Glass Axis

I took the «Make a Bead» class and was unimpressed. It’s a lot of fun learning how to make the small glass beads over your own flame and in total, the class took about 45 minutes. My complaint is that you were only allowed to make three beads, which doesn’t allow you to really experiment with the glass and try different techniques. I would have much rather had a limited amount of time (like 2 hours) and been allowed to make as many beads as I wanted in that time frame. For the cost of the class ($ 30 per person), I think that they could have given me a little more for my money.

Took the Mother’s Day class with my mom, my boyfriend, and his mom and we all loved it! The demonstration was fast-​paced, but by the time we each took our turn making our ornament everyone felt confident in what to do, and there’s a pro with you every step of the way. Our ornaments turned out beautifully, I can’t wait to display them!
Also before I signed up online I called just to ask a few questions and they were very helpful and patient.
Highly recommended to everyone!

We just moved to Columbus three months ago so weren’t quite sure what to do when family flew in to visit us. The glass blowing class at Glass Axis was a HUGE hit with everyone, but especially my mother in law! She described it as a «bucket list worthy» experience.
The instructor was very personable and made us all feel very comfortable with the process. We all had a great time, even my husband, which kinda surprised me.
I would highly recommend this to anyone entertaining guests, or if you’re just looking for something fun and different to do.

Toured yesterday! You can make a glass ornament, paperweight, flower and more through hands-​on workshops with guidance from a professional artist. If you’re not into blowing your own glass you can watch a demonstration & browse their gift shop filled with beautiful locally made glass art!

Where to begin? I wanted to schedule an appointment for an ornament blowing class for myself and my girlfriend. Three e-​mails went unanswered. I left FIVE voicemails before speaking to a person to set up an appointment. This is a red flag that I should’ve heeded, but I made the appointment nevertheless.
We drove up from Cincinnati on 11/​22/​2013 to take this class and make our ornaments, as this was a special trip for something we’d looked forward to for a long time. When we arrived we were told our instructor wasn’t there yet. 15 minutes after our scheduled class our instructor was ready. The class lasted nine minutes. After the class ended we were told we could have our ornaments shipped to us, since they wouldn’t be ready to pick up until Wednesday. I gave the girl at the front desk my address three times, because she read it back wrong the first two times. I paid the extra shipping and we left, looking forward to putting our custom made ornaments on our Christmas tree. A week went by. No ornaments. Two weeks went by. No ornaments. SIX voicemails left. No call back. Finally I spoke to a person, who said they hadn’t shipped yet but would be shipping that day. A couple days later I received a call from the girl from the front desk that asked if I could describe the ornaments we’d made, because they’d mixed them up and didn’t know which ones were ours. I described our ornaments and she said she’d ship them that day. She read to me the address she had for me — which was wrong, again. I corrected her again, with my confidence dropping by the minute. I asked specifically, «Will we get them in time for Christmas?» to which she replied, «You’ll definitely get them before Christmas.» I checked for packages every day for the next two weeks: I received all the other holiday packages from other sources and carriers; nothing from Glass Axis. Between ¹²⁄₁₄ and ¹²⁄₂₄ I called Glass Axis NINE times with no person answering and no voicemail returned. My girlfriend called another dozen times or so and finally got someone that attempted to help. Beth, who was identified as a boardmember of Glass Axis, told her that the package was shipped, but they have no tracking number, confirmation number, or any record of the address is was sent to. Beth then said that they think they shipped it to the wrong address and that someone else is «enjoying our creations.» Beth offered to send us ornaments made by someone who hadn’t picked up their ornaments, which defeats the purpose of experiencing the glass-​blowing process. Why would I want someone else’s ornaments? Beth then blamed all of these problems on the fact that they are non-​profit, staffed by volunteers, and busy at Christmas. No responsibility for any of these failures was taken by someone who is supposedly a boardmember of this organization. Finally, a refund was offered and accepted. A check will be mailed to my home: hopefully it doesn’t get sent to the same place as the ornaments.
This doesn’t seem to be a mistake or goof; Glass Axis showed themselves to be systematically inept at every step of this process. Don’t waste your time or money.

