no accessories or cups.
Translucent - Not opaque. These are comparative terms, and if a material is described as translucent, then light will pass through it easily. (But it is not completely transparent either.)
