One of my favorite homes in New York including Royere and LaVerne furnishing,
Thomas Struth and Ellsworth Kelly artworks and of course, six pieces of Blenko glass.

I know; this could be dangerous territory. Don't worry, I'm not about to pretend I have the market cornered on something as subjective as how to display glass. Knowing full well that rules are meant to be broken, I write this primarily to suggest some tried and true strategies for showing your glass off to maximum effect. And what better way to demonstrate how to live with your glass than for me to show some images of my own home and of a couple of my favorite client's? Display is not much of a problem for the casual buyer of several pieces, but for design lovers and for collectors (or prospective collectors) it is often a matter of serious consideration.

How, one should well ask, would I know tips worthy of sharing? Aside from having survived an education in the fine arts and aside from years of experience and unhealthy obsession? Well, I really don't mind confessing that a good number of my best clients are decorators, many of whom specialize in mid-century and high-end design. Many are also well known and well published names whose work regularly appears in magazines like Elle Decore, Metropolitan Home, Architectural Digest and even Martha Stewart Living . On occasion I have had the good fortune of seeing how much of my glass ends up being displayed courtesy of the afore mentioned magazines. Along the way I have picked up some great tips on how to live well with more glass than the average person would consider necessary.

I will begin with a confession: I own a lot of glass. In fact at over 700 pieces if I were not obsessively organized with a detailed customized database I would be in trouble. Things have been worse; I used to own more, fortunately I realized that there is a fine line between a great love and a great burden and took a crash course on slimming down my gluttonously acquisitive nature (please read the last newsletter for more on this). As ruthless as I think I am with culling my collection (don't laugh), I could stand to lose more, yet I know all too well that I am far from a worst-case scenario among collectors. To be truthful, I don't know how this happened to me. I worked many years as a collection management consultant to collectors of fine & decorative arts so it is akin to the cobbler's son going barefoot. Early on in my work it became clear to me that a serious collection requires a well thought out strategy, and a plan for how to house the objects. But serious collections don't happen overnight, they evolve from casual ones and inherit from that legacy many pieces that no longer fit. Perhaps it is too much of a cliché, but true collectors learn that we are not owners, we are caretakers, passing things on from one generation to another. And we have an obligation to save our precious resources to protect only the best. At least that is the hope.

I live in Manhattan, and any of you who have visited real homes here or who live in comparably metropolitan cities know that means space is at a premium. For all but the filthy rich here (and congratulations to you, by the way) there is no "spare room," no unfinished basement to dream of turning into a space devoted to a collection. Therefore there is an urgent need to make the most of what you have. My West Village one bedroom apartment, spacious by many peers' standards, clocks in at about 900 square feet. In this space I have, on average, 170 pieces of glass on view at any given time. This is not ideal; 100 would be more comfortable. Perhaps you see where this is all leading - to yet another cliché; truly, in this case, less is more. I firmly believe this. I said it in the last newsletter and I'll say it again; our homes are not warehouses. Even the most fantastic things can be made to look banal when you are overwhelmed by them. With that in mind, begin by not putting out any piece for display that you are not proud of and thrilled with, not even as a place holder. Be brutal; second best will not do!

Now that we are working with only the cream of the crop, the first issue to consider is location. Yes, we are all making do with the space we have but no, that does not mean you should stuff it onto whatever surface is open. Curate your space and give your glass pride of place. Rarely is a location that is far above eye level flattering; perspective distorts form and, let's face it, we dust there less and those of us with 20-20 can tell. If you care enough about your glass to spend the time to read my newsletter then it's not such a big step to care enough to consider adjusting your furnishing to accommodate it. Try to select places that are well lit, not above your head, and preferably easily accessible.

If children or small animals (is there a difference?) are a problem, I recommend glue; a dab on each foot and they won't go near anything. Yes, I'm kidding, don't send me hate mail. But I do recommend moderate use of Museum Gel. It has limitations, but on perfectly level surfaces (excluding most wood which it can stain) it creates a vacuum and holds pieces securely in place. This is particularly useful for those of you in earthquake country or who insists (as I do) in putting tall, thin pieces in high traffic areas.

There are three primary strategies for approaching the physical arrangement of a display; groupings, soldiers and stand-alones. For the first two the color issue comes into play; single color or mixed? Again, there is no right or wrong but each option has pitfalls to avoid.

To begin with the color issue, be aware that it is frankly just simpler to isolate groupings by color - it is both easier to coordinate into a home and one less issue to worry about. My experience with mixed color groupings is also that it takes a much larger collection, or pool of objects to choose from, in order to make such a group pleasing. Transparent glass like Blenko is much harder to color-mix as the overlays can looks quite muddy, whereas with opaque glass like the cased glass the interaction of colors can create exciting contrasts and highlight elaborate profiles. The same effect of emphasizing a profile can be achieved with Blenko glass by mixing different shades of the same color (Plum against Amethyst , or Sea Green against Aqua) or by mixing two contrasting colors like Ruby and Sea Green. The more complex the color combinations the more difficult it is to create a successful grouping, but don't worry, if you don't have enough glass to do this you can buy more from me.

