Glassblowing is the art of creating a glass figure by inflating a blob of molten glass by blowing using a tube. This art has its origin in the ancient civilizations in Mesopotamia and continued to flourish up to the modern era. This article will give a brief glassblowing guide to show how this art works.
A blow pipe or blow tube, one of the major tools in glassblowing, is dipped on a furnace of molten glass. The molten glass is gathered on the tip of the tube just like honey being gathered in a dipper. After that, the molten glass is rolled on a slab of marble or a thick sheet of steel called a marver to create a cool skin outside the glass.
The actual blowing comes next. A fair amount of air is blown in the molten glass through the tube creating a bubble. Then blocks are used to shape the bubble that is created. There are also jacks that will aid in creating a distinctive shape on the glass. In the middle of the creation, the glass may cool. It is then inserted to another furnace called the glory hole to be reheated.
The bottom of the piece is flattened with a use of a paddle. When this is done, colors and other decorative touches can be added in the piece such as patterns of colored glass or adding canes.
When the whole piece is done, it is now placed in a third furnace called the annealer for it to cool and set. It may take a few hours or days depending on the size of the piece.
Easy right? Don’t worry, you won’t learn how to blow glass overnight. But you’ll be glad you did when your churning out your own glass works of art.