One of the benefits of joining
Public Glass is the use of their well-equipped Cold Shop. The cold shop is where you can drill, saw, grind, blast, polish or otherwise finish cold glass. Other than membership, the only requirement to use the shop is completion of a class that instructs on the proper usage, safety, and etiquette of using the various tools. I took that class today.
Only two of us signed up for the 4-hour seminar, but the other guy was a no-show, so I had a one-on-one experience. The teacher was excellent and the perfect teacher : student ratio meant I got a lot of hands on time.
For me, I found a lot of similarities to woodworking. Much of the equipment is very similar, just outfitted with different consumables that can cut through glass and with water cooling at the point of contact to keep the glass from breaking. Much of the work can be painstakingly detailed and requires lots of time and patience. It’s also very possible to damage or destroy a piece that you have put a lot of work into, so a good sense of humor is always a good thing.
While cold-working isn’t my primary focus, it already gave me some inspiration for what I can do with a few pieces that are in process.