Termo-Rey by Brasividro

Made in Brazil, Termo-Rey is essentially opal glass dinnerware bearing deliberate copies of Corelle patterns.  Normally, items decorated with imitation patterns are accessories that wouldn't have been in direct competition with Corelle Livingware; they would have targeted consumers who already own a set of Corelle.  But this is not the case with Termo-Rey, as the manufacturer clearly intended it to be a rival product with a bargain price.  At a time when a 20 piece set of Livingware sold for about $28, a similar set of Termo-Rey could be purchased for $15.  Exact dates of production are not known, but there is one advertisement from 1980 promoting Termo-Rey heat-resistant dinnerware.

Butterfly Gold and Woodland Brown are very exact copies.

Look-alike patterns found on Termo-Rey include:  Butterfly Gold, Spring Blossom Green, Old Town Blue, Woodland Brown, Harvest Home and Ginger.  Some of these are extremely convincing, but others are not, especially when the colours are considerably brighter than the originals. 

Another notable pattern found on mugs, dinnerware and ovenware is brown & orange with a butterfly that is reminiscent of the Flirtation butterfly, and the remainder of the pattern is not unlike Oriental Wood and China Blossom.  There are other Termo-Rey patterns, but they seem unrelated to Corelle. 

Harvest Home Pyrex cup with Termo-Rey Cup & Saucer.

Available pieces include:  Dinner Plate, Bread & Butter Plate, Soup/Cereal Bowl, Cup and Saucer.  Termo-Rey ovenware also exists, but it is uncertain whether all of the Corelle impersonations were produced on these pieces.  Only a Ginger example with gold trim has been noted so far.

In appearance, the glass does not really compare to Corelle, since it is thicker and so much more translucent.  In this respect it has more in common with opal Pyrex, although Pyrex is still more opaque than the Termo-Rey. 

Termo-Rey with Corelle for comparison.

The pieces are usually marked with ‘Termo-Rey…Made in Brazil…Brasividro’.  It is assumed that Brasividro is the name of the company who manufactured it, and Termo-Rey is the brand name of the product.  It is perhaps revealing that ‘Made in Brazil’ is written in English, the implication being that the product was purposely made for export.  But it does appear that it was not widely marketed in the United States, since Termo-Rey in these patterns appears only very rarely in the U.S. market.  Overwhelmingly it is found most frequently in Canada, and occasionally in Australia.

Termo-Rey bowl with Corelle luncheon plate, Ginger.  Termo-Rey's version of Ginger comes with gold trim. 

Termo Rey dinner plate with Spring Blossom Green Corelle saucer.  Aside from the colour, it is difficult to see the difference.