Making Glass Paperweights 6
| In the early fruit weights it was drawn to a point to give a basket
effect , as you can see in the image to the left. Heating and reheating were highly
important, for it was necessary that everything be kept at uniform
temperature to prevent cracking. Such pieces as fruits, flowers, and
similar units were made and supported in crystal before they were
applied. The petal, leaf, and stem of a rose, for example, were formed
by hand,then assembled and surrounded with crystal.
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The veinings of the leaves were done by hand in the work room with a fine pointed instrument. The varieties of glass used had to be workable at various fusing temperatures, and they had to stand repeated heating.
In the great days of paperweight making, workmen were allowed to use for their own purposes the materials left over after the day's work. Moreover, if a workman of those times had completed his day's production-say, 300 glass tumblers-he was free to use the remainder of his time as he wished. Modern workmen do not have such free time, which undoubtedly explains why such arts as the making of the old paperweights have become extinct.
In the great days of paperweight making, workmen were allowed to use for their own purposes the materials left over after the day's work. Moreover, if a workman of those times had completed his day's production-say, 300 glass tumblers-he was free to use the remainder of his time as he wished. Modern workmen do not have such free time, which undoubtedly explains why such arts as the making of the old paperweights have become extinct.
| Here we have three glass whales for your viewing pleasure. These were crafted by Pilgrim Glass Company in the 1960's. That makes them one of the Mid Century Modern collectibles. You can see more paperweights at Our Antique Shop.
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| Now and then we encounter a weight of what is known as the "candy" type -- a
weight in which decorative odds and ends are arranged in hit or miss
fashion. These probably reflect the old custom of saving all sorts of
odd bits, on the chance that they might ome day be used in paperweights.
The cracked surface of the Clichy weight, shown on the left,
shows the thickness of the glass placed over the base and helps to
explain the magnification which occurs when the weight is viewed from
above.
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In the heyday of the art there was evidently some traffic in the canes and other semi-finished materials among the workmen, and it was sometimes necessary for the glass companies to prohibit their workmen from making paperweights in their spare time and entering into competition with their own factories.
