Georgian Crystal - See the Glassblowers at Work
Tutbury's Last Glassworks is Open to the Public - Come and Visit
Sep 8, 2009
Looking for an interesting day out in Staffordshire? Georgian Crystal, located in picturesque and historical Tutbury, is one of the few remaining crystal glass factories that is open to the public. Small but beautifully formed, Georgian Crystal has customers all over the world who keep coming back for their high quality glassware.
Located in a quaint old Georgian silk mill building, Georgian Crystal is a great place to visit and learn about glass making, There is a warm welcome for those who want to drop in during the working day as well as for school parties by prior arrangement.
How is Crystal Glass Made?
At Georgian Crystal the traditional methods of making glassware are still employed. This entails heating lead crystal glass (made to their own secret formula) in a very hot furnace. It takes 36 hours to heat it up to 1400C so that the silica and other ingredients can melt and mix together. The hot glass is then formed into a ball and placed on the end of a long hollow steel rod, ready for the blowing process.
A highly skilled job, the glassblower knows how to blow down and rotate the steel pipe simultaneously, so that the glowing hot glass is blown into the right shape, rather like a child forming a bubble out of gum. Extremely high temperatures are involved and it takes many years to perfect the skill of creating perfect shapes that can then be transformed into beautiful vases, glasses, bowls and other items.
Next craftsmen use diamond impregnated grinding wheels in order to create the distinctive beveled patterns in the side of the vessel. This again is an extremely skilled job that takes a good eye and a very steady hand.
What is the Formula for Making Lead Crystal Glass?
Unfortunately this secret recipe cannot be divulged to the public, but Georgian Crystal say that they blend the finest white silica sand with the right amounts of lead oxide, potassium nitrate, borax and potassium carbonate. This formula is what gives the finished product its sparkle and clarity.
Visiting Georgian Crystal's Tutbury Factory
Visitors are welcomed at Georgian Crystal and they are allowed to watch the whole of the process from taking the molten glass from the furnace and blowing the basic shapes, to the process of marking up the glassware for the grinding process.
The factory, located on Silk Mill Street, is open on a daily basis between 9 am and 5 pm, with shorter hours on Sunday, between 10 am and 4 pm. Those wishing to see the glassblowers at work should visit on Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday between 9 am and 3.30 pm.
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