Corning Glass Works introduced Corelle dinnerware over 35 years ago. It became popular because of its durability and colorful patterns.
Today, the often forgotten brand is being rejuvenated with a clever, new advertising campaign.
In their latest TV commercial, the company has created a fashion show with top models, each carrying a different Corelle patterned plate. And to show that the plates are “still as durable as ever, we greased the runway.” [Aired October 22, 2006]
As the first model walks down the slippery runway, predictably she falls, the plate goes flying in the air, and crashes down onto the hard runway surface — and is completely unharmed.
*MOUSE PRINT: That fine print disclaimer on screen reads: “Corelle Ultrelle glass dinnerware is durable but may break if dropped or struck. Warranty details available in store or [online].”
So, like those car commercials depicting wild offroad use, the message is don’t try this at home.And if you do, the warranty may not cover you, because it requires that you follow the use and care instructions:
DO NOT abuse by dropping or hitting against a hard object.
SHOULD ANY ITEM BE MISUSED IN ANY MANNER AS STATED ABOVE, DISCONTINUE USE AS DAMAGED ITEMS MAY BREAK WITHOUT WARNING.
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After about 30 years of continual use, it finally happened. I had just taken several of the Corelle “Livingware” bowls out of the dishwasher, but they were all at room temperature when I put them away. One was placed on a wooden table, and all the others were put away in the dish cabinet. Within five minutes, three of them exploded spontaneously! What are the odds?
False avertising, will never by
Corelle again.
Good Lord, you either like this brand, or you don’t. We are on our second set of Corelle, not due to breakage, but because we got tired of the first set & gave it to one of the grown up kids (still in use without breakage). This stuff is darn near industructable. I only wish they would bring some of the retired patterns “out of the vault” so to speak so that people with retired patterns could fill out their sets even more. There are sites to buy used stuff, but it’s hit or miss when they have it, and pretty expensive. Have had some luck on eBay, but again, hit or miss.
We just sat down to eat dinner and my 1-year-old daughter grabbed my plate, and before I knew it she had tossed it to the floor. What happened next was beyond description — the plate exploded into a million pieces. I spent the next hour cleaning up shards of glass, some long and extremely sharp, and had to throw away dinner. The shards had flown onto the table, on top of the computer, into the living room, and under the table. I have never seen anything quite like it. It was as if the plate exploded. The pieces did not end up where they were because of the fall, but rather, because of the apparent stored energy; probably because of design. My biggest concern is my 1-year-old. I am afraid that she may find a piece and put it in her mouth, which could prove fatal (see the post about the dog that died from eating shards from the broken product). Up until now, I have loved the product, but now I am ready to replace them. They are durable, indeed, but safety is my main concern. I bought Correll because of going through so many dishes in the past (we have nine children), but after tonight and reading about “sponataneous explosions,” I am going to start looking for something to replace these potentially dangerous dishes. Sorry Correll. If you can come up with something that doesn’t “expolde” I will consider it. -John K.
I am still buying pieces to add to my original winter frost
white collection.I do find that some do warp though.I use the
dishwasher and some pieces are exhibiting the problem mentioned above.This is a
minor problem , but would like to bring this to your attention.
It’s not ticking but it’s a time bomb.
Somewhere in your kitchen, a potentially lethal bomb is waiting to go off. The bomb is an innocuous appearing, attractive piece of dinnerware called “Corelle Ware.”
On three occasions, either I, or a family member, have dropped a piece of Corelle Ware only to have it explode like a bomb, complete with sound and shrapnel.
Now I know that any glass or ceramic will shatter upon impact with the floor, but this is no ordinary broken dish. The exploding Corelle pieces that we have experienced are so destructive and so completely distributed around the area that shards may be found as far away as an adjoining living or dining room fifteen to twenty feet away from the impact site.
The manufacturer, Corning Glass, of Corning, New York relays complaints to “World Kitchens” of nnnnnnn where representatives make the absurd claim that they have no knowledge of this phenomenon. This despite the fact that just entering the words “Corelle” and “explode” into Google or any other search engine reveals thousands of accounts of similar incidents.
