Glass blowing is a very old art form, dating back over 3,000 years. At first the heated glass was just formed around other objects to make bowls. The Romans (of course) figured out how to blow glass around 50 B.C. and artisans during the Renaissance period perfected it. The same technique is used today. In fact, not much has changed or improved since then.

If you’ve never seen glass being blown, it’s really an amazing process. It requires the glass to be heated and, well, here … watch this: http://youtu.be/O1xb48Y6EdA

Amazing, right?! Then you begin to really wonder how artists like Chihuly can make their masterpieces? Talk about amazing…he does some crazy stuff with glass and it, too, is hand-blown.  His chandeliers are instantly recognizable. In fact, the average person may not know his name but they will tell you that they have seen one of his chandeliers or garden installations.

I’d love to learn to blow glass. I mean, out of every technique and medium out there that I haven’t tried yet, glass-blowing holds the most appeal. Sure, it’s hot. I mean, they do call it a “hot shop” for a reason. They keep the molten glass at over 2100 degrees F, which is ridiculous. But there is something calming to me about the whole process. The heating and working while it cools. You have to move quickly, yet gently. Plus, the added excitement of incorporating bits of other glass, yet not knowing what the actual finished project will look like until the end. Try it; if you can stand the heat, you just may like it.