Colored and Decorative Shower Glass By Rosemary Sadez Friedmann
Scripps Howard News Service
Before we learned the secret of glassmaking, nature was the only maker of glass.
Nature makes glass in two different ways.
One way is when lightning strikes sand, the heat fuses the sand into long, slender glass tubes called fulgurites. The other way is from the terrific heat of a volcanic eruption. Sometimes the eruption fuses rocks and sand into a glass called obsidian.
We don't know exactly how man discovered how to make glass, but we do know that it was originally in the form of a glaze. Heat was used but not until much trial and error. Initially colored glass was used simply for making jewelry, tiny jars and jugs. Eventually more versatility was added to the employment of glass products.
As centuries went by and manufacturing techniques improved, glass became a well-used item in homes. One of its uses today is the glass shower enclosure.
Shower enclosures are neat and clean looking. Or are they? Yes, they are at first and can continue to be if we are diligent in keeping them clean after each shower. Obscure glass is easier to maintain than clear glass but there's even another choice. It is sculptured glass. Some companies call this type glass sculptured, others call it heat molded, and it has been called by still others as cast glass even though it is not poured.
The process actually consists of heating glass on top of a mold. This makes the glass very strong and tactile, as well as obscure. Some privacy is afforded by the product, yet it allows light to show through. The mold dictates the pattern and the pattern can be anything the artist draws.
Since it is fire polished and therefore not abrasive, as etched glass would be, the surface is easy to keep clean. No need to wipe it down after each and every shower. The thickness and smoothness also allows for decorative edges instead of plain straight edges. The edge can be shaped like a flower petal, a leaf, a wave or just about anything you desire.
And there's more. This glass can be ordered in color. Colored glass can be sculpted all as one color or various colors can be incorporated into the pattern. The possibilities are almost endless.
This slumped glass isn't limited to shower enclosures. It can be used as a wall between rooms, table tops, decorative panels or even just cut into a shape and displayed as art.
(Rosemary Sadez Friedmann, a member of the American Society of Interior Designers, is president of Rosemary Sadez Friedmann Inc.)
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