Hot Glass

Some days ago I went on a trip to Glashütte. This name means something like 'glass foundry' in English. It is an idyllic village not far from Berlin with a tradition in glassmaking. Now it mainly serves as a museum. It shows that the working and living conditions of glassmakers were far from easy or romantic in the days when every single mass produced glass item like a bottle was blown solely with the power of lungs under exploiting conditions. These days only two glassmakers still work there. They show their art of glassblowing to visitors. To see the working process is most fascinating! I'm so fond of it! They are very passionate about it and are full of love for their material. A glassmaker today is designer and worker in one person, which I think must be very satisfying.

He made the small bowl you can see in the picture below.
On the left side are jars with ingredients to colourise the glass, behind him is the furnace, and in the background is the kiln to anneal the finished items.

Blowing the pipe.

This guy is crazy. He touches molten glass with his (wet) fingers for a split second.

On the right side still on the iron is the drinking glass he just made.

My purchases. I like the bowl for its liquid look and
I had to buy some handmade millefiori beads of course.