Instead of flowers this Valentine’s Day my man got us a glassblowing class where we made flowers!
It was really neat. The process is so mind blowing. I get sewing, you just put two things together and add more things. Even out of a need – clothing, blankets or whatever. Knitting and crochet hurts my brain but again I get how it came to be. Glassblowing boggles my mind. The oven is over 2000 degrees, things have to be heated up just so. The glass has to cool down slowly over hours and hours so it doesn’t explode or crack. It’s just zany. I have no idea how this was invented, pursued and successful. You can *die* doing it, or get seriously injured.
So we went to Playing With Fire for this wonderful adventure. Here’s their Facebook page.
Those are the little small crushed pieces of glass we dipped out hot ball of lava class into to colour our flowers. The outside colour is put on first, then the outer. I put green for the outside and purple for the inside.
The rod can get really hot so they hold your hands back a bit. I don’t know why you just get these arm sleeve things, it’s your fingers that would get toasty if you got close enough. Then we had to take them to another oven, where you wear special UV blocking glasses because if you look at it it’s like looking at the sun! You add more glass there and then bring it over to a bench where the lovely ladies turned it and we had to pull on the glass, it was kinda like taffy, and a bit unnerving.
My boyfriend was better at it, less fearful and stronger. I was hesitant to get right in there which makes sense as you’re brain is telling you there’s danger! While it’s still really red and hot it does ‘cool’ quite quickly and gets harder to pull.
I love how his looked like a starfish while he was making it.
Then we had to do the stem making part. We pulled the flower head straight from the bottom and it created the stem. It seemed so fragile. I twisted my stem into a curly bit while Adam left his straight.
It was also very strange to work on a project and not really know what it was going to look like when you are finished. It’s still glowing red hot while you’re working so the colours don’t show. If by chance something does break during the making or in the kiln cooling down then they just toss it back into the oven and melt the glass down to reuse as a molten lump.
They were about to make a vase as we were leaving and invited us to stay and watch if we wanted. It was so cool. It all takes two people, again making it unbelievable this craft exists, and not only do you move around a big long stick with molten glass on it you also blow into that stick! It was really neat to see.
Once they’re shaping it, spinning it on the bench where I pulled my flower shape, they rub the outside with old pages of the newspaper, which sizzle, blacken and spark while they do it.
Again, it’s wacky but beaitiful.
