Etsy Top Seller 2011

From the file: Why I hate Etsy. Here is the item that their newsletter (I keep subscribed in vain hope that Etsy will have something to add to our American Made tradition)says is the most talked about, most shared item of 2011. Did it sell as well? You bet.
Doesn't it look like something made in 6th grade industrial arts class? Ok, maybe if I could examine the quality up close maybe it'd look nicely hand crafted. But the subject matter still remains sophomoric. I mean kinda teeny bopper, people. Is this what is meant by listening to your audience? Guess I should check out what sold best on the Tiffany site and The Guild's artfulhome.com.
You can't beat Etsy for a large selection. Today the jewelry query brought up 3,280,313 items for jewelry!!
Can you believe the prices on Etsy? $22.00? $35.00? Perhaps like us, you will quickly surmise that the operations that produce the hand mades are micro enterprises that don't cut the mustard, bring home the bacon or make for any fun money that keep one from selling the cow.

The success of the makers who sell on Etsy.com is in the buzz they generate, not the cash they generate. Will anyone ever go there to find items of lasting beauty and value that were made by professional artists? You let me know. I can hardly bear to look.

Anti-accuracy is Us

Today we were solicited by a company wanting to know if we might like to try their 3D scanner so that we could make our products exactly alike. It's pesky isn't it when things don't "fit"? They are obviously overstocked on their fancy 3D scanners if they are asking us to buy one!

At the Nourot Glass Studio we have tried always to avoid repetition, exactitude and regulation of all kinds.

This fancy 3D scanner has important uses to serve like in the machining industry and medical products industries, for example, let's hope it does not infiltrate into the studio artist arena.

Here is what they say the scanner can do: "The Steinbichler 3D scanner has important uses to serve you. It can provide data for you in less than an hour, for most parts. You can then directly compare to your 3D CAD design ( In case you don't know Computer Aided Design--CAD is how plans are drawn in the 21C) to see where the problems lie. The attached tech sheet (756 pages no doubt) illustrates how this process was used to identify problems with an automotive trim die."

Perhaps it would have an application in art jewelry where it is cast and you want to avoid undercuts in the mold....

Anyway take me OFF your list please Mr. Steinbichler! We love, love,love being inexact and letting the glass be what it is. It is sometimes weirdly unpredictable and fascinating in it;s many varied temperatures, viscositys and strengths. Bring on a world of unlike objects! Preserve our individuality somewhere, please. Oh, and buy American Made. Thanks for reading.

People picture credit: Kinekitty.blogspot.com
Four non-set of goblets from the early days of Nourot now in the vault collection.

January Red Bowl Sale

These little gems have been kicking around all wrapped up for a long time.  Now you can buy these red bowls at a big savings this January.
Save 20% off the already deeply discounted price. Their official title is: "Red Satin Hunt  and Bowls".  These hand blown red glass pieces are signed from '99--'01; with an "s" in a circle following that.
But they are really nicely made.  Usually their only flaw was they were of the wrong exact size for the series then being signed.
The bowls on sale are about 5 or 6 inches across.  These make a perfect housewarming or thank you gift.  Now at these savings they are really affordable. Call Dorothy in the Nourot Gallery for more information. 707-745-1463.  The Nourot Gallery is open six days a week from 10Am to 4PM in Benicia, California. Benicia is located about 45 miles from San Francisco and about 35 from the Napa Valley.

What About that Art Glass Thing I got for Christmas?

You are probably wondering why we don't spend any time here letting you know just exactly what art glass by Nourot is and why people get so gosh darned excited about giving it at the Holidays.

Your gift of art glass is a unique work of art made in American and made by one of the Nourots in Benicia, California. The signature tells you what the series is, the piece number, the year made and the initials of the artist who made it.

At Nourot Studio currently we only have three makers: founder Micheal Nourot, his wife, Ann Corcoran, and son, Nicholas Nourot.

If you have wandered over to this blog to find out more about your piece, we are here to help you.

The Nourot Studio has been making signed and registered (this means numbered) pieces of hand blown glass for just millenniums it seems now (since 1974 actually).

And what you need to know about it is, well, just anything you want to know about it. That is what makes art glass collecting so much fun and interesting, too.

The molten glass lends its way to each and ever artisan differently and we like to say that the hand of the artisan is evident in every piece that each artisan makes. "And no two pieces are ever exactly duplicated." This is probably the main thing and the thing you need to remember.

No two are alike because the molten glass is a hot gooey substance that changes and twists and turns while on the end of 5 foot long mental blow pipes as it is being created. You can find videos here in other posts of this and it is so cool to watch. Mesmerizing, actually.

Counting on YOU! America

A new Harris poll shows that "Made in America" products play to a sense of national pride. Three in five Americans (61%) say they are more likely to purchase something when the ad touts it is "Made in America" and only 3% say they are less likely to buy it.

This is really great news, and maybe something the American Craftspeople can build on.

Many factors are working against the fine craft maker. Galleries won't add to inventory, people are staying out of stores and leases are being lost.

Hang tags and stickers on products of fine craft are becoming the norm. It's important to let people know they are supporting their home country's economy. What could be more sustainable than that?

There is much education needed, however, because just over one-third (35%) of U.S. adults say they are neither more nor less likely to purchase a product when an ad emphasizes it is "Made in America." Your options are open America. Choose home made and hand made, we say, and keep your neighbors employed and thriving.