You can taste autumn in a glass with the Hog Toddy recipe. If your ready for happy hour, or coming in from a trail hike, this warming drink is simply spiced hot cider with a splash of rye whiskey. Perfect for chilly days, mixing the richness of fresh apples, with rye whiskey from the Vermont maker Whistle Pig. The amber color of the drink is best experienced in an ideal glass like the Windsor Tankard or Ascutney Mug.
Ascutney Double Old-Fashioned with the Harvest Moon Cocktail
Enjoy the Fall season with one of our classic cocktails that we serve at the Simon Pearce restaurant in Vermont. Heighten the experience of the Harvest Moon drink with our handcrafted Ascutney Whiskey or Double Old Fashioned glass. This is a great recipe to try at home while observing the seasonal transition, or queuing up a virtual happy hour with family or friends. For the perfect virtual gifting and entertaining solutions, you can find our range of glasses on our website.
Here is the recipe
Harvest Moon
2 oz. Sauza Conmemorativo
3/4 oz. Lime Juice
1/2 oz Spiced Syrup Mix*
Few Dashes of Angostura Bitters
Add all ingredients to an ice filled shaker and shake well. Pour into an Ascutney DOF or Whiskey glass.
Lime wedge garnish.
*Spiced Simple Syrup:
1 Cups Water
1 Cups Sugar
3 Whole Allspice Berries
3 Whole Cloves
1 large cinnamon stick
1 1-inch Pieces of Ginger, peeled and chopped
Make simple syrup and add all spices. Let steep for one hour and then strain out all the spices to your preference.
Fascinated with the visual effects of light passing through glass, we continue to experiment with the near limitless possibilities of this concept. While creating new lighting pieces we craft glass as a vessel for emitting light, and utilize metal elements for support. These ideas are realized in the new one-of-a-kind design chandeliers that are now available from Simon Pearce this Fall. The designs take their inspiration from scenic drives through the Caledonia countryside admiring the twilight glow of towns and the interplay of light and shadow during the wintery months.
Caledonia 6 globe chandelier
The county is part of the Northeast Kingdom of Vermont, with rural terrain and farms mixed with the old world charm of New England towns. Many of the towns have an emerging craft revival with interesting makers of all kinds, and great food. We all love the comforting old world glimmer of vintage street lights and shop windows in the rural settings, and thought we could capture this aura with our handmade glass globes.
Building upon this inspiration, we started our unique process with some drawings and refined them over time, to interpret the essence of this concept in a simple way. We then worked with Jan Mollmark, our masterful engineer who is fantastic with metal to iterate on building our first prototype in-house. We used the prototype as a lighting element of our Portland Maine store, and received many inquiries if we would sell it.
When we considered bringing this design to the market beyond our prototype construction, we turned to our partners at Hubbardton Forge, who are known for hand-forged metal. Their expertise in fabrication of lighting elements helped us to refine the armatures for a 3 globe, and 6 globe version of our new chandelier. They also have telescoping capability for hanging the lighting so we employed that into the design, allowing customers to raise or lower the chandeliers to the desired heights from a rod. The two elegant Caledonia Chandeliers show off first and foremost our handmade glass, and the fine metal work achieved by collaborating with another great Vermont maker like Hubbardton Forge.
The modern American blacksmiths of nearby Hubbardton Forge transform their raw material with heat, force and skill much like what we do with the glass at Simon Pearce.
Our master glassblowers capture this old-world glimmer in each handblown glass globe, morphing the raw molten glass into these magical forms. Both chandeliers will cast an inviting glow upon your dining table, kitchen island or entryway. With our commitment to quality and craftsmanship, each piece is made to order.
The chandeliers are available in three different finishes of Black, Dark Smoke, Natural Iron. Visit our website to learn more. Browse our full range of lighting concepts to illuminate your interior as the days grow shorter.
Fall has arrived in Vermont. The season is in full swing for pumpkin picking while enjoying the colors of the leaves that are rapidly changing, and foraging at the local farmer’s markets. With swift Autumnal transition, the Maple leaves are particularly colorful this year and we all yearn for some change in scenery. At Simon Pearce, we are very busy creating the handcrafted glass favorites of the season like our varieties of pumpkins,acorns and other beautiful handcrafted objects.
