The is the maiden voyage of the All of Green Glass blog, a blog set up to feature my recycled glass products as well as the journey both the glass and myself go through to create recycled glass art.

How I got started.
I have always been eco conscious and I love making things with my hands. I have always had a childhood fascination with glass blowing tucked in the back of my mind. When my frugal wife stated that she was interested in making her own jewelry, I decided to get her all the things she needed to get into the hobby for Christmas. Knowing very well that without the correct equipment and materials the hobby would be a waste, I started looking online at the myriad or beading supplies offered. This is when I came across Lamp Worked Beads. After several YouTube videos, I learned of the process of making Lamp Worked Beads. Colored rods of glass are heated by a torch and wrapped around a metal rod to form beads. Different colors can be used and there are a slew of techniques available to make a variety of unique designs and an unlimited number of one-of-a-kind beads. I was immediately hooked. My first attempt of making glass beads was by using broken glass bottles and using Grandpa’s acetylene torch. Needless to say it wasn’t that easy and the outcome was less than desirable. However, amazingly, I did make some passable glass beads. After watching several more videos online along with hours of online reading, I learned how real glass artists do it. So, along with buying several hundred dollars of beading supplies for my wife I bought myself bona fide lamp working supplies. Although I worked with “real” store bought glass for several years with much enjoyment, it was less than coincidence that those first beads were made of recycled glass. While most glass artists shun the use of “incompatible” glass I have since found several techniques that I can employ to make good use of recycled glass. I hope you take the time to check out my other posts where I discuss some of these techniques as well as the art created by using them.