Blenko Glass

hillary

I don't have much space, suggestions for what Blenko and WV or American Glass items I should collect?

Tabitha

Tabitha,

Blenko water bottles take up little room and are inexpensive. Also Blenko, Viking, Dunbar and other WV Glass Companies made animals figure (see photos) & paper weights.

Need additional info or contact information? Email theblenkoproject@aol.com Thank you for buying Made In USA and for your interest in Blenko Glass.

hjh

Blenko Limited Editon Bunny - Blenko Glass

Glassdoc,

Will Blenko re issue the bunny? In November we were told no more bunnies?

Anyone have one they want to sell?

Anita

Anita,

On Dec 19th I visited the Blenko Glass Visitors Shop, we saw 3 bunnies - two not signed and frosted and one signed and numbered. May I suggest you always ASK your questions to the ladies behind the counter. Blenko Visitors Center is large and not well organized - as merchandise changes daily.

We always suggest new visitors plan to spend an over night so they can visit twice - each time you'll find some 'new item'. The Blenko Glass Gift Shop (VC) is filled with beautiful handcrafted MADE IN USA glass.

RE: Reissue of Bunny - we'll send an email to K Garrison at Blenko or you can phone 304 743 9081 and post your question.

Thanks for buying MADE IN USA glass, and for your interest in BLENKO GLASS.

Blenko Glass - www.blenkoproject.org

Hillary

I bought some glass this week end the dealer says all four pieces are Blenko.

Only one piece has a Blenko signature or sign on the bottom. The other three have no marks but do look like glass I see on Blenko inspired websites.

How do I know if its Blenko?

Tim P.

Tim,

Older Blenko may have a sandblasted BLENKO (see photo), other Blenko will have stick on labels ( check out Blenko Collector and Blenko four and Blenko Museum websites for photos of various labels).

Thank you for buying Blenko. If you have not visited the Blenko Glass Factory in Milton, WVa, I suggest you plan a visit for this summer. The Gift Shop and the Antique Malls of Milton, South Charleston, and Charleston contain the very best new and vintage BLENKO .

Note: Prices are lower at the factory!

hjh

Blenko Glass www.blenkoproject.org

This glass panel, along with a dozen other stain glass panels can be found in the Blenko Glass Museum located on the 2nd floor of BLENKO GLASS www.blenkoglass.com . You'll also find hundreds of pieces of vintage Blenko and an observation deck where you may watch Blenko Glass being made.

Phone 304 743 9081 to inquire about winter hours.

hjh

Post Xmas Shopping?

On this Christmas Eve - let me remind you Blenko Glass is open until noon today, the website http://www.blenkoglass.com/ is open 24/7.

They reopen after Christmas with a BIG AFTER CHRISTMAS SALE. You'll want to visit the Blenko Glass gift shop during your Post Xmas shopping.

Photo of limited edition BLENKO inspired hand made cards. The cards are made by Diane Weber a Blenko Collector, cards may be available at the GIFT SHOP - if you don't see the cards, ask at the desk.

I have a couple of these matted and framed in my home. hjh

Blenko Limited Edition Face Vase

Mountain Rita, We have seen this one. . We own this one.
Several Hank Adams Blenko face vases ( including this one) are on display in my home.

I agree with you Rita, this vase is an opportunity to own and learn of a unique part of Blenko's history .
Note: Rita upstairs is called
" the Blenko Stain Glass Museum." hjh




HILLARY
PLEASE POST THIS ON THE BLOG. NOT ALL CAN AFFORD BUT IT WOULD MAKE GREAT SPECIAL ITEM IN A COLLECTION.

THIS IS #2 OF 5

I BET YOU HAVE NEVER SEEN THI

ITS ON WEB AND I"M SENDING PHOTOS AND THE WEB DESCRIPTION
MY BET IS ONE THE DOCS WILL WANT TO BUY IT.
MOUNTAIN RITA

Price is over 2,500 but worth it.
The listing also says Blenko Museum isn't a museum but a sellers closet? I've been to the Blenko Museum ( isn't that what upstairs at Blenko is called?). Correct me if I'm wrong. Also what is the Blenko Museum story? Is it a museum or as this post suggest a front for a seller?
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Blenko Water Bottle

You'll want to purchase a dozen, and keep them pre wrapped in your gift closet. The http://www.blenkoglass.com/ Blenko Glass water bottle, the size is always perfect, you'll find colors for yourself and your friends. The Blenko water bottle may be the Best of All Gifts!



