Monday, December 7, 2009

Glass Plates

In 1923 A.H. Behrenberg and W. Frank Hull were making signs for the Pittsburgh Brewing Co. W. Frank Hull also had a hand painted art and design company. In 1923 the incorporated, the company name was Hull Sign & Mfg. Co. Later that year they started making gasoline signs for the gasoline pumps. By 1925 my grandfather H.J. Behrenberg was working full time at Hull Sign & Mfg. Co. In 1926 the Behrenberg family owned Hull Sign & Mfg. Co.

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By 1926 they were producing bent glass faces with multi-colors on them. H.J. Behrenberg and his brother W.C. Behrenberg were decorating and bending glass for gasoline advertising faces. In 1948 H.J. Behrenberg became the sole owner.

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Hull Sign & Mfg. Co. moved to Delmont, PA in 1963. The name was changed to Behrenberg Glass Co. in 1968. H.J. Behrenberg had two sons in the glass bending business, John P. Behrenberg and James L. Behrenberg.

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John P. Behrenberg Sr. was president of Behrenberg Glass Co. from 1970 until his retirement in 1998. During this time Behrenberg Glass Co. started manufacturing glass giftware for serving trays, restaurants, hotels, decoupage, hand painters, lighting and exit glass.

Depression Glass


Depression Glass one thinks of antique or period door knobs one obviously gravitates towards glass door knobs. They used to be the standard in old homes. Glass door knobs were magnificently crafted pieces that sparkled like diamonds when the sunlight hit them. Glass door knobs were often found in the homes of the affluent, or in palaces where only the best would do for furnishings and hardware.They won’t last in harsh conditions, nor should they be put outside. Glass door knobs put outside can crack or break in excessive hot or cold weather. The other possible reason for the change to door knobs may have to do with the price. Glass door knobs are considered pieces of art, made one at a time, while meal door knobs can be quickly poured in molds to suit the demand for them.


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Glass door knobs have a beauty and elegance through the artistry of the glass. Each is unique to the manufacturer and the artist that created it. Essentially every antique glass door knob is a piece of art. This is likely why these pieces are so sought after. You may be surprised if you were at an auction and some antique door knobs came up for bid. 

Plate Glass

Thanks for visiting the web site of Lawrence Plate Glass. We provide products and services for your home and business in three general categories:

Eastern Garage Door is a full service provider of residential and commercial garage door products. We offer a wide variety of products for new construction installations as well as replacement garage doors and garage door service.

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Enclosures focuses on the installation of glass tub and shower enclosures ranging from standard, inexpensive tub sliders to exotic, multi-sided frameless steam enclosures. We also install cut-to-size mirrors for bathroom applications in conjunction with the glass enclosures.

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The Home Improvements side of the business sells and installs replacement windows, entry doors, storm window and door products, mirrored closet doors as well as selling framed and beveled mirrors in our retail store.

You could say that if you are looking for a door or window product, we have something to offer. Not to mention the many experienced sales and installation professionals who work closely with you to get your job done.

Ruby Glass

There wouldn't be an antiques store in Australia worth its salt that didn't carry a selection of ruby glass items though most of what we see today is, relatively speaking, fairly modern, having been produced during the later part of the nineteenth or early twentieth centuries.

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Antonio Neri first alluded to the process of making richly coloured ruby glass in a book on glass manufacturing first published in 1612 though Johann Kunckel of Potsdam, Germany, is credited with having produced the earliest known examples in 1680. Kunckel's process used a small amount of gold in the mix that resulted in a beautiful red colour. German glassmakers called this process Rubinglas.

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However, it was not until the Great exhibition of 1851 that the British displayed any interest in the process. From then on until the end of the 19th Century ruby glass items became extremely popular with the rich and poor alike, and the factories of industrial England churned out a huge selection ranging from inexpensive kitchen jugs to ornate chandeliers. Victorian technology had also vastly improved the production process with the ruby colour obtained using extremely small amounts of copper or gold dissolved in nitric acid and then mixed with the raw materials.

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The best examples of Victorian ruby glass of British provenance show a deep, rich colouring. Not surprisingly, they're keenly sought after by Australian collectors and prices start at around $125.00 for small jugs rising quickly into the thousands for more ornate items. Generally speaking, the price depends on the age and quality of the item. A Victorian ruby glass basket of good quality can fetch anything from $650.00 to $900.00 while a mid-Victorian jug of average quality can be priced around $250.00 to $300.00. An early Victorian example with gilded or cameo decoration can be valued at up to $4000.00. Despite these prices, good quality late Victorian ruby glass is probably a good area for the new collector to consider.

