Introduction to Glass Color for Glassblowing

"Hi! I’m Jim McKelvey with Third Degree Glass Factory in St. Louis. You can check us out on the web at www.stlglass.com. Today, we’re going to learn about glassblowing for expertvillage.com. Let’s talk about how to make a colored piece of glass. It’s very similar to making a clear piece, except color complicates your life in several ways. First of all, the color is going to heat up and cool down differently than the clear glass does. Also, to look nice, you’re probably going to want to have it even. Now, it’s sort of an aesthetic decision whether or not you need even glass or not. In this case, I want a nice even piece since that’s a little more instructive. My assistant Fern here is preparing the color as I prepare what’s called a post. I have a piece of clear glass, and I’m just going to put a very tiny starter bubble in this clear glass while Fern gets that blue ready. We’re going to do something called an overlay. An overlay is simply a veneer of color that will be applied this piece, which can be called a post as well. It’s a first gather, but it’s sort of a short stocky first gather. It’s got nice thick walls. I’m going to let this get very cold because I want this to be nice and stiff."