Game Day

For many people, Super Bowl Sunday is almost as fun and exciting as Christmas morning. But for me, while I enjoy a good Super Bowl party just as much as the next person, I’ll be truthful: it’s really just a social event for me. I’m more interested in chit-chatting and mingling than I am in whose got the ball at the whatever yard line.

So, I may not have strong feelings over who wins or loses on Sunday, but if I had to pick (and just for Ren Bartoe) I’d say “Go Steelers!”

And then another reason I have to pick the Steelers is because I was lucky enough to meet Rocky Bleier two years ago at a GANA meeting. I even had the opportunity to wear all four of his Super Bowl rings at once. It’s one of those experiences that I always tell people about, because how often do most of us get the chance to wear even one Super Bowl ring?

But back to Sunday's game ... I know for some people out there this year’s Super Bowl will certainly be one to remember. That’s the case, I’m sure, for Tampa-based Rue Decatur Glassworks. This company has the license to produce a commemorative display—and it’s being made from glass.

The company is creating a sandblasted glass display in honor of the game. You can read more about it here.

This is just another example of how decorative glass is popping up everywhere—even at the Super Bowl. I wonder if this means we’ll start seeing these glass displays showing up for all the major sporting events. What a great decorative glass opportunity that could be.

The Big Apple

It seems like decorative glass projects are just showing up everywhere these days. One of the most interesting ones I’ve read about lately is the new TKTS booth in Times Square. Not only does it have a cool, red glass bleacher-style staircase (check out the aerial shot on the right), it is completely made of glass--glass beams, glass walls, glass stair treads, a cantilevered canopy and glass balustrades. As if I needed a reason to visit New York …

Probably the most significant feature of the TKTS booth is that glass staircase that encases the booth. The amphitheatre-style staircase is 27 steps high and has seating room for more than 500 people. The slip-resistant glass steps were fabricated by Austria’s ECKELT Glass, a subsidiary of Saint Gobain, and they are also lit from below with LED technology.

This is one project that has completely grabbed my attention. Contract glazier David Shuldiner did the installation, but they were not the company originally selected; the Scottish firm Harans Glass was. It was when Harans went out of business that the job went to Shuldiner.

And on another note, Shuldiner is now involved with the glazing that’s being installed within the new Yankees Stadium. Yet another cool New York project. Arch Deco Glass supplied some of the interior glass that’s being used there.

But New York is not the only city where you can find interesting decorative glass projects; they are all over—you just have to look for them. If you’ve got one you’d like to share, I’d love to hear about it so be sure and send pictures my way.