Taking a Break

Much of what I make is fairly large so it's nice to take a break from the hot & heavy stuff and make cane cups.  There's literally no limit to the design possibilities in glass so cups are a great place to experiment with colors, patterns and different palettes.  

Since glass color varies greatly based on density (or saturation), how thick it is applied, the degree it is stretched in the blowing process and more, cups are a great way to explore how new colors behave when molten and how they turn out once cold (color can change a great deal between the hot and cold state).  Cups are also relatively quick to make.  And while they definitely require a great deal of focus and concentration, it is a different type of glassblowing precision to make nice cups...and they don't weigh 20 lbs :).