Summer Solstice Glass Pendant Giveaway

Written by Mark Hamilton

Wednesday, 01 June 2011 00:00

Today, the first of June is a new moon accompanied by a partial solar eclipse. It's a great way to start the month as we start the 3 week countown to the first day of summer...Summer Solstice.

On Tuesday, June 21 at 10:16PM PST (West Coast USA), the sun will reach it's farthest position north.

Solstice Glass is named after this time of the year and in celebration of the season, I'll be giving away a free glass pendant every week until the Summer Solstice.

That's THREE FREE PENDANTS to be given away by June 21.

If you've "liked" the Solstice Glass Facebook Page, you're already eligible to enter the giveaway. If not, just "like" Solstice Glass on Facebook before entering.

To enter, just post a status update on your page mentioning your favorite Solstice Glass pendant. If you're one of the winners for the week, you'll receive your chosen pendant free of charge! You may post to your wall as often as you like and will be credited for an entry each time you post.

PLEASE NOTE: your entry is valid only if you post to your own wall by following the steps below...not Solstice Glass' wall.

It's easy to tag the Solstice Glass page and register your entry:

1. use the "@" and start typing Solstice Glass in your profile status update window. You'll see the page pop up in the selection window. Hit enter to tag the page.

2. After tagging, just continue with your status update mentioning your favorite Solstice Glass pendant.

Here's an example:

I'll pick a winner randomly each week. If you're a lucky winner, I'll congratulate you on the Solstice Glass Page wall and you'll receive the pendant you mentioned in your status update for free (free shipping included).

Good luck winning one of these free pendants and enjoy your last few weeks of Spring!

20% of every sale donated to Japan earthquake/tsunami relief

Written by Mark Hamilton

Monday, 14 March 2011 20:42

japan-relief It's been quite shocking to see the scale of the Japanese earthquake and tsunami disaster. Japan is a special place to me as I spent my early childhood there. And as an adult, I have a deep appreciation for the simple and subtle beauty that infuses Japanese art and culture.

I want to do something to help in Japan, but I lack the resources to do much on my own. I'm hoping you, my customers will help out by going ahead and getting that pendant you've been wanting...maybe even an extra for a friend. Because...

During this next week (through March 21, 2011), I'll be donating 20% of every order to Global Giving's earthquake and tsunami relief fund.

No need to do anything extra to make this happen. Just place your order by midnight March 21 and I'll contribute the 20% of your order total to the relief fund. Thanks so much to everyone who helps out either this way or in other ways!

How Are the Glass Mushroom Pendants Made?

Written by Mark Hamilton

Tuesday, 19 October 2010 20:47

Customers often ask me how I get the mushroom inside of the glass drop pendant. It's a little tricky to explain without visual cues so I made a video showing the entire process. I basically heat up a "gather" of molten glass on the end of a 12mm borolisicate glass rod. Then I take a thinner "point" of glass that I pulled earlier and push it into the molten gather of glass. When the tip of the point of glass hits the cooler glass towards the top of the gather, it mushrooms back down into the hotter glass.

Gift Certificates Are Here!

Written by Mark Hamilton

Wednesday, 04 November 2009 17:53

Today I added a selection of gift certificates to the Solstice Glass site. It's something I've been meaning to do for a while. A number of my customers have suggested it and I thought it would be a nice option to offer, especially during this gift-giving season.

Although it can be a lot of fun choosing glass gifts for friends or people on your holiday list, some people are just difficult to buy for. Maybe you haven't seen an old friend in a while and don't know what colors they wear anymore. Maybe you're buying a secret Santa gift for a co-worker and have no idea what they like. Or maybe you just need a unique and classy gift in the next 48 hours and don't have time to wait for anything to be shipped.

When you purchase a gift certificate, it is delivered to your email within 48 hours. Your gift certificate arrives in a printable file attachment that you can either print out and give to the recipient in person or send to them via email. Upon request, I can also personalize your gift certificate with your name and the recipient's name. This works especially well for gift certificates you plan to email to the recipient.

I hope these gift certificates make your gift-giving a little easier and more fun and as always, I welcome any feedback you might have to share.

The Honu Are Here!

Written by Mark Hamilton

Friday, 12 June 2009 19:02

honu-sea-turtle-pendant Yep, that's right. A whole bale* of little sea turtles just swam out of the flames of my torch and are waiting to be adopted. "Honu" is the Hawaiian word for sea turtle and it was in Maui that I first created one of these guys. I'd just been snorkeling with some sea turtles and was inspired the next day to make some little glass ones. Right away they became some of my best selling pendants.

There's just something about the honu that makes me feel calmer and freer. Maybe it's the way they move through the water, almost appearing to fly but without all the energetic flapping of airborne flight. The native Hawaiians sure think there's something special about them. They use the honu as a symbol of peace, good luck and long life.

Sadly, these amazing creatures are now on the endangered list. That's why I'm giving 10% of the amount I make from each glass honu pendant to Honu.org, an organization dedicated to helping the honu survive and thrive.

I've been wanting to get these sea turtle pendants up on my site for a while now and it seems like I keep getting sidetracked. Now they're finally here and ready for adoption. To celebrate their freedom, I'm putting them on sale from now through July 4th Independence Day. You'll save 10%, have a new little honu to keep you company, and know you made a difference and helped a real honu!

Click here to check out the new honu pendants!

* "Bale" is the word used to describe a group of turtles, like "flock" describes a group of birds.

New Solstice Glass Site Is Launched!

Written by Mark Hamilton

Tuesday, 14 April 2009 00:00

It finally happened...after weeks of working on it I finally finished this site. My old site had been serving me well since I created it in 2002 but it was seriously outdated and looked like a relic from the early days of the Internet. It was also much more work to add new items and the images were a bit small when viewed on some computers like the newer MacBooks and Netbooks. Even more exciting than the updated look and feel of this site, the new format will let me have so much more fun doing things like writing a blog, adding new items, offering free shipping for orders over $50, and adding coupons and gift certificates.

I've spent many hours testing every part of this site but, because it's new, there may be a bug or two to be worked out. If you experience any problems while using the site I'd be grateful if you'd let me know what problems you encounter. If you have any positive feedback about the site of course I'd like to hear that too!

As a special thank you for reading my blog, I'm offering a 10% discount on your entire order for the rest of the month of April! All you need to do is enter the code APRIL in the shopping cart when it asks for the coupon code. Thanks and enjoy your browsing!