Haand has been playing with the idea of creating a glassware line for a long time.
Glass shares many similarities to pottery: both are formed in heat, and both have been key building blocks of culture throughout history.
It is a material that always sits on the table next to tableware, and we always get requests for recommendations from customers.
Chris Kerr-Ayer is an incredibly gifted glass artist, existing in a similar space as Haand did in our early days: equal parts art, production craftsmanship, and design. As a result, we quickly had a shorthand to talk through the minutiae of balancing the three parts of our respective trades mentioned above.
The design process for these 3 styles was really unique for me. I combed through some books about Elizabethan and Roman Glass and did some deep dives on auction sites for historic glassware. I brought this to Chris, along with some dimensions and general guidelines: it was really important to us both that the maker’s hand was evident in every piece. We amplified this by making sure that tool marks, slight imperfections, and little variations are evident in each piece. It is a testament to Chris’s skill and craftsmanship that he could include these marks and they don’t take away from each piece, instead, they make each one more unique and perfect- perfectly Haandmade.
This was very much a back and forth, I led on design and concept and Chris gave his input on that, and Chris focused on the details that really make these shine like the small tool marks, the natural curves formed by hot glass, and maintaining consistency with each of these pieces. He does that all by using just his eye and a pair of calipers.
- Mark Warren, Co-Founder and Creative Director, Haand October 2022
The Highball / Water Glass
This shape leapt out at us as soon as we got the first prototype. It reminds me of labware, and a story I read one time about some scientists stationed in Antarctica doing research during the cold endless nights of the winter there.
Everyone had secretly “remembered” to bring some alcohol, but everyone had neglected to bring glasses. So, rather than drink from the bottle directly, they began using clean lab beakers, and chunks of ice from outside to water things down.
These are slimmed down a bit from that, but would be right at home on the set of John Carpenter’s “The Thing” (before things go horribly wrong, of course). This glass is perfect for a highball cocktail, a refreshing seltzer water with lime, or just plain old water. The clarity of the glass and the sparkles of condensation couldn’t be a more enticing invitation to “drink me…”
The Wine Glass
The outline of this piece is based on Flemish wineglasses, the kind you see peeking out of a pile of fruit or fish in a 16th-century still life.
The slight tulip shape and the short stem help the wine (red or white, or sherry, or sake, whatever) open up and stay cool as you carry it.
It’s not a common shape anymore, but as soon as you hold it in your hand, you can tell why it was such a popular shape for so many centuries.
The Tumbler
Based on the informal, simple, bodega-style glasses you get in Spain when you order a glass of white wine on an afternoon. I first used this kind of glass when I visited my friend Lilli in Barcelona, and I fell in love with the simplicity. I sneakily grabbed two from the plaza on my way out- one more college student studying abroad bringing home a little bit of pretension to share with mom and dad.
This shape is perfect for anything you want a little bit of: cocktails, juice, mineral water, wine, egg nog… The shape fits gently in your hand, and clicks nicely on a table top.
It’s my go to, everyday glass now for water at my desk, and my daughter whenever she demands her “special drink” of seltzer water with a single maraschino cherry.
Chris Kerr-Ayer
Christopher Kerr-Ayer grew up in rural Vermont and began working with glass at a young age when he was a junior in high school. He learned and refined his craft as a glass blower working in studios of renowned glass artists around the country for several years. His personal studio practice focuses on the fine between functional and non-functional objects, producing both sculptural work and production glassware.
He started THE POOL GLASSWORKS, a design-forward housewares company and it is through THE POOL that Haand and Chris created this collaborative line of glassware exclusively for Haand. Christopher is currently based in New Hampshire and continues to travel the country, learning, exploring, and refining his craft.
