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Welcome to the wwwcga Carnival Glass Education page. Please
click on an article below to view.
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Millersburg's Marilyn
How much do you know about Marilyn? Not Norma
Jean, but the other, less flashy one. Check out
this article and pictorial about this Millersburg
beauty. |
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The Charm of Collecting Millersburg
Great Millersburg is a fabulous thing to find. But
have you found a bunch of it? This article looks
at moments of pure pleasure when collecting a
manufacturer so aesthetically challenging (and different
than many others) as Millersburg. Check out this
article and view the great pictures within. |
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Frankly Scarlett, I'd Rather Own a Carnival Tumbler
A light-hearted look at what to
collect in carnival glass, finally focusing on tumblers.
There have been several tumbler collectors in our hobby
over the years, but why do they focus on what was
essentially a water glass? Thomas looks at this
trend and offers his own reasons to want to collect
tumblers. |
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Iridescence: The Color on Top
There are many terms to describe iridescence: electric,
pumpkin, pastel, dry, stretch and so many more.
Learn some of the basics here with pictures to give you
an idea of at least what one collector believes.
Keep on top of the ever changing terminology in carnival
glass iridescence. |
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Carnival Glass Epergnes
Possibly the most mispronounced pattern in all of
carnival glass, epergnes are enigmatic, incredibly
interesting and difficult to maintain without damage due
to the sheer number of parts involved. But they
are also highly collectable. This article looks
closer at them and includes a gallery of epergnes in
carnival. |
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My
Brother's Glass
In this article, we look specifically at glass from Shriners and Masonic conventions
from the far past (some even a century ago.) Carnival Glass
has long been used as a way to commemorate an event (and
carnival glass clubs do the same as well.) Some
interesting pieces have come from such events. |
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A
Thousand Pitchers
At the 2003 www.cga convention in St. Louis, the club
embarked on an ambitious mission to answer a question
offered up by Pete Bingham in the daily mailing list. If
a picture is worth a thousand words, what's a thousand
pitchers worth. When Pete asked the question, he had no
idea that he would be the one to helm the effort to find
out. |
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The
Twelve Days of Christmas
This article looks at the Imperial set of twelve plates
commemorating each of the days of Christmas from the
famous English carol. The plates were released,
one per year, from 1970 to 1981 (including a period
after Lenox glass purchased the Imperial Glass Company.)
Many people have this set, but how much do they know
about it? |
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Fine
Feathered Fowl
This article written by Shirley Smith looks at carnival
glass hen on nest covered dishes. With so many
variations and manufacturers of these items out there,
this article is the definitive answer to who made what,
in which colors, and for what purpose. If you have
a collection of these, this article is a must. |
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Vaseline Acorn Burrs Tumblers
Gerald Thomas shows three of these rarities that he
found last year before Christmas. Before these
three, only one known vaseline Acorn Burrs tumbler was
reported and photographed. To find three in one
pop is not only incredibly lucky, it's nothing short of
a Christmas miracle. Check them out here. |
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$20,000+
Pieces
So, what is it about the $20,000 threshold that excites
many carnival glass enthusiasts? Is it the fact
that each one of these pieces equates to a nice car, or
maybe a nice home? Is it because it's a round
number? Is it because each piece represents the
lifetime work of the owner, to be able to purchase such
a valuable piece of magic? |
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Contemporary Reflections
In an opinion piece from just after Fenton's first
closing announcement,
Gerald Thomas looks at the potential closing of the
Fenton Art Glass Company and some of the ramifications
of that event. Fenton announced in mid-2011 that
it would indeed close, and all production in Williamtown,
WV has come to a screeching halt. |
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Swan
Lake
The famous
and much loved ballet, Swan Lake, conjures up visions of elegant
swans gliding across an enchanted lake. Here, thanks to
collectors Lance and Pat Hilkene, is the Carnival equivalent – a
display of beautiful glass swans in many colors,
shimmering with iridescence. |
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Christmas
Miniatures
This article looks at miniature carnival glass pieces
that either have a full-on Christmas theme, or could be
easily included in a Christmas carnival glass display.