The inspiration:
Staying true to our design theme of being inspired by Nature, our artful pumpkins with the curly stems are derived from our quest to capture the nuances of how they truly grow. The classic and iconic simple stem pumpkins returned this Fall with many other new arrivals that will delight anyone that wants to bring some harvest vibe into their home.
We have all spent so much time sheltering at home, that many of us have started to redefine how we live in it. We are rethinking how we utilize the rooms, their function and what we put in them. With the arrival of Fall, we can spend a little time roaming and wandering at shops and markets with the opportunity to search for those ideal artifacts to bring back into our lives. It is about an appreciation of design, fresh seasonal icons and craftsmanship that clearly meet our new psychological needs for repurposing the home.
The Pumpkin available in small, medium and large.
The appealing character:
The pumpkin designs are a refined combination of structural optic details, curvy shapes and an overall softness that makes you want to pick them up. This results from the hand involved in everything we do to create Pumpkins that are naturally appealing.
The pumpkins make great decor gifts, for those that appreciate the unique characteristics of handmade glass. Come and pick through our latest batch of pumpkins from any of our shops or at our flagship mill. Find the perfect shapes that speak to you.
For the virtual experience, visit our website: Simon Pearce.
At Simon Pearce, we take our design inspiration from Nature with all that New England has to offer, from the rolling terrain to the lakes, rivers and waterfalls. We cherish time outside, a walk in the woods, or time spent at the waterside this time of the year which infuses our design thinking.
As summer sets in and the days blend together, we strive to regain some sense of normalcy and a chance to relax and to recharge. The long days of sunshine offer time to focus on comfort, warmth, and familiarity. We rediscover ways to enjoy sunsets and the evening outdoors while we savour summer drinks or wine out of our favorite glasses. Taking a break allows us to gain the sense of enlightenment that comes from being out in Nature whether by land or sea.
Vintner & Marble
With change in our everyday routines we seek ways to live with a new approach, and try to surround ourselves with beautiful things that give us joy. We’ve been adding to our Vintner wine tasting collection, with the new Coupe and Tulip wine. The Vintner glasses, with their stunning good looks and refined function are an opportunity to upgrade your wine tasting experience. We’ve also added the new material combination of glass and marble to the wine tasting story. The marble forms are inspired by a visit to the recreated atelier of Brancusi at the Pompidou Center in Paris. An artist of the early 20th Century he was known for simplicity, elemental shapes, and a liberal use of material which are ideas that are true to our design approach.
Brancusi’s Atelier
The design process started with small clay sketches, and hand renderings to evolve the aesthetic of the group. The marble items center around wine & cheese serving, with future designs in the queue to round out the concept. The smooth simplicity of the marble designs marry perfectly with the elegant outlines of our Vintner Collection.
The marble is another way for us to bring a new earthy material into the mix of our brand expression. The latest introductions are the Marble Chiller and the Vintner Wine Decanter.
While sheltering at home, the effort to reinvent the home office became paramount for many of us. Looking at the desktop landscape, we quickly realized we needed something to hold our phone or tablet, while video conferencing, and came up with the Woodbury Phone Holder to compliment our other items in the collection. Having the appearance of being sculpted from a block of ice, our proportions are scaled to work with most phones and smaller tablets. The clear solid base is an exceptional design for anyone looking for a crafted technology solution for the office or even the kitchen while following recipes.
The sculptural outcome of finessing a unique form with our talented glassblowers, the Romance Heart Vase is a work of art in glass. It started out as renderings on paper, and then went to interpretation by our master glassblowers, with each one capturing a special moment of expression with the human hand. The versatility of the fluid shape performs perfectly as a vase with summer blooms and also as a decor object that can stand on its own. A great gift for any occasion or for someone special to give a heart to.
An iconic item for this summer entertaining, is the new organic shell platter. The new design takes it’s natural inspiration from ancient fossil spirals revealed in stones of the Isle La Motte, here in Vermont. The concept was translated into a textured shell, starting with hand sculpting the design into plaster and then a metal mold to cast the glass platter. It’s a versatile object with plenty of surface for serving, and a visual delight when sun shines through it.
