Process

Pretentious Glass Co believes in thoughtful, unique design.  In making something well, and making it to last.  We believe that nothing can replace or replicate the soul of an item that was made by hand.  And our goal is to bring this glassware in an affordable way to a wider audience while supporting the careers of the craftspeople that make up our studio family.

Tools of the Trade

Pretty much unchanged since glassblowing was invented by the Romans in 50 B.C.  This is an Ollllldddddd World Craft.

Gathering

Coiling molten glass on the end of a pipe or rod.  We melt 1,000 lbs of crystal clear glass each week at 2150 F. Our furnace is named Gladys, she is a dream machine – powerful, classy, and sexy.

Pipe Cooler

Cooling the metal pipe with water so that we can have better leverage during the glassblowing process.  Or if you are annoyed with your teammate, you don’t cool it. 

Blocking a Start

Using an open face mold to form the semi-liquid glass into a shape ideal for a bubble. This type of mold is called a Block. They are made from fruit bearing wood, turned and stored wet. Every glassblowers third favorite tool.

Popping a Bubble

Very quickly, the glassblower puffs into the blowpipe and caps the air with her/his thumb.  The moisture in this breath quickly heats up and expands into the solid mass of glass, causing a bubble to magically appear!

Reheating Chamber

The glass is constantly and quickly cooling.  Every 30 seconds to 60 seconds, we have to take a reheat in the 2300 F chamber in order to keep the glass from cracking and to get it malleable again.  Also great for toasting bagels in the morning.

Wooden Mold

Blowing into a wooden mold to set up the overall shape and volume.  This is a technique for consistency used over the last several centuries.  Turns out, this is way better than eye balling it – if you bought from us back in 2012-2014, ya know what I am talking about 😉

Hand Shaping

We love utilizing techniques that are unique to handmade glassware, things that machines cannot replicate!  For the Subtle glass, we use a charred newspaper pad to squish in the iconic dimples.  I want to write iconic undulations, but that is awkward to say, right?  Iconic Undulations, Iconic Undulations, Iconic Undulations.

Flattening the Bottom

Ya want a glass that won’t fall over, right?  We make sure the bottom is flat with a Cherry wood paddle.

Punty

Punty is both a noun and a verb in Glass.  A Punty is a solid rod of steel that you gather glass on, and it is the act of applying a Punty to the bottom of the glass.  This allows us to change the orientation of the cup and finish the lip.  #themoreyouknow

Opening the Lip

By spot heating the top of the glass, we can open and finish the lip of this glass design.  Then a quick trip to the oven to cool overnight and this bad boi gets shipped out to someone the next day!