Groupings of 3 or more are my preferred method of display, and the key to success is in variety of heights and shapes. When displaying in larger groupings I find the "peaks & valleys" method helpful; avoid uniform heights and consistent grades in height; instead emulate a jagged mountain range. In terms of how to mach up the shapes of the bodies, one method is to think of it like trying to approximate a jigsaw puzzle; the form of one piece fills in where the one beside it leaves out. Alternately a contrast in forms is as interesting as a contrast in colors; tall & thin against short & fat, elaborate against minimal. One secret I like to tell customers is that as tempting as it may be, it is almost impossible to do a good grouping with nothing but over-the-top pieces - it breaks the golden rule of groupings; variety. Every elaborate piece needs a more modest foil - they bring out the best in each other.

The "soldiers" method of lining up pieces in a row I personally find to be the most difficult. Too often it can come off looking like a product display or like warehousing. The trick is to do it in a space that is flattering and well suited. It is essentially a very honest and quasi-scientific display method, like butterflies pinned up in a shadow box. Do it against a clean, simple background in an uncluttered space, preferably on a narrow surface that looks tailor made for the purpose. This method is often more successful when there is no overlap - otherwise it risks looking like you haven't decided between clustering and "soldiers" and are just warehousing.

One would assume that the last method, "stand alone" is the easiest. One would be wrong. This is the equivalent of being in the harsh glare of the spotlight; the slightest bad move is in full view. Only the strongest pieces can stand up to this method. These pieces tend to be simpler sculptural shapes sometimes of odd volume or with virtuoso elements - perhaps an applied part, a cut part, or an unusual detail or technique. Many of the pieces that, no matter how hard you try, you can not work into a group are the ones that do well standing alone. Do not be afraid to put a very simple piece alone; often these are the ones that sing in such a situation, and would otherwise be drowned out by competition. Again, placement is key; it should not look shoved into a corner, it should look as if it is on a pedestal, a feature demanding to be appreciated.

When it come to caring for your glass, there are three enemies; gravity, humidity and temperature. Assuming the first one is self-explanatory (as in "smash"), humidity is the most overlooked danger. Excessive humidity is the cause of "crizzling" or "sickness," the common terms used for when glass becomes cloudy. Some glass is more susceptible than others to this problem. Cased glass for instance is low-risk, but with Blenko glass, watch out! If stored in a place with poor air circulation and high humidity over long periods of time cloudiness can spontaneously develop. What is happening is the alkali in the glass is slowly being leached out by the ambient humidity, this leaves voids in the glass and it begins to chip, flake and crack on a microscopic level. Untreated, eventually the glass will crumble to powder. This can also be caused by direct extended contact with water, which does not mean you should not use your glass, just use it carefully.

I do very much encourage putting vases to use, but not so much decanters because improper cleaning is a big risk, and not pitchers because handles tend to crack (please see the Blenko Archive's cleaning instructions). If you do use a vase, there are some simple rules to follow; don't let the water go sour / scummy (refresh every 2 days), wash thoroughly (with a cloth and room temperature water and preferably in a plastic lined sink) and don't sit in direct sunlight to avoid baking in the hard water minerals & organic matter.

The temperature issue is not a major one but do be aware that exposing a piece of glass to dramatic changes in temperature or two temperatures at once will cause it to crack. For instance, do not wash vintage glass in hot water, only room temperature. Nor should one sit a vase on a hot sunny windowsill in front of an air conditioner.

So what about those pieces that don't make the cut into your newly curated display? Provided you have not decided they are "mistakes," it's time to talk about storage. Stick to climate controlled spaces; not garages or attics, and with basements be mindful of temperature or humidity problems. Hands down, the best way to store glass is called "open shelving"; not wrapped but sitting upright on shelves. If you must pack your glass away, as I must, wrap first in tissue paper (if possible, acid-free) then in bubble wrap, I don't recommend using tape. Cardboard boxes I find the safest (they breathe & absorb small impacts) and I personally don't use foam peanuts just for storage.

My final closing observation is that one's display is always a work in progress, be proud of it at all times while always seeking to improve. Move things around freely - you'd be surprised how it brings life into a tired old setting. These are after all accessories, the accents that give a room its final character and tone. Fortunately it is easier to spruce up a room with a new vase than a fresh coat of paint. Guests coming over? Glass is a great way to make a visual impact either as functional display for food or flowers or as a sculptural object. Got the winter blues? Inject some new life into your home and nest with a jolt of colored glass. Want to bring some summer into your home? A gorgeous vase of gorgeous flowers is the way to go. Don't be afraid to experiment and above all, have fun!

Within our website's inventory you will find the following labels:

and

These labels are meant to help direct customers who are seeking singular items; the items they highlight all display particularly well standing by themselves (as opposed to in groupings) - though any design can be successfully displayed alone.

Showpiece; these items are most dramatic when displayed alone and can sometimes be difficult to effectively display in groupings.

Functional + Sculptural; these vases and bowls are highlighted because of how perfectly suited they are to both holding flowers and sitting alone (NB: all the vases I sell are functional, these ones are particularly so). These are ideal as featured item for a console or table; they look like sculptural elements and, when the time comes, they show off flowers beautifully.

For more tips, I encourage you to read the full newsletter (above) on the subject of displaying and using your vintage glass.

Damon Crain

Please email me with your comments!