Inspiration for the Shell
Shell Platter Metal Mold
Shell Platter
For the latest summer offerings visit our website and stores.
Our stores are open exhibiting some of the best collections in glass, pottery, and accessories, with a focus on summer seasonal entertaining at home. Shop by appointment, to be immersed in the assortments of beautifully crafted wares to uplift your everyday experience.
With current events impacting us all so deeply, we collectively discover ways within ourselves to embrace the unexpected. We find comfort and positive support through togetherness. We explore a new path forward and enrich our lives while sheltering at home. We find more meaning in gatherings especially around the table whether at home or virtually.
We yearn for a warm cozy atmosphere and strive to cultivate a sense of safety and serenity taking hints from the danish concept of Hygge. Well being is key, while optimism and finding balance in our lives helps uplift us throughout each day. A new normal evolves, and a homebound routine incorporates virtual meetings with colleagues, while the home office becomes a dynamic hub of activity.
Working from Home
We seek interaction and connection with family and friends to compare notes on ways to feel good, be healthy, share recipes and stay nourished. As we navigate these times a new appreciation for the things around us emerges as we curate a sense of what we want in our home environment. While embracing the change we can still celebrate life’s holidays, birthdays, milestones, and make things work for us at home. Entertaining can be a source of joy by sharing botanical drinks, creating craft beer tastings, wine & cheese, or sending invites to a virtual happy hour.
Look for What Speaks to You
Throughout our Simon Pearce line, we have many of the quintessential handmade elements available to make those home moments special. Our drinkware collections contain a fine selection of beautiful and functional items you can use to curate your home. Having the time to pay attention to details, you can appreciate the nuances of the handmade.
At Simon Pearce, we have adapted to the new paradigm and are continuing to practice our craft. Our ethos of ‘handmade quality’ drives us forward and everything we make is a unique expression of humanity.
Puppy Model
Puppy on the Glass Floor
Dog
The hand is involved in every step of bringing each object to life. We hand draw, and model concepts, like the dog and the new puppy then work out the details on the glass floor with the expertise of our glassblowers. Each object is a combination of the hand of the maker, the form, the fine quality of the material, and that is blended with our distinct ‘point of view’ about design.
Hand Thrown Pottery
Renderings
Sketching
Glassblowing
These elements cannot be separated. Our passion for handmade excellence permeates everyone in the company with ‘purpose’. We love to share what we create, because we are confident it will make these times spent at home, that much better.
Bristol Red Wine & Decanter
Pontil
Waterbury Tumbler
To see the latest items for sheltering at home please visit our website.
If you need a break from cooking in your kitchen, and you are in the Upper Valley, the Simon Pearce Restaurant has a new menu with delightful dishes of ready to heat dinner. Jerod Rockwell is running the kitchen for take out which can be picked up with curbside service.
We are pleased to be serving our devoted customers and connecting with new ones, in the Philadelphia area with our 11th store bringing us into the region with a fresh new approach. Following on the heels of opening our Chestnut Hill Store, just over a year ago, we completed the interior construction of our new Ardmore store, just in time for the holiday Black Friday shopping rush. To make this go from concept to reality, we had an incredible team that made the opening of the store possible, with staff contributing from every department in the company. Our company is united by a culture that is dedicated to providing a “wow” shopping experience.
Quote from our press release;
“The Ardmore store will invite customers to explore—or perhaps discover for the first time—our glass and pottery collections,” said James Murray, Senior Vice President of Product Development + Design. “The shop’s warm, contemporary interior and displays take a cue from our flagship location in Vermont; by referencing that historic building and vibrant makerspace, we hope to bring the spirit of handcraftsmanship to our newest location.”
Deciding on the best location is key, and Jay Benson, our CEO, researched and evaluated the marketplace to find Ardmore to be an optimal destination.
The design process started with imagining the type of space and feeling that takes cues from the experience of the Mill in Quechee, Vermont. We developed a material selection of complimentary, beautiful, real materials, that include walnut shelves, white oak flooring, wrought steel, walnut fixtures, and clay inspired earthy paint tones, that are used throughout the main retail floor.
