An Artist's Notes on Individual Colors with Unity in Glass

It is the combination of colors that make each piece unique and special.  

We are happy to provide guidance, by addressing each of our colors, individually. We love the concept that the couple is starting the creative process. The action of combining the colors is the first step in the artistic process and it takes place on a your day.

We often have clients say "seeing the art work in our home, reminds us and takes us back to the day of our wedding..."

As mentioned in our Gallery of Color article, we particularly like at least three colors; two main colors and a third highlight color. Each order is hand packed, so we can easily adjust volumes up and down, within the total amount of color glass crystals we send to our clients. Glasswork containing up to 7-8 colors can be very nice too, with a general rule of thumb, to avoid the super dark colors like deep blue, jet black, and gemstone ruby. Of course, if you do want one of these colors, reducing the volume of it substantially compared to the other colors is wise.  Not sure how to do that? Just tell us in the comment section on the order form “comments or details about color”, “reduce the jet black substantially” or “jet black at 5%”, or something similar. Don’t be shy about making tweaks in color volumes. This is how you can further customize and make the final glasswork, uniquely yours.

We will talk about “major colors” and “highlight colors” in this article. What we mean by a major color, is one where we send more volume of that color, vs a highlight color, which will be sent in a smaller volume. For example, Pure White can be a major color when you request and we send a larger volume of it compared to the other colors. It can be a highlight, if you request we send a small portion of it, meaning less white, and in general, more volume of the other colors.

One more thing—there is very little blending of the colors in the final glasswork.  If you want purple, don’t select red and blue and then expect purple.  Just go ahead and order the purple. Our Aria Series Vase may be most prone to some blending. It gets two coats of color when we are making it.

The following list is long. Perhaps jot down which colors you think you might like, and then focus later on our comments about those specific colors below, and then adjust your list accordingly.

Write down your list. Got it? Ok. Proceed. 

Notes from our founding artist on each color: 

1. Red. Our red is a fantastic transparent, medium toned red. A little bit on the orange side of red, but definitely a nice red. It’s great as a major color in the glasswork. It’s not a great “highlight” color as it can sometimes dilute down in small volumes. I’m personally not a huge fan of both Red and Deep Blue, being major colors in the final glasswork. If they are included within a number of 5-8 colors, that’s ok. The red crystals appear a bit “orangey” but they do shift to a more true red upon heating.
2. Sky Blue. This is a gorgeous, light and highly transparent blue. It is delicate and light transmission through it is beautiful. If you're ordering ornaments only, consider a touch of aquamarine to accompany the sky blue.
3. Citron Yellow. Our citron is a lemon/lime color, with a hefty dose of lemon.   In crystal format, it's a lime green, please do expect to see yellow coming from it in the final glasswork. If you want a truer green, do consider our emerald green.
4. Emerald green. Not too light. Not too dark. It’s a perfect balance of a true green. The crystals themselves are gorgeous and reminiscent of raw uncut green emeralds. They are gorgeous. With the emerald itself, we use a proprietary blend of 2 emerald colors. This mix is unique to us.
5. Deep Blue. It’s a gorgeous cobalt blue. It can be rather strong in the final glasswork, we prefer the ability to adjust its volume, compared to the other colors. As an example of using just 2 colors-- equal amounts in crystal form of our deep blue along with our sky blue. The final glass art work would end up appearing mostly deep blue. If you'd like, we can adjust the amount of each color that we send, to yield better and more balanced effects. We often prefer to send much less of the deep blue, compared to the other colors to help balance this out in the final glasswork. If you like a nice cobalt blue, this is the color for you, for sure. It works well as a highlight color too—perhaps 5% or even less. (we'll do the measuring for you-- just let us know when you place your order using the "comments or details box" on the order form.
6. Aquamarine. This is a fantastic blue. Not too light. Not too dark. Perfectly medium toned and gem-like. One of my favorites, for sure. The aqua though, when used with yellow, will create a small fringe of olive green/grey where the 2 colors meet. It’s specifically a chemical reaction between the two and is unique to the two. I personally really like it, but if you do have these as two of your colors, do expect some olive/grey to appear. For a couple with “chemistry”, this may be perfect. 
7. Yellow. Following up with the Aqua, the yellow is a reactive color that will make an olive grey fringe of color where the yellow and aqua crystals touch in the final glasswork. The yellow is super bright and pretty, but it does have a slight murkiness to it. It’s extremely slight though. If you love yellow, don’t hesitate to use it.
8. Orange! Who knew I would become such a huge fan of orange. It’s beautifully transparent and super bright. It works well as a major color, and it’s a true delight as a highlight color. If you want that little pop of color in your piece, consider orange as a highlight. I think I’d be very happy with a final glass piece made totally of orange.
9. Pure White. In crystal format, the pure white is absolutely gorgeous. In the final glasswork it’s translucent, possessing both characteristics of a transparent and an opaque. This works great as a major color, but it’s usually used as a highlight color. 
10. Ivory. It’s classic and gorgeous. Couples often use ivory highlights in their mixture as a reminder/link to a classic ivory wedding gown. It’s beautiful.  The crystals are a bit “darker” of an ivory, that you’ll see in the final glasswork. In the glasswork, it loses a bit of its yellow tone and transforms to a beautiful off white.
11. Amethyst Purple. Absolutely perfect if you’re a purple fan. Highly transparent and gem-like. This is one of my favorites. They crystals themselves have a slight bluing tone to them, but transform into a gorgeous purple in the final glasswork.
12. Tuxedo Grey. It’s gorgeous and masculine. Highly transparent and just a beautiful medium grey in the final glasswork. The crystals themselves look like a dark charcoal, but they mellow out in the heat (2100 degrees!) of the glass becoming a very medium toned grey.
13. Jet Black. A classic. Super sleek in the glass. A little jet black though goes a LONG ways. We’ve had some couples express to us that it didn’t meet their expectations when used along with other colors in equal amounts.  For example, equal amounts of jet black, aquamarine, emerald green, and sky blue—all together in the mix and equal, will result in a sculpture or vase that is mostly black. I love the black as a major color with white, ivory, and grey. Consider using volumes of  5-10% only, of the black, if you want it in the mix with brighter more colorful tones.
14. Brilliant Pink. Love this color too! The crystals are pink, but they really intensify to a medium bright highlight transparent pink in the final glasswork. Very medium intensity. Not too light. Not too dark. Not too bright. Not too pale. 
15. Deep Teal. Thinking about a peacock color themed wedding? Well, we must have some deep teal in the mix. Not too dark, yet a beautiful blue green color. I think it’s probably one of our most overlooked colors, yet one of our prettiest. 
16. Gemstone Ruby. This is a very dark and deep cabernet red. It has some characteristics of black in it, with a beautifully deep red tone. It’s not terribly transparent. It’s a great “highlight” volume, sometimes used along with our standard red as a major color, yet we’ve also seen it also work remarkably well as a major color when specifically mixed along with tuxedo grey, ivory, and just a slight touch of jet black.
17. Blush Pink. This is a very soft opaque pink color. Think of a pink rose.
18. Robin's Egg Blue. It's a very lightly colored opaque blue. While it is a great blue on its own, I often prefer it when used along with our sky blue, as a complimentary tone on tone.   
19. Green Apple. This is opaque and a great match for chartreuse or a lime green.
20. Champagne. Super light and delicate. While not metallic, this may be our best option for gold. It's the exact color of champagne, in a flute, held up to a bright light. It's gorgeous, light, and subtle. 

Not seeing the color you’re looking for? We do keep a stash of other colors in our ‘secret box’. Just send us a request and describe what you’re looking for.  We will do our very best to find a color or combination that works just right for you.

Remember to read our article “Gallery of Color” to see more examples and combinations that are used in the final glass work.

How to order “major” and “highlight” volumes?  In the comment box “comments or details about color” you can say things like “all colors in equal amounts, with just a touch of the jet black” or “Emerald 20%, Sky Blue 20%, Deep Blue 20%, and the rest Pure White”. Don’t worry about getting too specific or perfect. The artist reviews each color combination prior to shipping and will offer suggestions if needed.

We’d really LOVE your feedback on this article. Did it make color selection more confusing? Did it add clarity? Was it worth the read? How did it affect your color choices? We want to make the process of picking colors very easy, with more importantly, we want the final glasswork to be exactly what you had in mind when making the initial selection.