Decorative Glass Buying Guide

    Decorative glass gives any room a chic, stylish feel, but before you get your heart set on a certain piece read this quick Decorative Glass Buying Guide in which Marilee Burnside, director of tours and activities at Louisville Glassworks, gives a few essential decorative glass buying tips.

Choose for Function

    You've heard it time and time again - function first - and decorative glass is no different. When choosing a piece of decorative glass for your home you need to decide why you want it.
    "Where are you going to be putting it in your home, and how are you going to be using it?" asks Marilee. "Much of the glass art you find in an art gallery has either a sculptural or functional use, and or both."
    Sculptural pieces of decorative glass are ones that are used only as display items; whereas, functional pieces can be used as bowls, vases or other types of vessels. And while you might think it's easy to tell them apart, trust me it's not. In fact, many sculptural pieces of decorative glass are sold as vases even though they would not work well as ones.
    The difference between sculptural pieces of decorative glass and functional pieces all comes down to cleaning, which isn't the typical thing you think about when you're at the store. But the cleanability of a piece of decorative glass is incredibly important not only for health reasons, but also for aesthetic purposes. Glass is typically clear or translucent, which means mold or dark build up will be seen.
    To tell the difference between a functional piece and a sculptural piece of decorative glass, look at the size of the opening. If the opening is big enough for your hand to fit in or a very soft sponge, it can be used as a functional piece. But if the opening is small, steer clear of the temptation to use it as a vase.

It's all About the Display
    
    That beautiful, bright orange decorative glass bowl caught your eye in the store, but now that it's in your home it suddenly looks dull and dumpy. You're suffering from a common problem many glass buyers experience, and it all has to do with the lighting.
    "Lighting is very important with the glass art," Marilee said. "If you put a beautiful piece of glass art in a dark room, it might as well be clay."
    Due to its translucent nature, glass looks better under the spotlight. So show it off by installing small spotlights above your decorative glass pieces or by moving your decorative glass to a better-lit spot in your home.
    To further enhance your decorative glass' beauty, set it on a mirrored surface. The mirror will reflect light back up toward the glass allowing every side of the glass to sparkle and shine.