Another Ericson Article from Hobbies Magazine

from David Chadwick-Brown of San Diego

Alan –

Since Cluthra means ‘cloudy,’ I do not want to cloud the discussion further, but add Eric Ericson comments on the topic from Hobbies magazine, May 1963. In the article “The Rockwell Collection of Carder’s Steuben,” he recalls a conversation with Bob Rockwell about his collection and personal favorites.

“Cluthra was made by rolling a mass of clear crystal over a marver upon which had been sprinkled coarsely ground pieces of a very thinly blown colored glass. These were picked up by the hot crystal. This mass was then rolled over a chemical, and again over clear crystal. Upon reheating and blowing, the chemical caused a mass of bubbles to appear; and the colored glass bits fused to the crystal to present a clouded, but pleasant colored object of art.”
…

“Cluthra was first made about 1915 as a production item, and periodically to 1930. Cintra was made only during 1917. Colors used were green, blue, amethyst, rose, black, and white.”

“An interesting sidelight was told by an old friend of Mr. Carder’s. It seems that in the manufacture of blanks for Hawkes, a few items were rejected by a lady inspector. Mr. Carder felt she was overly critical and determined to prove it. He then proceeded to make his Bubbly Glass.

“A mass was rolled over a plate with fine spikes protruding and then rolled over another layer, usually of colored crystal of the same color. This trapped the air in the spiked holes and upon blowing, they enlarged and remained a permanent mark of distinction. Bubbly Glass was a resounding success. Fine examples of this technique in table service can be viewed in the Rockwell collection.

“With the rise in popularity during the post World War I period for fine colored glass items, a large portion of the Steuben output was devoted to items in this category, i.e., a complete service would consist of plates, berry bowls, wine glasses, water goblets, and a series of bowls and candlesticks.”

Later in an interview with Mr. Carder, Ericson’s article refers to “…a list supplied by Mr. Carder [containing] 58 colors itemized, and he is certain there were more.”

Shape: 7063

Form: Vase

Color: White Cluthra

Component Colors: Foot: Colorless

Type: Cluthra Decoration:

Shading, Black Cluthra

Size: 12.5 in high

from the editor

to: David Chadwick-Brown, thanks so much for identifying this Hobbies article. I have found it interesting that each of these many reference books in coverage of Cluthra and Cintra contain just another bit of information. There is so much to be found, but the sharing of information from the many who have studied Carder presents a collectivity of well-rounded and complete information.