I showed it to Hubby when I got home tonight. He had no idea what it was at first, but once I showed him how to use it, he was surprised how well it could hold onto the dishes, and started picking up pieces of my cobalt dishware (not antique) turning them around, flipping them over etc. and it held onto them just fine, even upsidedown and sideways. Kind of a silly gadget, but cool nonetheless! It is fun to see something so old that is very simple yet inventive and obviously someone put a lot of thought into this funny gadget.