Good question! It’s a bit of a long-winded answer, but many find it very useful to understand, so we invite you to read all about it here: Understanding Our Numbering System.

There are any number of reasons why we choose to discontinue a product. It is never a simple decision, and it's always more complex than just "slow sales" There's usually a compounding production-related factor, such as equipment or scheduling limitations, combined with poor demand for the product, that lead us to choose to "discontinue" production.

Certainly. There have been many cases of products being reinstated to the standard line. It usually means we've solved the production issues that originally led to its demise and feel demand is strong enough to warrant making it again.

Normally it's due to our inability to accurately predict the future. The nature of our process requires us to run an extended color cycle. That is, the colors must be run in a set sequence, and it takes months to go through the cycle. So, when we make red, for example, we make enough to stock and sell for the entire length of the color cycle—until we get back to red again. Sounds simple enough, but the longer the cycle, the harder it is to accurately predict sales volumes.

At other times, our capacities have been so overburdened that we've chosen to skip certain products in the cycle in favor of others. Knowing that we're going to be out of something, we might to choose to produce clear Waterglass® and skip orange. These are tough decisions, and they are extremely rare.

Oceanside Compatible™ “Fusible Range” (FR) glass is tested Oceanside Compatible, yet falls outside of a stock item’s standard visual characteristic range in some way (color, translucency, surface, mix, etc.). These quality fusible products offer excellent savings for glass fusion artisans whose creations do not require strict color tolerances for their work. See FR Rack Packs for more information.

NON-Fusible Oceanside “Artisans Gems” (AG) glass is available in a useful assortment of colors and styles (including mixes and textures). AG identifies a sheet glass product that has fallen outside of standard tolerances during production for any variety of reasons, including COE, color, translucency, surface, mix, etc. These beautiful sheets of glass, when available are offered at healthy discounts for stained glass and mosaic artisans looking for a few hidden gems at a great price. Packed in a handy wooden mini-crate, each box contains eighty 12x12s (+/- 1⁄4”) in a range of product SKUs. See AG Rack Packs for more information.

Absolutely. In some products it's obvious, in others, less so. Generally speaking, the shinier side is the top or front side of the sheet. Rolled textures are always textured on the back side of the sheet.

What causes the little comet-shaped marks on the surface of some of your glasses?

We call them "seed tracks." In some particularly gaseous glass compositions, a bubble will form in the stirring bay (the pool where glasses of different colors are stirred together). That bubble pops as it's drawn through the sheet-forming rolls, creating a "track" on the sheet surface. We make every effort to keep them to a minimum.

In glasses that aren't intentionally seedy, the seed count and size vary with the nature of the glass composition. Some glasses, notably ambers, champagnes and purples, are naturally more gaseous in nature than others. Gas in the glass equals bubbles in the sheet.

Can your glass be tempered?

Sure, but it might break in the process. Tempering is a process generally performed by glass fabricators. It is the process of putting the stress that we've so carefully annealed out of the glass, back into it. Successful tempering depends on the particular glass's ability to stand up to induced internal stresses. So, fairly simple glasses will temper fairly well (smooth cathedrals) and more complex ones may be less cooperative (such as Baroque™).

If your fabricator is willing to test on a small scale, experimenting with the tempering process to find a set of time-temperature relationships that will provide acceptable results on the product desired. Acceptable results would be a rate of loss (breakage) in the tempering process that your fabricator could live with. The trial & error process will require close cooperation of the tempering facility you're working with.

Bottom line: art glass of any kind will not temper as dependably (low breakage rate) as float glass, because it's not near as "perfect," or flawless. But it can be done and has been. Consider lamination, when safety glass requirements need to be met.

Baroque is very unique. In it we mix together two or more glasses of intentionally mis-matched compositions. The glasses, of slightly different expansions, "resist" being mixed together and don't homogenize easily. Thus, the characteristic reamy pattern and high-contrast mixes. Due to the nature of Baroque, the sheets have slightly more internal stress than other Oceanside Glass & Tile products. Which means greater care is in order when cutting.

Baroque is a "reamy" glass, whose texture is produced by stirring together two glasses of carefully mismatched compositions. The glasses, of slightly different expansions, "resist" being mixed together and don't homogenize easily. Thus, the characteristic reamy pattern and high-contrast mixes. Due to the nature of Baroque, the sheets have slightly more internal stress than other Oceanside Glass & Tile products. Which means greater care is in order when cutting.

Baroque formulas call for two or more glasses of intentionally mis-matched compositions, of slightly different expansion rates. These mis-matched glasses (required to create the visual/textural effect of Baroque) so not hold up well in fusing processes.

It is produced by over-stretching the glass ribbon as it emerges from the Forming Rolls, while it is still hot enough to shape. This stretching action forms the organically rippled Waterglass surface.

Score the glass on the back side (the flatter side) to ensure an even, uniform score. Don't forget to reverse your pattern if you want the wavy side out in the finished project.

The Waterglass® texture is created by stretching the molten glass ribbon as it exits the sheet-forming rolls. Grasp two ends of anything with some give and stretch it. Gets narrower, right? There 'ya go.

Why does the Waterglass® texture seem to vary somewhat from color to color?

Different colors, even different densities of the same color, have different heat-retention properties, and thus, different viscosities at the same stage in the sheet-forming process. These properties directly affect the texture that results when the hot glass ribbons "stretched." We do make adjustments during the runs for consistency of texture, but you will see some differences on close examination.

Why does the Waterglass® texture seem to vary somewhat from color to color?

Compressed air is forced into the molten stream in the forehearth channel. As you might guess, this makes the glass 'bubbly.'

Probably not, unless you require enough to purchase an entire day’s run, including any fall-down during production. Our final response depends entirely on what the request is, how much you need and your time frame. If you believe that your needs meet all of the above purchasing criteria, please send an email with specifics so that we may provide a complete answer.

Immediately downstream from the sheet forming rolls, the hot glass is sprayed with a liquid metallic crystal that bonds to the surface, creating the colorful, shimmering reflections.

These are rolled textures. Their patterns are embossed on the bottom forming roll, which textures the sheet as it passes through.

No. Glue chip is a cold-glass process, that is, it's a treatment done to glass sheets long after they're produced. Many glue-chip manufacturers do use Oceanside Glass & Tile glass, though. See the Glossary of Art Glass Terms for an explanation of how Glue Chip is made.

Color is created as part of the basic raw batching materials. Virtually any metallic oxide creates color in glass. Some of the most common include: cobalt (some Blues), copper (some Blues & Greens), manganese (Purples), sulfur (Ambers) selenium (Reds & Oranges), cadmium (Yellows), chrome (some Greens), fluorine (White opal) and nickel (Gray).

Not at this writing. Artique®, Rough Rolled, and Waterglass® have broad color selections but generally we limit the production of rolled textures (Hammered, Granite, etc.) to colors that sell well enough to justify carrying the inventory.