It's been a while. We hope your fall is off to a great start. In New Jersey we're starting to feel that cool crisp fall air and it has us craving warm apple cider, pumpkin picking, and... glass blowing. That's right, for our next peek into the art and process behind the artist we are featuring one of our glass blowers - AO Glass.
We had the privlidge of meeting Tove, one of the founders of AO Glass, on a recent trip up to Vermont. Let's take a look at the steps involved in creating one of the syrup pitchers.
1. All of AO Glass's pieces begin in a crucible filled with molten glass at 2100 degrees fahrenheit.
2. The glass is carefully collected at the end of a blow pipe and then shaped by a "block," a wooden half-bowl with a handle.
3. The glass is then blown and rotated within their custom mold, creating the final shape of the glass.
4. The glass is prepared to separate from the blow pipe as they shape a neck with metal "jacks" (they kind of look like pointy tongs).
5. Removed from the blow pipe, the base of the glass is torched to soften the glass in order to add their Vermont stamp.
6. Stamped! The base of the glass is stamped quickly with the custom made metral stamp. This has to be done quickly as the base of the glass cools off in only a matter of seconds.
7. After spending the night in the kiln, the glass is ready for hot-popping. It spins on a turntable with a flame directed at the side, and suddenly the top portion of the glass "pops" right off. Another flame heats the edge and a spout is pulled by hand. One more night in the kiln and the pitcher is ready to use.
8. The resulting glass embodies attention to detail as well as a tribute to the age-old craftsmanship of turning molten glass int a unique treasured item.
This is certainly a slimmed down explanation of the complexities involved in handling and sculpting molten glass. Years of training and hands on experience go into creating a one-of-a-kind, functional, and visually stunning piece. Check out all of AO Glass's designs we carry to see their work on full display.
We hope you enjoyed this walk through glass blowing with AO Glass.
-Erik & Liz