Glass is an amazing substance with a beauty all its own. We sometimes take it for granted as utilitarian, but as art it is a sight to behold. Here are three tips for adding glass to your home decor.
Accessories Complete the Room
After you have placed the furniture, rugs, window treatments and lamps a room does not feel complete without artwork and accessories. The items you select to include in your room can give insight into your personality and make a room feel lived in. The colors and shapes give interest to a space. These objects may be a cherished possession or something the owner finds to be interesting or charming. If you enjoy collecting specific objects the best way to display them is to group them together in a container, arranged on a tabletop or exhibited on a shelf unit. When you own an abundance of accessories instead of cluttering a room, rotate the items you display periodically with ones you have in storage. Small items are easy to relocate, remove and rotate with the seasons or when you just feel you would like a change. This flexibility enhances the enjoyment of your found objects.
Selecting a Container for Glass Accessories
One popular accessory is art glass. Small, hand made pieces of delicate artistic glass add color to a room. There are many types of art glass such as free blown glass, glass blown into a mold, pressed glass, layered glass, cameo, enameled, etched and hand-cut glass. Hand blown glass fruit made by craftsmen in Murano, Italy can be artfully displayed together in a container on a tabletop. Select a container to match your room décor. Whatever furniture style your room may have, be it antique, period, traditional, modern, contemporary, country, Asian, tropical, or eclectic you can find a suitable container and art glass to coordinate it with. Containers can be made from silverware, crystal, glazed ceramic, rough pottery, woven basketry, wood, metal, glass or stone. The color of the container can copy an accent color in your room or become a neutral background for the colorful glass objects it contains. Several glass colors displayed together give a luminous and lively feel. One or two select colors can be calming and give more emphasis to the shape of the glass. Place your container of art glass near a light source so the luminosity and translucence of the glass can be appreciated day or night.
Arranging Glass Accessories
Grouping various glass objects together can be interesting visually. Select three or more items such as a glass or crystal object, picture frame, vase, bowl, figurine, clock, candlestick, bottle, lamp, or paperweight and place together on a tabletop. Or make a centerpiece of a container full of colorful glass fruit. If the container you select is too deep add clear glass stones, the kind used in floral arrangements, to the bottom of the container. These glass pieces can be found by the bag and are sold in craft stores and stores that sell vases. You can get creative and use polished river stones or sphagnum moss (a dried plant material used by florists) also available at craft store, for added height. Delicate, hand crafted glass apples, pears, lemons and clusters of grapes in various colors can be placed together in a bowl as easily as the fruit you buy at the market. You do not need to be concerned with making all of the fruit stand up straight, they should look as natural as real fruit. Be creative and let your personality come through in the objects you select to display in your home.