But the real deadly trap lies waiting for anyone who is on anticoagulation medications like Coumadin, as is my wife, Jeanne. These people, if they experience an event such as the one I did on January 7, 2009, may literally be put into a life threatening situation, because several of the shards lacerated my hands, and if it happens to someone on a blood-thinner, as these medications are called, that person could bleed to death. Hemophiliacs, as well, are at risk, and even people without these disorders could easily be blinded by a shard piercing the eye.
I am not interested in engaging in the pseudo-legal, phony-ethical discourse that some writers on this blog seem to enjoy. I want only to point out to the unwary and vulnerable that they take a substantially greater risk than dropping a typical plate or glass when they handle Corelle Ware.
Gil Gaudia, Ph.D.
A Corelle salad bowl, used for ice cream, just spontaneously shattered this evening. My husband had finished his ice cream and set the bowl on the arm of his recliner while he read a newspaper. Moments later, the bowl just broke into pieces. I accused him of dropping the bowl on the floor, and he said NO, it just shattered “exploded” into pieces. We can’t determine what caused it to happen. I had to get out the vacuum to clean up the smaller pieces in the carpet. There were no sonic booms or any high frequency noises at the time of the breakage. We are at a loss as to why it happened.
I accidentally dropped a Corelle dinner plate in the kitchen and on the tile, and it was explosive to say the least! I did not forcefully drop it. I accidentally knock it off the counter. I have to honestly say I have never seen a dish break in this manner! Most dishes will break into several pieces, but my Corelle broke into so many microscopic pieces and dangerously sharp shrapnel; frankly, I am getting rid of all of mine. I would rather have cheaper ceramic plates, that when they break, will not break into a kagillion sharp shrapnel pieces! The explosive sound of the dish breaking, and the distance to which it scattered was very scary! The microscopic pieces and shrapnel flew out into the entrance way of my house. They flew partially out into the living room hall way, and then into the dining room! I wonder if our armed forces could shoot Corelle plates out of a cannon at the enemy what casualties and damage this would cause! Like shrapnel bombs they would be! I frankly think Corelle should get their act together and make a safer REAL none shatter plate, and not these dangerous ones they try to pawn off to the public as safe. Imagine if you accidentally dropped a Corelle plate while your small child was near by. I have heard of people having them explode right in front of them for no apparent reason. Imagine if shrapnel hit your eyes!! Very scary!!! And yes, I can understand how scary and dangerous it would be if one of these plates shattered, and the person near it was on blood thinners! Although I think I cleaned up all of this shattered plate, I bet I will be finding shrapnel for years to come! Lily Darcey
If people would just read the product when they buy it they would have no questions. On the box it states “break and chip resistant”. That DOES NOT MEAN IT IS UNBREAKABLE people!!! It is glass, glass can break when dropped, no matter how durable it is. This is just a glass that is more durable than your typical run of the mill glass.
All you people complaining about the tiny shards of glass when it breaks. Think of it this way….would you rather little splinters of glass flying at you when it breaks or large sharp triangular shards of glass that could impale you? Think about it. I’d rather have a splinter than have my ankle sliced open.
Oh, and regardless of whether you “purposely” dropped it or it accidentally dropped…..it’s GLASS….it can break. If the company made them of plastic that wouldn’t break when dropped we’d be whining that then we couldn’t microwave it, wah, wah, wah. Use some common sense and some care people.
“TORY” and “HEATHER” — Glad to see you’re such a fan of exploding dinnerware![comment edited] But Corelle owners (present AND future) NEED to be made aware of the obviously VERY likely dangers of Corelle that their mfg’s ironically fail to label on their boxes!
#1: Theres NO EXCUSE for something to EXPLODE/ SHATTER into thousands of tiny, sharp pieces! ESPECIALLY unprovoked & without an obvious reason whatsoever!
#2: PARTICULARLY something that is used for FOOD, which makes it ‘especially’ dangerous!
OF COURSE people want dinnerware that’s dishwasher/microwave safe, appealing design and lightweight! Who DOESNT? So Corelle should find a way to meet these popular standards! And, IF dropped- it should break like NORMAL dinnerware, BUT NOT ‘SHATTER’!!! There is NO excuse for this!! Thousands of slithers of glass could be DISASTEROUS.
