Whirled Glass

Well .. I have made a few things out of glass while I was visiting my sis in Oregon. They used to have a place up there in Oakridge where they made all kinds of glass ornaments and necklaces, and a few custom pipes and whatnot for friends. Most of the stuff they made they sold at Saturday Market in Eugene.

Some of the coolest things we have ever done is getting together with people that are of like mind and those people that love and love to give. Bartering is alive and well at Saturday Market let me tell you. Tons of people giving and taking to make their lives a little easier. You will find all kinds of creativity in Eugene Oregon. There are a few places to go in Portland as well but the only one that we can talk about from experience is the Saturday Market in Eugene.

I was there for almost 13 days and those where he best 13 days of my life. We did a lot of work while I was there because at the time my sis was just getting started so she had to work a bunch while I was there. I helped them out as much as I could and I got to make a few things out of glass. I made a necklace ornament that was a bulb of clear glass with a mushroom in the middle. I still have it although I can’t wear it anymore. I have been putting on a little weight since those days and it doesn’t quite fit like it used to. Maybe someday I will get my sister to make me another hemp rope necklace so I can wear it again.

Soon when we head out on the tour we will be sending up some pictures of the adventure on here so keep a weather eye on the horizon for the big gray van.

Another great site for finding information about schools and equipment for glass blowing is the WiteElks.com site. There are tons of links and information that deal with glass blowing and the schools that you can attend to learn the ancient art of glass blowing.

There are so many places that you can go to learn glass blowing the old world way and even more so for glass blowing in the traditional sense of the term. Now a days there are thousands of people that have either learned or self taught the art of blowing glass. Many of the glass pipe makers of today are old school hippies that picked up the art of glass blowing and modification just by trial and error. These are the guys that you will learn the real tricks of the trade when you want to start blowing your own glass pipes or trinkets.

With the handy dandy internet available just about anywhere you go there are plenty of recourses for finding out information about glass blowing and the old world art of how to manipulate glass with heat to make your imagination come to life. We hope that his site will help to lead you to the sites that inform you on becoming a great glass blower.

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Since 1975 Art Glass has been doing the do when it comes to Glass Blowing. They boast the products that they sell and the low prices that they have for the little things that matter most. Like a auto clave or a furnace for curing your glass. Don’t melt them in the furnace and stop putting your glass blown pipes and sculptures in the oven .. it’s not the same. You need pressure as well as heat .. think man think.

You can check out Art Glass online and click on the Sundance Art Glass. I saw something very neat about that page. They show you where to stay when you are going to visit them. They are in Paradise California so another stop on the way will be the studio. I can’t wait to see this one and get a good nights sleep in the Comfort Inn that they recommend.

Check out their site and if you have been there before let us know what you thought of thier outfit.

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If you are going to blow glass you are going to need glass to melt and shape. A website that we found which may be local for some of you is Wale. Wale Apparatus carries tons of supplies for the everyday glass blower. Their extensive choices of supplies make it pretty easy for them to keep the prices down for you and that is always a huge plus in our book.

They will also ship you a catalog so that you can have the paper version of the website right in front of you at all times. In case your internet goes down and you need some new glass rods like right now.

We are sending them out as one of the higher ranked sellers of glass blowing supplies. Check them out and let us know what you guys think of their site and them as a whole.

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Old World Glass Blowing meet Lindsay. The art on display at Lindsay Art Glass is beautifully detailed. There is something unique about the images that we saw on their site though I can’t put my thumb on what exactly that is. The gallery is full of great images of their work and the shop is full of expert glass blowers that build some amazing pieces.

Located in Benicia California, this may be one of the first stops on our glass blowing tour. This will be another great place to podcast from as well. We love California so we will be spending some time going from south to north. Lindsay Art will definitely be a stop along the way.

This mission of finding creative Glass Blowers has been a real adventure so far. We are thinking about making a few short jaunts to some of the places that are within a thousand miles or so. A short six or seven hour drive there and back sounds like a ton of fun and we want to start seeing these places in person instead of just on the web.

If you have ever seen or been to Lindsay Art Glass let us know what you think .. you can comment on this post.

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Take some advice from the experts. Audrey and Steve Kennedy have been blowing glass since about 1995 and they started out just like everyone else .. one step at a time. Buying your own equipment can be very expensive but this is an investment you will make for a lifetime of glass blowing.

There are tons of sites that offer glass blowing equipment at pretty good prices. No matter where you go you are going to have to spend some money on the equipment it takes to blow your own glass. You might try looking for someone who is going out of business or has lost interest in their glass blowing. I don’t know if that ever happens but it could.

Another bit of advice is to try it before you buy into it. Find someone who will teach you the art of blowing glass. With all the galleries around the United States alone you are sure to find someone who will take you on as an apprentice for a while to see if you are truly interested in making this a life long career or just a weekend hobby.

Remember this stuff doesn’t sell cheap so make sure you are sure before you invest a ton of money that you will regret later on down the road.

In case you are ready to get right into the business and purchase your own equipment, Roach Industries is one of the industry manufacturers of glass blowing and glass handling equipment. You might check them out and shop around some to see if you can get what you are looking for. Contact them and see if they can cut you a deal on a package. You never know unless you ask.

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Wholesale glass pipe blowers and manufacturers. Where the student becomes the employee. This site Chingari Wholesale boasts years of experience and the fact that they retain their students as in house glass blowers. Thats a nice thing to do.

I didn’t see a hole lot to the site but once you get inside the site there is a ton of stuff. From glass blown pipes to hookahs they have a pretty large selection. I also tried to contact them via email and waited about 3 weeks with no response. Maybe my email went into a spam box but I made sure to make the email a non spammy looking email to the spam filter would accept it and throw it in the inbox.

There is some pretty cool glass blown pieces on the home page and in the catalog we saw to much of everthing spectacular. There is ceramics and glass blowing for days in the site. Check out any category in the catalog and you will see pages of great pieces all hand made and some really nice blown glass.

None the less .. check them out and if you know anything about them .. let us know.

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