Understanding Early Glass
by Wayne Mattox

Understanding how it was made; molten glass was blown, as one would blow a balloon, then shaped with tools or molds by a "gaffer," is the first step toward identifying valuable antique glass in your own back yard.  And, it does show up, frequently.  One of my mom's friends, Shelly, bought a miniature "blown" glass bottle with an "applied" handle at a local tag sale last spring. Despite a small "heat-check" crack, a crack that happened in making when the red hot gooey handle was applied to the cooler bottle, the insignificant appearing two-inch tall amber demijohn was sold for four-hundred dollars-fair profit on a nickel investment! cont'd

Collecting Depression Glass – Where to Start
by Murray Hughes

Okay, so you’ve been bitten by the Depression Glass bug, and those pretty patterns and pastel colors beckon you from the shelves of an antique dealer’s shop, a friend’s home, or maybe you’ve even discovered this special glassware on the Internet. How ever it’s come about that you’ve developed a yen for Depression Glass, you need to know where and how to start collecting it – unless you’re made of money, have oodles of time on your hands, and don’t care whether you get the real thing or not. But if you’re like most of us, and those things don’t apply to you, here are a few tips to get you started on the road to what may very well become a fascinating and lifelong hobby. cont'd