My family has used Corelle for as long as I’ve been alive(only 22 years) but my grandmother and great grandmother used them long before I was born. I grew up with them and as an angry teenager, PO’ed at my mom for not letting me go out. I picked a plate up off the counter, raised it up above my shoulders and slammed it onto the floor. Didnt break. There are countless times I’ve dropped my plates and bowls in my stainless steal sink or tile floors and I’ve still never had one break. I just ordered the snowflake pattern because its the pattern my great grandmother had and I love it. I’m positive it’ll hold up.
*I’m not a big fan of the new prints*
we have used corelle for so many years.But i got a new set 2 yrs back. And very strangely it broke.Just washed it and left in the drainer basket and one bowl and a plate broke with a huge cracking noise.Really it was never dropped before or hit any hard surface.Im still thinking what the cause is..
Corelle will shatter into so many pieces it will take a broom, dustpan, gloves, safety shoes, and a strong vacumn cleaner to pick it up. An example, my dog stepped on a plate which shattered into manner splintered pieces which are very difficult to clean up. I am still picking splinters out of my hands. Is this the first time? What a joke! So many plates have broken in the paste that I am at my computer researching dineerware that really not break, if it exists. Claims that it wont break when dropped, try letting it fall on a hard surface such as concrete. You will be dumbfounded at the amount of splintered pieces that will exist.
Corelle my false adversting award for the evening.
I dropped a small drinking glass on a Corelle plate and the plate exploded into innumerable, extremelyh sharp shards which flew all around the kitchen. I consumed one piece, perhaps inhaled it. It is causing me longterm, and serious problems, such as difficulty swallowing, severe pain around the tongue and larynx. The ENT (ear-nose-throat) specialist cannot visualize the pieces with single picture X-rays, fluoroscopy, or CT scan – the pieces are invisible to x-rays therefore, the surgeon cannot remove them since they are not visible.
I also got a piece in my foot, which has caused a thick fibroma, that may require substantial surgery to remove, although it too is not visible.
Does anyone know how these pieces can be visualized for removal from the human body?
I have been using Corelle for over ten years. I thought it was a great product,
until recently when a corelle plate broke into a hundred shards when it bumped against the kitchen sink. I cleaned up the mess, and finished cooking.
This product does not break like ordinary plateware. The fine shards are very
sharp and difficult to detect, and they can cause a lot of damage.
Much later, after I found a few shards still clinging between my fingers
causing them to bleed, I decide to throw out the entire beef stew dish I cooked. I have to wish to ingest any of those shards that can cause major internal bleeding.
I would NEVER had believed a plate could exploded totally on its own had I not just experienced it. I have a 30 year Corelle set that I usually regularly. One plate was used as a ‘catch plate’ for my pet’s water bowl (also Corelle). I washed both pieces, placed in the dish drainer, nothing was close to it in the drainer, then the plate exploded in multiple pieces. The water was not hot or cold, the air was not hot or cold – it was like someone had shot a bullet directly through the center of it. I was amazed and very concerned. I was thinking of replacing with a new set of Corelle but not so sure. I love Corelle because it stands up to everything, I know everything has a life span, but will the new ones do this, too???? This plate sat in the floor for 6 years until the water bowl – was out of the way – so it was definitely NOT abused. I shudder to think what would have happened if the cat was drinking from it. I have since replaced his bowls, and being VERY careful with mine until I can decide what to do.
I bought a used set of Corelle ware at an auction 13 years ago. Never lost a piece until last night when
I dropped a heavy lid from a pan onto a serving dish in the sink. It broke into five pieces.
Fun Read! We’ve been using our set for over 20 years and had none break due to numerous drops, raising a family. Love the stuff! It stays good looking, functional, and lightweight. After all that time, we’ve had 2 shatter explosively when dropped (onto linoleum and hardwood floors) in the past 2 weeks. Maybe age and number of cycles in a dishwasher/microwave?? Who knows. Obviously, part of the secret to their lightweight strength is being pre-stressed between the layers of glass that they are made from. That’s why failure is so explosive. While I agree the shards are small and sharp, it was not much different than cleaning up after a dropped light bulb. Unless mine start spontaneously exploding as described from some above, we’re sticking with it. Still the best value for durability and functionality for the cost IMO.
I am so happy to have found this page. I will never again use corelle to hold my pet’s food.