Some of the selections may surprise you (a Christmas
elephant anyone?), but the article shows you an
entirely different way to look at Christmas. |
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Alphabet Soup
Lettered patterns are a strikingly different aesthetic
in carnival glass, one that generally shows in values
and desirability (there are people in carnival glass who
collect only lettered pieces.) In this
article, some of the highlights are discussed. |
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Hot
Stuff: Cooking Up A Storm
Is it possible? Can a Carnival Glass bowl that was made
back in the early 1900s be flattened into a plate today?
There are some out there who think that indeed it can be
done, and that it has been done. There are many
reasons to try: Fenton plates are worth more than bowls.
But can it really be done? |
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Waltzing Matilda: Australian Carnival Glass
What comes into your mind when you
think of Australian Carnival? Do you think of the rich dark
iridescence that was often used? Most likely the images that
will come into your mind are the delightful Australian
flora and fauna. In this feature we’ll show you some of these
splendid patterns, along with some fascinating details along the
way. |
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Going
Round in Circles
The circle is a perfect shape, so full of symbolism and
history. It has been used by mankind in so many ways,
through the ages. Carnival glass makers have used the
circle as inspiration in so many various patterns.
This article looks at the use of the abundant round
shape in patterns throughout carnival glass. |
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Diamonds!
Diamonds are of course, “a girl’s best friend”.
Especially when they are set in gold and clustered into
a splendid piece of jewelry. But don’t worry, it’s not
that sort of diamond we’re looking at here. We’re going
to consider another kind of dazzling diamond that also
is “forever” - diamond patterns on Carnival Glass. |
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Anyone
for Candy?
It’s truly scrumptious and there’s no doubt about it.
Yes, Carnival Glass is fabulous stuff to start with, but
add one of those tightly ruffled edges and let’s face
it; you’ve got a mouth-watering effect. It’s as sweet as
can be. But how easy is it to find this kind of edge?
And what factories made it? |
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John vs. Frank: Millersburg and Fenton
This article written by Diane Fry, Brian Pitman and Glen
Thistlewood is based partially on the John vs. Frank
debate that Diane and Brian had at the 2005 wwwcga
Convention in Columbus, Ohio. It also includes
personal reflections from Diane about her many memories
of the Fenton factory and its family members over the
years. |
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A Tour
of the Dr. Jack Adams Collection
Dr. Jack Adams collected glass for many decades, and had
a collection which featured many desirable rarities. The
pictures and text for this article were contributed to
wwwcga almost a decade ago. The article is presented
here as a remembrance of a collection which was later
split up at auction, and will most likely never be in
one place again. |
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Four Flowers Variant
The Four Flowers Variant is a mystery. The manufacture
of Dugan/Diamond’s Four Flowers pattern is documented,
as is the manufacture of the Scandinavian versions of
the Four Flowers (also known as Ohlson) by Eda in Sweden
and Riihimaki in Finland. But the Variant remains
shrouded in mist so let’s take a look at the facts. |
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Those Darned "Morphing" Hobstars
Geometric patterns are possibly the hardest of all to
recognize. It's not too hard to identify a pattern with
a panther prowling across its face or perhaps a couple
of peacocks perched on a fence. But what happens when
you are faced with a bunch of hobstars, whirling stars,
diamond shapes, square shapes, triangles and fans? Yep,
they're tricky! |
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Imperial Blue
Imperial Blue is an intriguing color. The simple
fact is, not very much of it was made. Unlike
Fenton, whose Cobalt Blue color was seen in almost
everything they did, Imperial, Millersburg and Dugan
didn't make that much blue. |
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A
Closer Look at the Millersburg Nesting Swan
John Fenton was a fan of swans, so much so that he even
bought a pair of them to keep at home. As John
drew so much of his inspiration for patterns from his
surroundings, it was only natural that Millersburg would
release a pattern based on swans. This article
takes a closer look at the pattern itself. |
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