Simple design, multiple colors, timeless, affordable, the perfect gift? The Blenko Glass Water Bottle.

Handcrafted In the USA

Vases just like this one, in several different colors can now be found at the BLENKO GLASS www.blenkoglass.com gift shop.

Price ranges $475 to $695.

Glass available in prices $7 to $700 in the Blenko Glass visitor center gift shop.

You'll want to check out the online site also, www.blenkoglass.com.

If you have not been to West Virginia, let me invite you to visit - We have two working glass factories and a dozen or more high quality shop glass shops. Email theblenkoproject@aol.com for a list of shops with addresses and driving directions.

BUY GLASS MADE IN THE USA!

Buy Made In West Virginia when you can.

Perfect Xmas Gift?

This Blenko Glass

Fire and Ice vase was spotted at the

Blenko Glass Visitor Center gift shop.

You'll want to visit frequently, as the merchandise changes

daily.

Shop BLENKO GLASS www.blenkoglass.com for all your Christmas gift giving.

Blenko Glass Made In USA.

Heart of Glass - Needs your Glass Pics and Stories

Please send your photos and glass stories to
theblenkoproject@aol.com .
We've had some computer issues - if your photos have not been published - please resend.
Thank you
Hillary
Visit the www.blenkoglassproject.org to learn more about Blenko Glass history
and check back for the updates now being constructed.

Blenko - Buy Made In USA

Glassdoc

You write about buying gifts when you were a child from Blenko. My question is have you been to Blenko in the last decade?

Not one thing in this shop is affordable.

My kids have a $10 - 15 limit. What could they buy for their teacher or gmom?

Cookie

Cookie,

Yes. I have been to Blenko in the last decade. I continue to find many items at Blenko in the $10 - 20 range. Often the Blenko waterbottles will be $20 or under. Frequently one can find items on the clearance table for under $20. The small frogs and whales are often under $10.

One item - I frequently purchase is the Blenko Glass disc - these are attached to a chain, a ribbon or a key chain and the cost is $8.00.

Katie Trippe and Company started with the Blenko Waterbottle image, they continue to add designs - The Pink Ribbon for Breast Cancer and the image of our State (WV) are 2 of my most frequent purchases.

Return to Blenko. Talk with the shop ladies, they'll guide you and your children to affordable Blenko Glass. A few years ago in a conversation with Mr. Walter Blenko we discussed the need to have small touchable items ( not easily broken) that children could purchase. Blenko has continued this tradition of offering affordable glass.

You didn't mention taking your children to the observation area. Please take them each and every time they accompany you to Blenko Glass.

Randy Rider - Keith Morris and the others enjoy having children visit.

If we teach the children about the importance of buying local, buying Made In West Virginia, buying goods from our neighbors - well - perhaps we'll develop more manufacturing jobs and keep the ones we have.

BLENKO GLASS MADE IN WEST VIRGINIA! Buy only made in the USA this year!

Large Husted Floor Vase

HILLARY
SAW THIS LISTED ON EBAY AND THOUGHT YOU MUST PUBLISH THIS
ALL NEW COLLECTORS SHOULD HAVE ONE AT LEAST ONE BIG HUSTED FLOOR DECANTER AND THIS ONE
I HAVE IN 3 COLORS IS THE BEST HE EVER DID.

THE PRICE IS VERY LOW AND ITS NOW ON EBAY FOR ANOTHER 5 DAYS SO PUBLISH ASAP.

NEWBIES YOU SHOULD BUY THIS ONE. 37 inches.

MOUNTAIN RITA

Mountain Rita,

We agree this design comes in 2 sizes, while I don't own this larger version it is a coveted item for most collectors. In all on line purchases, proceed with caution, ask questions of the seller, use your catalogs to determine age and designer etc.

Thank you for sharing.

HJH

How Do I Know Its Blenko!