Hand Blown Glass

Quality cut crystal from Europe can be a treasure trove for the discerning buyer. Exquisite hand blown glass and cut crystal manufactured by master craftsmen in the Slovak and the Czech Republic is now becoming more available to the western market. Today, cut crystal of anniversary gift and heirloom quality is just one of the many glass products to choose from.

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Although the Czechs and Slovaks are not the only skilled glass producers in Central Europe, few rival them in artistic range and expertise. Hardly a street in Prague is without a shop window that displays luxury cut crystal or fine hand blown glass. Visitors and tourists find breath-taking works of art exemplified in hand cut crystal and mouth blown glass.

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In Bohemia, the craft and art of glassmaking goes back over 600 years. Often a family tradition, the craftsmanship of glass is highly specialized from artwork to glassworks production. Today, Czech glass is still one of the European heirloom treasures to look for and select that "perfect unique gift."

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After the collapse of the Communist Socialist system in 1989, state ran
glass factories in Czechoslovakia started down the path of privatization. More and more, they became free to make their own business decisions on which kind of glass they wished to produce and offer to market. Importers from the West also have more choices on goods and glass manufacturers as they are no longer required to go through state specified channels. The result has made world-class custom glass products from Bohemia, readily available to the world economy.Collecting glass is an obsession to some. Locating and acquiring antique glass collectibles can be as exciting as finding new heirloom cut crystal from the shops of master craftsmen. From crystal chandeliers to colored decorative glass, Czech and Slovak pieces have become more sought after as centuries pass.

Glass

Artisan glass refers to handblown or individually created glass items, as opposed to items such as standardized glass windows and other mass-produced products. Until a few hundred years ago, this description fit virtually all glass products.

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Common glass contains about 70% amorphous silicon dioxide, the same chemical composition as quartz and sand. Commercial glass can be made of pure silica, but usually sodium carbonate (soda) and calcium oxide (lime) are added. Various other additives are also used, such as lead to give glass more "sparkle." Forms of glass that do not include silica as a major component are sometimes used for fiber optic cables and other specialized technical applications.

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Metals and metal oxides have long been used to give color to glass. Brilliantly colored cobalt blue glassware is a collectors' item. Glass can also be colored with minerals including iron oxide (brown), chromium (green) , manganese (purple), selenium (pink or red), or combinations thereof. The method of heating and cooling the glass during its processing can significantly affect the colors produced by these compounds, in a process whose chemistry is complex and poorly understood.

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Lightning strikes which fuse sand can leave glass trails resembling tree roots along the path of the electrical discharge. Another naturally occurring glass, obsidian, has been used by humans since the stone age. The Phoenicians used glass as pottery glaze in 3000 BC, and glass beads, seals and architectural decorations found in Mesopotamia date back to 2500BC. The first glass was created by melting sand, producing a greenish product due to the naturally-occurring iron oxide in the sand. Even today, commercial glass has a slight green or blue tint, due to the presence of these same impurities. Egyptians made glass beads and glass bottles dating to 1500 BC. By 500 BC, glass-making technology had spread to Greece, and by 100 BC there were many glass-making centers around the Mediterranean. Window glass was quite commonly used in the area by 100 BC, such as thick, translucent samples found in Karanis, Egypt.

Art Glass

Cut glass and glass blowing production came from ancient techniques and were gradually refined over the ages. Cut glass objects were used as commodities, gifts, and jewelry in past millennia. Today exquisite cut crystal is sought after for its heirloom qualities and gifting allure.

Natural glass, like obsidian, is a dense volcanic glass, and has been used by man for millennia. To early man, obsidian glass was an extremely rare and valuable commodity, Because of the way volcanic glass fractures, sharp edges occur. This inherent quality of natural cut glass was put to use and was often made into sharp spear points and blades.

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Man-made rudimentary glass was made from silica sand, plant ash and lime. Over time it was discovered that if glass was heated until it became semi-liquid, it may be molded or shaped and left to cool into a solid new piece or vessel. In ancient times glass pieces were valued as a substitute for precious stones, gems, and gifts.

During first century BC, the craft of melting and blowing glass into useable objects was developed. Glass pieces and items gradually became more common after the discovery of glassblowing. Objects such as vases, bottles, and cruets were mouth blown and mold blown during the Roman Empire, usually for ordinary purpose and daily use.

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Common glass normally has a greenish hue. The green tint is caused by miniscule amounts of iron impurities in the sand used to make glass. Glass producers learned to make decorative and colored glass by adding metallic compounds and mineral oxides such as cobalt. Colored glass of reds, blues and greens became prevalent. After craftsmen learned to score and cut glass, they found clear glass refracted light in spectacular fashion. Thus, clear cut glass became popular, and demand for colored glass plummeted.

