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Care Instructions

"And any action/ Is as step to the block, to the fire, down the sea's throat/ Or to an illegible stone: and that is where we start".
-T. S. Elliot

Fused Glass Process

Dan and Eve cut handmade sheet glass of different colors and surfaces. After cutting, the individual pieces are ground to fit together like a multi-layered puzzle. Each bowl, platter, vase, or window is made of at least two layers of glass. Sometimes partial third and fourth layers are added. These layers are placed carefully in the kiln and fired to approximately 1500 degrees F. Twenty-four hours later, after they have fuseed into a flat “pancake” of color and design and have cooled to room temperature, they are removed.

Eve grinding a bowlEach piece is then ground, washed, dried, and placed over a ceramic mold corresponding to the shape it will take. The glass is heated to 1250 degrees F. The next day, a finished piece of tableware is removed from the kiln, cleaned, dated and signed.

Sinks are made of four to eight layers of glass. They take 6 days to make instead of two, for the firing and forming stages.

Irregularities, color variations, bubbles and ripples are an intrinsic part of this handmade glass, contributing to the uniqueness of each piece.

A short list of supplies:

  1. Fuseable glass of different colors, COE compatible* (see below)
  2. Diamond striker
  3. Breaker pliers
  4. Kiln primer or firing "paper"
  5. Sponges, soap & Bon Ami, for cleaning
  6. Computerized Kiln


Eve grinding a bowl

*COE Compatibility

COE: Coefficient of Expansion. When glass heats up it also expands. If we want two different types of glass to melt together and stay together after they are cooled, they must expand and contract at the same rate. This relationship is called COE.

Dan at the Kiln
Dan removing a finished piece from the kiln.

"The sustained antagonism in the very heart and core of life is the keynote; it is the same passionate quest, the same struggle to wrest from life the secret of creation..."
-Henry Miller

Care Instructions

Most cleaning can be done with soap and sponge, or glass cleaner and cloth. The non-scratch cleaners such as Bon Ami or Barkeepers Friend will take out waterspots and other stubborn stains.

GAYA GLASS
in The White House permanent collection
39107 Hileman Rd.
Marcola, OR 97454
(541) 933-2258
E-mail: art@gayaglass.com

© 2004 Gaya Glass

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