Illumination is a key element to showing the characteristics of our iconic glass products, so we employed built-in LED lighting technology into all our fixed shelving. To really make our evergreen trees glow, we built the lighting into the surface of the shelves so trees are illuminated from underneath. The overall concept of the store was then rendered to capture our fresh aesthetic, that appeals to the customer that looks for our humanistic approach to design.
We utilized our retired wood molds from blowing glass, to create a textural wrap around our main counter. Neil Cockwill, Director of Forms, carefully selected and collaged the molds together, at our facility in Windsor, Vermont. We also feature our vine chandelier over the cash wrap counter as a focal point. We contracted Andrew Pearce to build a series of walnut and steel furniture, for us to use in cross merchandising statements.
The store design is featuring a separate studio space, in the back, that highlights our handcrafted pendants and lamps, which makes it easier for interior designers and customers to make buying decisions from our lighting collection. Our contractors worked quickly to demise the space, and go through the process of re-configuring it to suit our needs. They created the lighting studio out of a prior stock room by taking down walls, and rebuilding it into a useful space. The shelving around the store was custom built for us and they house all of our core products, delineated by their category.
Kathy Marshall, Creative Integration Manager, on the planogram:
“The product assortment for Ardmore is curated to include top performers and new designs, based on the store size. Within this framework, we assign categories of product to specific fixed shelves and dynamic displays, as well as carefully considering the placement of the product to make shopping easy.”
James Murray, Jackie Collier, Jacob Perron, Lindsay Harrington, Jay Benson, Jen Smith and Michael Robinson
A few weeks before the store opening, a group of us visited the store location as the construction had begun to check on progress and interview candidates to work at the store.
Jen Smith, our new VP of Retail, started in July 2019, joined us after a long tenure at Crate & Barrel, rallied the retail team for an incredibly organized and quick opening.
“We had so much fun opening the Ardmore store – it was a fast and furious process! In just 3 days, we unloaded and unpacked 16 pallets of product and set the displays. It was a small, but mighty team! Opening in the busy holiday season meant that everyone had to be flexible and efficient.”
“Huge shout-outs to: Stephanie and Amanda, our warehouse managers, and the shipping team at our Oakland, MD facility, John and Josey, who delivered the product the moment we got the green light. Jackie, Retail Operations Project Manager, who coordinated all of the scheduling, travel, logistics and supplies for the store. Jeff, Field Visual Merchandising Manager, who set up the store visuals while training the new staff every step of the way. James and Kathy, who came up with the vision for the store and created a detailed and thorough planogram for execution. And our planning team who pulled the product from our warehouse to merchandise during the busiest time of the year!”
Emily Kurz, Michael Robinson, and Colleen Charleston
“Michael, the store manager, and Emily, full-time sales, had come up to Vermont for orientation, so they were immersed in the Simon Pearce culture, the Vermont way of life, and have a whole new appreciation for the artisans who create our product. They, along with our part-time sales associate, Colleen, have welcomed returning customers who remember our brand from Brandywine, and introduced new customers to Simon Pearce.”
From our founder, Simon Pearce:
“I started making glass because of the human quality you find in real handmade glass. One of the best ways to share that experience is to put the product directly into the hands of our customers. Opening a location in Philadelphia gives us the opportunity to better share our story with an important market for us.”
Nature uses force to script matter, and we do the same to manipulate raw molten glass. We draw out of our methods of making glass, the elements that have distinct character, and the artistic imperfections that come from the hand, to realize designs, that are ‘real’ expressions. With the ‘Elements’ development, we saw an opportunity to focus on the connection between design and science, using the forms to represent the various states of matter. We interpreted these natural elements that surround us in New England, with seven one of a kind, sculptural pieces. Three of which are featured in the Montshire Science Museum, from September 2019 to March 2020. It is an opportunity for the public and for children to experience how glass is a transformation from sand to the transparent material we are all familiar with, but in new forms.
We believe that our craftsmen have captured a sense of wonder and beauty portraying natural elements in glass and by pushing glass to its aesthetic and technical limits. These shapes show a mastery of light through glass and brings us at Simon Pearce to the forefront of creativity and innovation, through a design collaboration with master glassblowers.
