For the foreseeable future, the Studio has switched to a hand pump method of giving air for glassblowing, rather than using mouths. While it is an adjustment for experienced blowers, we have found that Crefeld’s day students adapted very quickly to using this much safer method, and we are confident that adult students will be able to make the same quick adjustment.

The Crefeld Glass Studio has been a part of the rich culture of the Philadelphia glass art scene since 1995. It’s a full service hot glass studio, offering facilities for Glassblowing, Flameworking, and Casting.

Our studio is quite unique. During the school day, it is part of the arts department of The Crefeld School, giving Crefeld’s 7th-12th grade students a rare opportunity to work with glass and gain valuable teamwork experience while also building confidence. During evenings and weekends, the studio is open to the greater Philadelphia community, offering public classes and lessons for teenagers and adults.

We encourage you to check out the latest list of Classes, as we are always adding new opportunities to work with glass.

Current Class Offerings

Contact Us:

Questions, comments, have a special request? Just email us at: glassstudio@crefeld.org *Please note that while we look forward to answering any questions you have, as our primary function is to serve our 7th-12th grade day students, emails and phone calls are returned as quickly as possible, but it often takes a day or two.

What is the difference between Flameworking and Glassblowing?

Flameworking (also called Lampworking, or Torchworking) and Glassblowing (sometimes called “hot glass”) are two different ways of creating objects from glass.

Flameworking uses a small, hand-held/table-mounted torch to manipulate glass on a small scale. It’s mostly used for making smaller sculptural pieces and jewelry. It’s generally done while the maker is in a seated position (in our studio, on a stool). Makers are usually able to hold one end of a piece of glass with their bare hand, or a small hand tool while applying the torch flame to another part of the same piece of glass. Tinted, protective eyewear is required, but heat exposure and physicality is not usually a concern.

Glassblowing is the manipulation of molten glass on the end of a long pipe or solid rod. Makers must use larger hand tools to touch and manipulate the glass, must be careful to not touch the pipe/rod too close to the molten glass. There is more physicality involved, as makers generally must sit, stand, and walk several times during the glassblowing process (though we can provide many physical accommodations for those who need them, if notified in advance). There is exposure to heat the entire time, and makers need to wear extra heat protection at times, depending on the task at hand and size of the piece they are making. All work made in the Hot Shop (glassblowing portion of the Studio) needs to be reheated to maintain minimum temperature throughout the making process, and must be placed in a kiln to be slowly brought down to room temperature over 24+ hours, or the piece can crack or explode.