Subscribe RSS FeedWe spent New Years in Portland and Seattle with Katrina’s family this year. One of the things we did, is a little glass blowing at Tacoma Glass Blowing Studio. It was AWESOME!!! If you are ever in Tacoma, you should definitely do this! There is probably a glass blowing studio near you that may offer something like this as well. Definitely worth the money.
The Blow Tubes
They are kept hot because glass doesn’t stick to cold things.
Rolling The Glass into a cylinder
Heating the glass again
Rolling on the color!
Rolling colored glass into the clear glass
Adding twists to swirl the colors before introducing the bubble
Rolling before introducing bubble
This is interesting, they cool the outside, to ensure that the walls of the glass are consistent. By adjusting the heat in different places, they can vary the way the bubble will expand in the glass.
Introducing the bubble!!
He blows into the tube, and then places his thumb over the hole. The heat in the piece, and in the pipe cause the air to expand, and force the bubble into the piece when it’s small (which is hard, just like starting to blow up a balloon.
Adding more glass
More glass is added before enlarging the piece further
Cooling the blow tube
The blow tube gets really hot since it goes in and out of the furnace and glory hole repeatedly. So it is cooled every now and then with this simple machine.
Shaping and Cooling the added glass.
More shaping, cooling, blowing, and enlongating.
Atlast! Glass blowing!
Creating a small hole in the top so that it can be turned into a Vase / Candy Jar.
Widening The Hole
Widening It More
And More
Shaping Body and Flattening Lip
Finish flattening of Lip, and final shaping.
That is a stack of wet newspaper he is using to shape and cool the body.
Shocking the glass at the joint with the blow tube with water so it breaks clean and easy there.
He actually did this in three places around the tube, but I only got the last one.
Breaking the piece off with a few taps.
He had to hit this one harder than the others. With them, it was one very light tap on the blow tube, and the piece broke free.
And The Finished Piece!
That is fantastic!