No one likes to sit down to dinner at a friend’s or neighbor’s house only to realize the hostess has the same dinnerware, glassware, crystal, etc. as you have at home. Though we know the only way to have something truly unique is to go bespoke, we like to believe the homes we’ve created are uniquely ours. Studios like Rolf Glass help to make that happen.
Glassmaking Roots
Rolf Glass can be found in the Western Pennsylvania town of Mount Pleasant which itself has a history of glassmaking. In fact, the company notes that each piece of Rolf Glass is engraved in the historic Mount Pleasant Glass Center, which just happens to be the former Lenox Crystal factory. So too does company founder and president Rolf Poeting have a history in the industry. Poeting came to the U.S. from Germany three decades ago with the idea of expanding his family’s glass machinery business.
At a time when much of the industry was moving production overseas, Poeting decided to put three generations of glass industry knowledge and his own degree in business management to work. He established his own glassmaking studio, Rolf Glass, and has infused the company’s American-made product lines with both sophistication and a sense of humor.
Design Philosophy
The goal at Rolf Glass is to add “a touch of fun to the table.” Poeting and his team want their pieces to inspire conversation and reflect the personality of the homeowner. For example, those who live by or are simply enamored by the coast can choose from motifs including palm trees, sailboats and starfish; those looking for something more contemporary can turn to engraved spirals and pearls; and those with a penchant for all things vintage can really go all American with the studio’s Soda Fountain line of glassware.
The idea here is for everyday glassware that reflects one’s everyday personality and style. A welcoming pineapple? A classic Fleur de Lis? A gothic Skull & Cross Bones? Rolf’s has got all your interests and design preferences covered.
Custom Design
While the studio’s standard lines are themselves steeped in personalization, if you really can’t find what you desire among the regular product lines that give nod to regions (Lonestar), Mother Nature (Dragonfly) and much more, the company offers custom work as well. Among the options are custom monogramming, glass cutting and custom engraving and etching making it possible to take a glass collection to a whole new and unique level.
History in the Details
With a lengthy family history in glassmaking and a manufacturing facility with a history of its own, it isn’t just locations and iconography that influence the designs that come from this studio. In 2010, Rolf Glass entered into a licensing agreement with Old Salem Museums and Gardens in Winston-Salem, N.C. The agreement led to the Charleston collection of glassware, the pattern for which was inspired by the fretwork of a chest-on-chest from Charleston, South Carolina.
The original detailed piece is circa 1770 and part of the collection at the Museum of Early Southern Decorative Arts at Old Salem Museums & Gardens. It features a motif that is based on the designs of Thomas Chippendale and often referred to as “Elfe Fret” after the cabinetmaker Thomas Elfe. Rolf’s designers interpreted the architectural pattern on cut and polished all-purpose and balloon crystal glasses and on a trifle bowl with matching gray cut fret pattern.
Old Salem Museums & Gardens itself is a very unique story. It’s a community of original museum buildings, authentic craftsmen practicing their trade, collections of antiques and one-of-a-kind shopping. And, naturally, the opportunity to pick up a few of Rolf’s Charleston glasses.
