Base glasses are melted in continuous furnaces, which are always full of molten glass. Raw materials introduced into the furnaces push molten glass out, forcing it, streamlike, down the forehearth channel, past the ladling bay, where secondary glasses are added by hand, and on to the stirring bay, where the combined glasses are hand-stirred together. Continuously moving, the glass then flows between the sheet-forming rolls and into the annealing tunnel. It's the only process of its kind in the world. See Process Diagram.
Color is created as part of the basic raw materials.
Virtually any metallic oxide creates color in glass. Ahem . . . No, really, we make every effort to notify all registered sample set owners for every Sample Set Update. You become a registered owner by returning the postage-paid card that came with your set. Updates normally happen in September, though we've been known to do interim updates during particularly prolific new-product years.