Photo Credit: Montshire Museum of Science
The partnership with the Montshire Museum of Science started when Marcos Stafne and his team came to our facility in Windsor, Vermont, to discuss ideas around how the two upper valley organizations can cross-pollinate concepts and create something unique for people to experience. They liked the Elements prototypes and were intrigued with the science behind glassmaking, and brought these two concepts together for an exhibit at the museum. Sherlock and Katie, who create the exhibitions, evolved a wonderful way to interpret the glass Elements, revealing the process, and the science.
From the Montshire press release;
“For this collaborative exhibition, the Montshire partnered with Simon Pearce, a Vermont-based company specializing in handcrafted glass with a creative philosophy rooted in functional, sophisticated design. The Montshire Exhibits team worked closely with James Murray, Simon Pearce’s Vice President of Design, to create a beautiful experience in which science meets design.”
Montshire Staff, shown here, from left to right: Katie Kalata Rusch, Matthew DiClemente, Anne Fayen, Loren Rutz, and Sherlock Terry.
All seven elements we prototyped are described below:
Fire
Fire is the element that transforms the other elements. Glassblowers also need fire to create the glass itself. They capture the gesture and movement of flames in glass. The item is sculpted with the energy and flair of a burning flame. Each piece turns out entirely unique and can be illuminated on a LED base.
The glassblowers who worked on this piece are Dwight Yoder, Dave Osburn and Steve White.
Water
Water covers seventy-five percent of the earth’s surface. This design was specifically inspired by the rushing waterfall at the Mill. The glassblowers captured the expressive ebb and flow of water that changes throughout the seasons. It is a very difficult design to make and only a few Simon Pearce glassblowers are able to make it. The development of this water vessel, and wrap technique led us to offer other lines using the wrap concept, such as the Waterbury and Echo Lake collections.
The glassblowers who worked on this piece are Mike Cushing, Mark Williams, Jason Tucker and Ray Thorburn.
You can find the separate blog post on this design here.
Wood
Wood is a pervasive element in New England, and is revered for the seasonal activity from chopping/limbing trees for firewood to handcrafting it into familiar objects. Here ‘wood’ is represented as a branch with truncated limbs, and a sandblasted hollow core. It is another difficult piece to craft, few glassblowers can capture the exact gesture and form. Wood is one of the five Chinese elements. Each piece can stand on a LED base.
The glassblowers who worked on this piece are Jesse McComas and Anthony Wroton.
Infinite Space
Infinite space is the mother of the other elements. It represents the void, or emptiness that is necessary to approach a higher spiritual being. It is the gesture of a figure eight and is a free-form sculpture, with subtle surfaces and requires a high degree of skill to get the symmetry right. Each piece can be illuminated on an LED base.
The glassblowers who worked on this piece are Jason Cole and Jeremy Bastille.
Earth
Earth element is about structure and foundation; in nature it represents all that is solid and nourishing, which also speaks to global environmental issues. The design intent is to represent the whole globe and the topography of total earth, and also the swirling dynamics of mixing of elements, which has been captured in the glass.
The glassblowers who worked on this piece are Mike Cushing, Mark Williams, Jason Tucker, Ray Thorburn, and Chris Rogstad.
Air
Air is a freeing and opportunistic element. The form represents the swirling forces of wind, similar to the aerial view of cloud formations of the weather, while also having an open center for a connection with infinite space. In glass, flat disks can be difficult to achieve when compared to shapes with more mass and volume, so this shows the control and skill the glassblower. This piece is displayed in a specially crafted metal stand made by Jan Mollmark.
The glassblowers who worked on this piece are Perry Schwab and Ryan Adams.
Metal
Metal represents both rigidity and flexibility; being a protective element it is strong but very adaptive to change. Metals are found in nature and in man-made structures, such as suspension bridges and other feats of engineering. The sculpture was created in clear glass with an infusion of silver leaf, to further highlight the connection to the metal element. It can be illuminated on a LED base.
The glassblowers who worked on this piece are Jake Cole and Jeremy Bastille.
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You can read more about the Montshire Museum exhibit in this Valley News Article.