We attended a First Experience Class to make ornaments and had a very fun time!
I had expected, perhaps, a bit more formal introduction to blowing glass (for example, the instructor did not introduce herself or tell us about Glass Axis as a non-​profit glass works center). However, the informal «jump right in» style really worked out wonderfully. We had a lot of fun making our ornament and are looking forward to picking it up when it has had time to cool.
What a cool thing to say you’ve done in Columbus Ohio!

I had so much fun making my first ever piece of glass art, a beautiful and unique paper weight! The instructor I had, named Kami, was an excellent teacher! I had an amazing experience that I’ll never forget. They also have a shop with lots of unique items that are great for gifts. During the winter months they have some great holiday specials… check them out for sure!

What?! This place was practically in my backyard (well, just neighborhood actually) for all of my days in Grandview and it just now popped on my radar?! Color me oblivious.
Maybe it’s because I’m not terribly crafty (sometimes) or artsy enough to make things (especially out of glass) but I’m blown away — haha, get it? — that it took me so long to learn more about this place. It’s been in Grandview since 2001!
Of course I ventured here with the nudge from a friend and came to inquire about ways to display race medals. And also ask every question in the book about bonding temperatures, bonding materials, adhesiveness, cutting temperatures, cutting methods… you get the picture. I’m happy to report our helper dude was awesome — AND incredibly knowledgeable!
Member artists have access to affordable glass blowing, glass fusing, torch working, cold working, stained glass and neon facilities, plus studio, exhibition, education, outreach, and income-​producing opportunities all under one roof. By linking artists to the thousands of patrons that visit the art center each year for courses, demonstrations, exhibitions, and special events, Glass Axis becomes a vibrant civic hub of art production and community participation, bolstering sustainable cultural equity throughout Ohio and beyond.
Beyond all that, Glass Axis is a nonprofit art center that offers artists, students, and curious people like me the they need to create incredible works of glass! I did notice class prices are a bit pricey, but I’m definitely considering saving up for one.
I forgot to also mention GA is also a gallery & shop. TONS of cool, unique holiday gifts are lining the place. Definitely considering it as a stop for a neat gift this season!

I went for something like an open house where they were selling different pieces. I can’t say what one thing wouldn’t bring me back to this location, whether it was the fact that I struggled to get the attention of the few staff people that were around, or that I didnt know what was being offered that day until I spoke to someone-​that was hard to flag down. I’ve also signed up for a class here, before I visited, and after it was cancelled due to equipment breaking down, it was hard to me to get an answer as to when the class was being offered again. By the time they got back to me, it was months later and I didnt have the extra time or money to spend on it.

I won a gift certificate for a blown glass tumbler class as part of a Tweet and Go Seek campaign. While it had never really dawned on me to look into a glass blowing class, I was really excited about the opportunity!
Unfortunately, I’m not the most logical girl in the world, so I scheduled my class for a 100 degree day in July. Not the wisest choice. :) Obviously, the furnaces used for glass blowing put out a TON of heat, and it would be ridiculous to try to air condition the space. So, there was a lot of sweating going on. If you do venture here in the summer, I’d recommend bringing a water bottle. But, even if you forget, the water fountain in the room has very cold water.
When I pulled up to the building, two other people who were taking the class were sitting in their cars outside. The building was locked up. I’m glad they were there, or else I would’ve thought I had the wrong day! Our instructor was about 15 minutes late. Luckily, someone in the building saw us waiting outside and let us in. He then made some calls and the instructor came rushing in shortly after.
The actual instruction part of the class was great! He took us through things step by step, including showing us common mistakes and how to fix them. This helped to put everyones’ minds at ease to see that nearly all mistakes are fixable. My only complaint about the class is that the furnaces and fans are pretty loud, so it was sometimes hard to hear what the instructor was saying. He would sometimes walk over to a different furnace, and it was hard to tell when we were supposed to follow him, or if he was just grabbing something real quick.
I think that this would actually be a fun date spot, as long as you don’t mind getting a little sweaty in front of the person you’re trying to impress. :) All in all, it was a great time! I would definitely like to come back for another class.