Glassware Care & Tips - The Glassmaking Process

Contents:
• Glassware Care & Tips
• The Glassmaking Process (Please Scroll Down)

How To Care For Your GMG Glassware & Stemware
Taking a few moments to care for your glassware will help keep it brilliant and clear throughout a lifetime of use.

We recommend the following care:
• Do not expose to rapid temperature changes or extremes of temperature.
• Do not place in the microwave, oven, dishwasher, or freezer.
• Avoid placing in direct sunlight.
• For best results, avoid contact with metal utensils when stirring or serving.
• For candlesticks, do not secure candles with molten wax or allow candles to burn within three inches of the candle cup. Dripless candles are preferable. If wax does adhere to candlestick, clean gently with denatured alcohol.
• Store your glassware right side up; do not stack vessels. Avoid sliding or twirling the glass.
• Avoid contact with hard or abrasive materials. You may wish to cover display areas with protective felt.
• Avoid packing glassware in newspaper or other moisture-absorbing materials for long periods of time; soft cloth or bubble wrap is preferable.

Cleaning your glassware:
• First and foremost to keep in mind is that fine glassware is NOT dishwasher safe. Washing these products in the dishwasher will cause dramatic loss of color in the luster, along with a fading of the 24k gold accents (where applicable).
• Hand wash using a non-abrasive cleaner in warm water. You may wish to cushion the sink with a towel or rubber mat.
• If stains appear on the vessel, gently rub with half a lemon, wash with vinegar, or soak the interior with powdered dentifrice dissolved in lukewarm water.
• In areas with very hard water and high mineral content, distilled water will help prevent staining.
• To dry, use a soft, lint-free cloth, or air dry.
• To avoid scratching, dust with a soft, lint-free cloth dampened in a mild solution of 1-part ammonia to 3-parts water.

How Your GMG Glassware & Stemware Is made
Watch the GMG Glassmaking Video (Large File so please be patient!)

Each piece in this line of mouth-blown and hand-decorated crystal is produced individually in the European country of Romania.

Glass blowing is the art of creating an object from molten glass by blowing air into a utilizing tube. The glass in the oven takes days to melt (the oven is never turned off). The artisan collects molten glass on the tip of his blow rod, being careful to accumulate just the right about for the piece to be blown.

Milano Glassware
First the artisan collects molten glass onto the tip of his blow rod, being careful to accumulate just the right amount for the piece to be blown.

To apply the intricate cobalt glass pattern, one craftsman rotates the blob of glass on its axis while another dabs a rod into molten cobalt and spins a thin strand of the material onto the lower portion of the piece. Each ware is then blown to the proper thickness and into the proper shape by mouth. When the glass is just right, the piece is taken out and allowed to cool.
After the glass is cooled, other craftsmen paint the vivid colors within the pattern using different colored luster and 24k gold. One last firing ensures that the color will last a long, long time.

Bacchus Glassware
First the artisan collects molten glass on the tip of his blow rod, being careful to accumulate just the right about for the piece to be blown.

Once the shape of the glass has been achieved, the glass is cooled. It is then sent onto etching stations where the grape pattern is cut by hand into the glass. Different craftsmen cut the different pieces of the etching: one person etches the grapes, another the vine, and yet another the leaves. When the glass etching is complete, the glass is polished and sent to the painting station. Here the etchings are painted by hand, using natural luster and real gold. Once the piece is in its final shape, it is fired one more time to ensure long-lasting strength, durability, and color.