The rising popularity of blown art glass is truly remarkable and undeniable today. It has been decades since this technique was first introduced and first known to mankind. And today, blown glass vases have already found their way to the market and to people’s hearts as well.
Making blown glass vases involves a very not so simple process. To be able to produce such beauty, one has to be prepared in the actual preparation of the glass to be used for blowing. This glass is to be melted in furnaces with the use of limestone, soda, potash, sand and other compounds as well. This will then be heated to a very hot 2000 degrees Fahrenheit for the raw material to transform in to a glass. After melting the glass, the maker will then have to use a blowpipe to help in shaping the glass. If you want to have more impressive patterns, you can also use molds to achieve such.
Basically, there are two types of glass blowing but the off hand glass blowing is more popular and more common to most people. In this type, the artist will have to collect a glob of fused glass at the end of a blowpipe. When the glass has melted already, it is then fashioned or formed into its final form or outcome using different kinds of blowing techniques, along with shaping it with the hands, tolls and molds. The other kind of glass blowing, other wise known as the lampworking, works by softening a glass tube by heating. After the heating process, the soft glass is then formed into its final form by shaping it with the hands and by blowing as well. Using both techniques, you will be able to form various objects such as vases, ashtray, aquarium pieces, sculpted animals and many more exciting objects.
In this field of glass vases making, the Mexicans have been known to be the best. They have truly made their mark in the field of blowing glasses, aside from being known as experts in weaving, wood carving, pottery and many other more. You will know that a certain glass vase is made by Mexicans through it design. Mexicans trend to adorn the blown vases with small bubbles, and blobs of color or small pebbles to their finished product. They do this to make their works stand and become even more attractive to customers. Aside from the added effects, you can easily spot a Mexican blown glass vase by a ponti, which is a place located at the bottom of the glass. This would indicate that the product was really mouth blown. Another important feature of a Mexican blown glass is its unique, rare and individual natures. You can really find it to be true that no two glass pieces are exactly alike, whether in shape, design or size. This unique characteristic of a Mexican blown glass vase makes it stand out from the rest and add up to its uniqueness in the market.
Watch - Glassblowing: Master Glassblowers Create a Square Vase at Simon Pearce: