Dartington Crystal is located in North Devon and is one of the only fully working glass factories in the UK. What makes it unique is that you can visit the factory to get an understanding of the glass making process from the first stages of production to the shop shelves.

It has been beneficial to my project to learn how they make differently shaped glasses and the processes needed to make a new shape. It was also interesting to find out what finishing techniques they can use on different glasses and bottles.

Looking at how much work goes into the creation of each product gives a newfound respect for the employees at every step of the production; from those working in the (very Hot) glass moulding and blowing warehouse - to those sandblasting - and those quality checking and packaging. Each role in the production is vital to the creation of high-quality glass products.

The glass is heated up in the furnaces until it is hot enough to manipulate, then it is hand blown to the correct size to fit in the mould - where it is blown to the shape of the mould. The glasses are put in this rotatory machine (photo below) to heat the tops, removing the sharpness of the edge so they are safe to drink from.

This blue bottle is one of the finished products produced by Dartington Crystal that really stood out to me. The detailed gold work stands out beautifully against the rich blue of the bottle. This is highlighted by the bright lighting!

As well as creating all the glasswork, Dartington Crystal produces the packaging for their products. You can see that thought has gone into the packaging design to show the unique process of their products and that it has been tailored to the places they are selling to and their different target audiences.