Hillary

The ads says " This extraordinary Blenko # 563 Mushroom Decanter was designed by Wayen Husted in 1958 for Blenko Glass.

It is 13 l/2 inches high. It has a pontail mark on the base and also has a silver Blenko sticker.

My question is on the Blenko Museum site this mushroom decanter is listed as one that

was copied How can I know I'm buying Blenko?

Thank you for your note and photo - Looking for the pontail mark is good.'

We often recommend new collectors spend their money on catalogs and spend time with the catalogs before purchasing glass.

Purchasing or borrowing a catalog and comparing the photo to the catalog. Checking measurement.

Making certain the color is correct by checking the Blenko Glass Four color chart.

If you are buying from a shop - feel the glass, Blenko is heavy glass.

Don't beat yourself up if and when you make a mistake, all collectors have one or more " mis labeled" Blenko items.

Good luck! When your vase arrives - please send a photo to share with the blog readers.

hjh

Note: One reader Eliza wrote some time ago she always buys directly from The Blenko Glass Gift Shop or online at the Blenko web site to avoid buying

mis labeled glass.

The www.blenkoglass.com website and the Gift Shop are fully stocked. Visit the gift shop frequently as the merchandise changes daily.

Husted Tri Colored

Hillary,

I'm sending a photo of a Blenko item I'm buying from Internet.

Can you tell me if this comes in other colors? Id like to buy one of each.

As a new collector I want to buy only quality and then buy one in each color of the special items.

Thank you

Amanda

Amanda,

To my knowledge this tri colored vase was produced in the late 50's designed by Husted and available only as shown. We'll post the question to readers, and if

other colors are available - you'll soon know.

Having a long term goal for your collection, will prevent over buying. May I ask if you belong to a collectors group? If not let me suggest you visit the West Virginia Museum of American Glass website, and research vintage Blenko on line prior to purchases.

Another suggestion is to purchase current Blenko - the prices are low - the quality is there and one can have immediate deliver and purchase the item in all available colors.

www.blenkoglass.com

Happy Collecting.

Can you Identify? - NEED PICS

I enjoyed reading your web site. Attached are 2 photos of my 92-year-old mother and a blue tray she received as a wedding present in 1940 in Houston, TX. She received Blenko gifts that year, and we thought it might be Blenko; however, looking at your web site, I see it must be something else. It is sky blue, and instead of crackles has bubbles, making the texture sort of bumpy. It is rather heavy; I don’t think it is plastic. It has no markings. Any idea what it might be? The answer may be, blue glass!

Ann B

WV History Lecture TONIGHT

Archives and History Monthly Lecture/Workshop Series
Jaime Simmons to Speak about Researching the Draper Collection on December 7


Jaime Simmons, research specialist at West Virginia Archives and History, will speak about "Digging into the Draper Collection: Researching the Settlement of Western Virginia" at the monthly Tuesday evening lecture in the Archives and History Library on December 7, 2010, at 6:00 p.m. Simmons will provide information on the contents of the Draper Collection but will focus on the process of researching in the collection, how to use the indices and press-marks to access the collection, and how to use what is found in the collection to locate additional information.
The Lyman C. Draper Manuscript Collection documents the period roughly between 1755 and 1815 and concentrates on the Trans-Allegheny West, including the Ohio River Valley and western Virginia. Draper, whose life spanned much of the 19th century, began gathering reminiscences and information during the 1840s, when people who had lived through the Revolutionary War and the settlement period in western Virginia, were still living. Housed at the Wisconsin Historical Society, the Draper Collection is available on microfilm at the West Virginia Archives and History Library.

All Archives and History workshop and lecture sessions are free and the public is invited to attend. On December 7, the library will close at 5 p.m. and reopen at 5:45 p.m. for participants only. Advance registration for the lecture is not required, but is encouraged to help plan seating arrangements and supplies for the session. To register in advance, contact Robert Taylor, library manager, by e-mail at bobby.l.taylor@wv.gov or at (304) 558-0230, ext. 163. Participants interested in registering by e-mail should send their name, telephone number and the name and date of the session. For additional information, contact the Archives and History Library at (304) 558-0230.



