Just for fun I’ve been taking some glassblowing classes at a local studio. Its fun, but it’s not easy, and it’s an expensive hobby. Anyone here blow glass? How was it for you? Do you still do it? If there’s one thing I’ve learned so far, its that the studio is much more pleasant in the winter, when its about 70 degrees inside, then it is in July, when the thermometer was reading nearly 100.
I’ve never done it, but I love glass art. I love the colors, the shine, the shapes…I would like to try it. Is it hard to handle? The blow pipe (?) seems so long and heavy. I always think I’d be unable to manipulate it securely.
The one thing I learned while glassblowing was actually one of the first things they tell you – hot glass looks just like cold glass. I took a scientific glass blowing class once just for fun, but found it frustrating because it’s so hands-off. You can’t touch the glass (or you’ll dearly regret it), so it all comes down to skill at twirling blobs of saggy glass. Tricky, but fun. Still, I’ll stick to woodworking for the time being.
I took a glassblowing class in my senior year of high school; we had an exceptional arts program that included ceramics, wheelthrowing, jewelry making, drawing, painting, music, acting, technical theater design and photography.
I had very little natural skill at it, but had a great teacher who loved what he did and really took the time to make sure he was available for questions (fumbling around with molten glass is no joke) and help, and did great demonstrations. I still have a bunch of the things I made – bowls, little vases – and it’s cool to look at them and remember making them.
One of my classmates ended up starting his own glass studio and seems to be having a lot of success, offering lessons and exhibiting his and other artists’ work.
Have fun with it!
The blow pipes aren’t that heavy, only a few pounds. Most of the time the weight is supported: when you’re working the glass you are sitting at a bench where the pipe can be rolled back and forth on support arms and when you’re heating a piece in the glory hole there is a support stand.
You can’t touch it directly, but one of the more useful shaping tools is nothing more complex than a sheet of newspaper folded over a bunch of times, and wetted. It gives you a very good feel for the glass and lets you get pretty close.
I took one class and enjoyed it, but it was a long drive, and I just have too many expensive hobbies already. If I retire rich I’ll take it up again.
I see you are a neighbor, where is the studio you are using?
I took a class last year. I enjoyed it, but it was too expensive for me to continue.
For a klutz like me, it was surprising that I only burned myself once.
Heheheehe. 
I’ve do some neon tube bending, which is a little different than making a vase, but I agree, hot as hell.
My niece recently graduated from college with a glass major, and married a fellow glassblower. (I tell you, tough to get excited about giving jacks as a wedding present. Not sure what they are, but they sure were expensive, ans sure made them happy!)
One thing that was really fun at their wedding was they made a whole bunch of different glasses of all shapes and colors, and each guest got to choose one to drink from at the reception and take home with them.
As I’ve seen them progress through the years, it seems to be quite a long road from the “5 pound cannonballs” that were their initial efforts at christmas ornaments.
They make beautiful stuff now, but it took them tons and tons of practice and quite a bit of pricey equipment and supplies.
I always wanted to be a glassblower since seeing one at Detroit’s Greenfield Village living history museum park. Every year I would go and drag the family to that exhibit and watch for as long as I could.
When I got older though, I was disappointed that the glass blowers seemed to only make a couple of kitschy trinkets. Half their output was unicorns and one told me he hated to do them but had to because little girls always asked for them.
In college, I loved it and got a dream job in the chemistry department making equipment. I would blow long tubes for collectors and distillation setups that we would put ground valves into, and bulbs for things like custom diodes and triodes for the physics classes.
I used to blow glass. I suppose if presented with the opportunity I could still blow glass, but as you mention, it’s an expensive hobby. It’s also more material dependant than, say, drawing.
It’s really, really intense. In my experience, people that become professional glass blowers have very different personalities.
I’ve never had any major burns (amazingly enough) and I don’t really feel minor burns and that sort of thing so I really enjoyed myself.
Chihuly’s glass is mesmerising. Do you do anything similar to what he does?
I’m studying at a place called DC Glassworks, here in Hyattsville. You can google them for more info.
Hell, I’m still learning how to make a decent drinking glass. His stuff is way beyond me.
There’s your mistake. You’re an artiste! Whay are you trying to make something functional? Someone wants a drinking glass they can go down to Walmart and buy one for a buck.
(Besides, it is a little known fact that Chihuly’s creations are actually intended to be functional dinnerware, and no one has yet caught on to his incompetence! ;))
The local community college used to have classes in it. It’s damn difficult. It took the entire semester to finally produce a misshapen turd of a cup. There’s about 5 different steps where you can fail. The worst thing is when you’re trying to stick your piece into the annealing oven and you knock if over, taking out about 6 of your fellow classmates’ pieces. I got to the point where I could make a piece about one out of every 5 tries (3 semesters).
It’s damn dangerous, with a bunch of clueless people wandering around with 1800 degree globs of glass on a 6 foot steel rod. You think throwing a clay pot on a wheel is difficult? Try doing it sideways at 1800 degrees.
I still have a scar across my forearm from the time that some shit for brains wandered across the courtyard dragging a 20 foot string of molten glass at waist height.
It’s really a blast, I’m bummed they stop offering the class. I don’t know if it was because of expense or liability.
Not glassblowing, but Mr. S and I have taken several lampworking and fusing classes. Bought our own torch and kiln, even. Still haven’t made anything at home, though . . . as we tell people, “The studio is operational, we just haven’t operated it yet.” That’s not precisely true, though; we need to install real ventilation for the kiln (other than opening windows), and we need to set up a torch station outside the house (propane tanks in the house, especially in the basement where the kiln is, equals mucho bad idea). Until we get the barn remodeled, we’ll have to wait until Mr. S can build some sort of shed for outdoor summer torching.
I tried glassblowing once, but I inhaled instead and got a pane in my stomach.
I’ll bet your hopes were shattered.