Glassblowing is a spiritual journey turning molten glass
into a piece of art. Below we will take you
through the steps of how glass is blown.

1. Michael selects the colors that he will use
to form a predetermined pattern (remember the glass may have its own idea of what form it would like to be), he then gathers glass from the furnace onto the end of the blowpipe.

2. Michael then cools the gather of glass by rolling it over a steel surface called a marver. This slightly cools and evens the glass.

3. To create a bubble in the glass Michael blows into the pipe. The more you blow, the bigger the bubble.

4. He then gathers more glass from the furnace, cools it by shaping it on the marver and with wooden paddles, and repeats until the glass is properly shaped and of the right size.

5. When the piece is ready to be transferred, Michael tells his assistant, Cary, to punty up by taking a small gather of molten glass on the end of the rod. Together they attach it to the center and bottom of the piece. Drops of water are placed at the cut line and the piece is tapped free from the blow pipe. Using the gloryhole the piece can be brought back to high temperatures and get opened up by using jacks or other tools.

6. After opening the piece up, Michael turns the Punty slowly at first and then increase the speed. The piece begins to flare wide open. He then can tilt the piece towards the floor allowing gravity to pull the form into a desirable form. The piece is then tapped free from the Punty and is immediately placed into an anhealor to slowly
cool the piece over 15-24 hours depending on its size.