The West Virginia Archives and History Library is located in the Culture Center at the State Capitol Complex in Charleston. If traveling on the Interstate, take Exit 99 (the Greenbrier Street, State Capitol exit) on I-77/64, one mile east of the I-64 and 77 junction. The Culture Center is located along Greenbrier Street, just beyond the intersection of Greenbrier and Washington streets.

Blenko Cat

Hello

I collect cats and want to add blenko glass cats to my collection. Can you publish photos of the Blenko Cats, also what cats are most valuable. Are Blenko cats one or two pieces, do they sit or standalone? How do I know its Blenko cat, and also are their other makers of Cats in WVa.

Bettysue Scott

Bettysue,

Currently Blenko makes Cat bookends, Dave Osburn of Osburn Glass makes a series of Cat decanters.

We can't answer this question about Blenko Cats - and we don't have a collection of Cat photos. Blenko has made cat bookends, Cats that stand alone, cats that are one piece and cats that are 2 pieces. Check out the Blenko Glass Collector website for possible cat photos. We'll ask readers for photos of cats from Blenko and WV glass makers. Check back. hjh

Blenko

Hilary,
At an estate sale, we bought a folder of Blenko Glass newspaper clippings and news articles and ads cut from paper. There is an ad for each of the Birthday items and many many other.
What is the value of this?
Becky Harper

Becky,
Tammy Kosla of the Blenko Collectors Four, and Tim Alonzo of the Blenko Collectors Society both collect paper products and may be able to help you establish a value.
Good luck, we would welcome photos of the collection.
HJH

International Garden Conference

http://Imgc.ext.wvu.edu/
Hilary,,
We will be coming from South Dakota to Charleston next year for the International Garden Club Conference.
Visitng Blenko Glass has been on our bucket list and during this conference we plan to visit Blenko, Osburn, Fenton and Hinkle is there anyone else we should plan for?
Next question is glass in the yard or garden, you've posted photos of Blenko in the yard, we want to add Blenko or other glass to our yard scape . Question is : how do we know what glass can survive in our yard? Is the glass marked? Will someone at Blenko tell us? Also can we visit any glass gardens while we are in West Virginia? If so please give contact information. Thank you. Arbutus G.
Ms. AG,
We are excited to have you and the International Garden Club visit West Virginia. My parents are members for more than a decade of the West Virginia Master Gardeners Club. Please email me at theblenkoproject@aol.com and I'll provide you with my parents address, I know they would welcome you to their glass garden.
When you visit Blenko Glass you'll see many pieces of glass outside, in the court yard you'll see items that have survive 10 or more WVa winters. Did you sign up for the Blenko Glass Tour that's a part of the conference? If you have not, plan to do this. Bobbie McCabe is coordinating the tours and she's worked very hard to make certain all the tours are special. Blenko Glass is on the list of available tours. If you aren't signed up or this tour is filled. Phone Blenko at 304 743 9081 and plan to visit at a time when the glass workers are working in the observation area.
One more thing about glass outside, Blenko doesn't encourage this, nor do they guarantee the glass will survive outdoors. We can say that in my parents yard, glass has been in the yard for more than 20 years. Last year my parents lost many items ( feet and hands, and a couple frogs - they were lost to theft not a bad winter) other than this and a few breaks due to deer running through the yard.
Good luck. hjh
=

Happy Turkey and Fall Holiday Display

Today we wrap and box up the Fall Holiday Display made of Blenko and West Virginia . Each year on December 1st we take down the pumpkins and bring out the red and green glass.

Earlier we posted the Blenko Glass and WV Glass fruits and veggies ( first photo posted on Thanksgiving Day taken in 1999 was the beginning of this display / collection, ( see WV Birthday Vase) - each year she has the new Birthday Vase be a part of the Fall display.

Currently Blenko Glass has available veggies and fruits in the gift shop, these items sell out very quickly.

If you haven't started a Blenko Glass fall collection, start now. The pumpkins, the strawberries, the eggplants make nice stocking stuffers.

This year think of BLENKO GLASS www.blenkoglass.com as your Christmas Shopping headquarters.

Blenko can't guarantee delivery before Xmas. However, they will arrange shipping. hjh

Phone 304 743 9081.