Every September, the European home design industry returns from their summer break in August to present the best of their new creations at the International Maison Objet show in Paris. The market is focused on home decor, interior design, and lifestyle concepts, with a very inspiring combination of innovation and new talent throughout the halls.
bowl rendering in chalk
Simon, Jay and I traveled across the Atlantic to walk the market, meet with some of our partners, and find new resources or makers we can potentially work with on products. The show also gives an opportunity to spend time discussing, brainstorming and sketching out our approach to design for the next season. We debate over what can be integrated into our product categories, what new ideas we can bring into existing collections, and where we could layer on new decor concepts.
“The market gives you a perspective on what is happening in the world with design, and home furnishings, and we distill what makes sense for our line, whether we are buying or designing”, says Simon. Maison Objet also gives us a sense of what direction glass is heading in, and in a world with the majority of the glass being machine made, we find we are well differentiated with the ‘hand’ being the core value of what we do. We further defined our design mission while traveling. We monitor what is happening in the market but take a great deal of inspiration from nature, and we blend that with our humanistic approach to design and making things. To capture the essence of our designs, we use a reductive approach of taking away that which isn’t needed to arrive at refined simplicity. The intent of the designs is to amplify the handmade aspect of our products, resulting in objects that are a joy to live with at home.
One takeaway from the show was a growing interest in the handmade with small batch production, and a traceability story about the materials. We found a few other European glass makers, that Simon truly enjoyed talking with, from building furnaces to raw materials used. Glass has also become quite pervasive, as a material of choice for designers.
During the market, all across Paris, the whole city was celebrating ‘Design Week’, with interior design events and companies launching their latest products in their retail outposts.
We had the opportunity to meet with our Italian linen partners, Bertozzi, and reviewed several new designs that they worked on with us, and also some new offerings they created. Their hand block printed patterns are one of Simon’s favorites. While travelling through Morocco Simon discovered Bertozzi linens at one of the hotels he was staying at. When Simon returned from the trip, we pursued the company and since developed a great partnership with them as they have a similar ethos, with the handmade approach to their products.
Initial Sketch
New concepts from the trip will appear in our Fall Holiday season of 2020.
We take crafting glasses seriously at Simon Pearce; and our focus is matched with all the great crafted breweries in the state of Vermont.
Each year we design new concepts that we add to our line of barware, to keep up with the evolution of beer making and tasting. Our silhouettes are carefully formed with the finesse of our glassblowers.
In addition to many iconic beer glasses, some of our stemmed lines that are geared towards wine actually make great beer glasses.
Mick Maguire, our head of technology at Simon Pearce has lent his expertise in brews and tested many of our glasses to find some perfect pairings. He has experimented with prototypes of our new Vintner pulled-stem line, and discovered that they lend themselves perfectly to particular types of beer.
“The form of any vessel effects the drinking experience, not just in a tactile manner. An angular body where the base is wider than the neck will have the effect of concentrating the aroma of the beer helping your nose appreciate the full spectrum of the flavor and will also help preserve the head. This is particularly pronounced with ‘bigger’ beers like bourbon barrel aged stouts and double IPA where it will really bring out the white oak of one and citrus of the other. This means that our Vintner line has ideal candidates for truly appreciating the flavor and nuance of complex craft brews. The Snifter will easily hold a full pour and sits very pleasingly in the hand.”
“For a lighter beer such as a Kolsh or Pilsner, the flute shape of the Ascutney Pint, or the Norwich tall beaker, lend a traditional German feel which brings out the brightness of these nicely.”
“But my go to everyday summer beer glass is the Woodstock Balloon, perfect for sitting round a campfire, it’s robust design makes it very durable and pleasantly weighty, while at the same time it’s oversized bowl allows the nose to enter the glass as you drink, giving a truly full sensory experience.”
“The bottom line is any beverage that has care put into its creation, will taste better in one of our handcrafted glasses, I’d encourage everybody to experiment to see the differences brought about by form, regardless of how a glass is labelled.” -M. Maguire
You can try our glasses out with great beer served at our bar in the Mill. Visit us and experience the difference handcrafted glass makes.