Glass Fruit Bow

Fresh fruit looks especially appetizing in this brilliantly clear bowl, which makes a lovely vessel for decorative centerpieces. Handcrafted for us in Poland, the glass bowl shows a graceful flared shape rising from a heavyweight base, which provides added stability. Dishwasher safe. 3-qt. cap.; 12" diam., 4 1/2" high. A Williams-Sonoma exclusive.

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On one of our first journeys to Boshan, we went with our friends from the glass bottle and Storage jar factory. We flew into Qingdao Airport, not the nice new one, the original one very small and quaint where you carried you own luggage from the plane through the single customs gate. Everybody is very excited to have some 'round eyes' coming to visit their city, as this was a long time ago.

We walk out of the airport back into the sunshine, and are greeted by our two young lady hosts along with their manager. They are like two characters out of a Jane Austin novel, and have clearly never had any foreign guests visit them before, as Boshan has only just been opened up to Westerners. They fuss and flap, like two old maids trying so hard to please us, trying to help us carry our heavy bags. This is the last stage of our tours of our factories, we have been in China a month already.

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They are so proud, they have one of the earliest Toyoto People Carriers. We load our luggage into the back, and get into the carrier> It is a squeeze, the two girls, the factory manager and the driver, who smiles at us all the time.

They have booked us into the best hotel on the seafront, gone now, a great shame as it had great colonial character. It was left over from the time when this part of China was German, hence the Qingdao Beer, made from rice as there was no barley available, and where the recipe for Budweiser must have originated. The front was not built up then, and we enjoyed our breakfast overlooking the sea, the people out collecting shell fish in their buckets.Our hosts arrive and we all clamber into the vehicle, with great excitement for our adventure, and what an adventure it was to be!

Thursday, December 3, 2009

Glass Punch Bowl

What party is complete without a big bowl filled with some fruity concoction? That bowl is a beacon to all that they can come to the trough and enjoy a great drink that the host has made up, especially for them.

When selecting the punch bowl to use, there are a few options out there. There are plastic and metal punch bowls, but most of those are not a material you can see through, and a punch bowl really isn't quite right unless the light can hit the fruity drink inside and shine across the room. This is why you may want to stick with a traditional clear glass punch bowl.

Punch Bowl

Then you need to fill it up!

Here's a tropical fruit punch recipe that will be sure to have your guests coming back for more.

Jamaican Rum Punch
240 ml 151 rum
60 ml dark rum
60 cup coconut rum
600 ml pineapple juice
600 ml orange juice
60 ml lime juice
45 ml grenadine syrup

You should chill all these juices for a few hours before you want to prepare the punch. Once you're ready pour everything into a punch bowl. You could also add an Ice ring, laced with pineapple slices or orange slices to dress it up and keep it cool.

Glass Bowls

The Glass Bowl is a stadium in Toledo, Ohio. It is primarily used for American football, and is the home field of the University of Toledo Rockets. It is located on the school's Bancroft campus, just south of the banks of the Ottawa River. Known for its blend of old and new, it retains the traditional stonework around the field throughout all its expansions.

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Originally known as University Stadium, it was built in 1936 at a cost of only $335,000 as a Works Progress Administration project. Originally the natural seating bowl held 8,000 in two sideline grandstands. There was a grass hill at the south end of the stadium, and at the open (north) end of the bowl were two stone towers (still standing), that served as makeshift housing for the football team in its early years. Following World War II, the stadium was renovated, with many glass elements. Because of this, and the city's concentration on the industry, the stadium was renamed the Glass Bowl in 1946. South endzone stands were added in 1966, and further expansion came following Toledo's 35-game win streak from 1969 to 1971, bringing capacity up to 18,500.

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In 1990, the stadium had its largest expansion take place, adding a second level of seats to both sidelines. As part of the 1990 renovations, which cost $18 million, a three-story press box, which also includes 40 luxury suites, a 400-seat Stadium Club and sports information offices, and the Larimer Athletic Complex were built. The three-story press box, towering over the stadium, was the greatest improvement in terms of upgrades, as the former press box was barely thirty feet long and only could hold approximately 50 people. Further improvements include a video scoreboard in the north endzone in 1999, and the upgrade to a Field Turf playing surface in 2008.

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The largest crowd in Glass Bowl history for a University of Toledo football game was 36,852 for a game against the United States Naval Academy on October 27, 2001. In addition, the Glass Bowl is used for monster truck rallies, commencements and concerts, among other uses.