Daily Los Angeles herald., 1879-02-27

A SPUN.GLASS COSTUME.
Professor Groi ner's Marvellous Dress Pattern.
rs II. Chronicle.1

| Is. Z. Chronicle.1
In the large basement room of
the residence of s. Isaacs, at No.
1884 Mission street, between Tenth
and Eleventh, is now being woven
the most wonderful fabric of which
the voluminous history of unique
feminine apparel furnishes any c.
count. 1t is the material, as flexi-
BILE as the finest silk and as dura-
BILE as Blue Jean w illiams's favor
rite stuff for trousurs, for lady's
dress, and it is being woven by the
world-renowned artist in glass
work, Professor Theodore Greiner,
out of innumerable colOred strands
Of glass first spun by himself.
Compared with the completed gar
ment, the mythical glass slipper
of the fabulous Cinderella will
sink into as vulgar, an insignifi-
cance as an exhausted Napa soda
bottle. The Professor is native of
Bohemia, and is the lineal descend
ant of noble family of glass
blowers. His great great grand.
father. Adolphus Greiner, stood
head and shoulders above the pro-
fession in his day; his great grand.
father, Wilhelmi Greiner, sur
passed Adolphus in that he made
| the celebrated glass violin; his
grandfather, Rhinehart Greiner,
was reckoned the glass world beater
of his age; and his father, Gustave
Greiner, and his brother, Fritz
Greiner, are now in partnership in
Chicago, and it is admitted by en-
inent medical authorities that they
have done more for the spread of
homeopathy by the exquisite way
in which they blow out those pretty
little bottles for those pretty little
pills than even Hahnemann, the
handy man Who invented the pro-
cess. But the father ard brother
followed the utilitarian paths of
working in glass, while the more
susceptible Theodore struck out in
THE EsTHETIC WALKS
OF the profession. Seven years ago
S. Isaacs, then o resident of New
Orleans, and who has O phenomen-
al eye for the beauties of nature
and art, had his attention attracted
to the classic excellencies of the
beads, buggies, lamp chimneys,
ornamental chandeliers and mis-
cellaneous bric-a.bric constructed
by Professor Greiner. They entered
into copartnership, since which
they have been wandering to and
fro in the world. In 1873 they
were at the Vienna International
Exhibition, where the Professor
out-blew all other glass-blowers as
decisively as q Washoe zephyr out
ranks q dead calm, and where Mr..
Isaacs challenged the whole world
to produce his equal. The same
at the Philadelphia Centennial.
During February and March of
last year they had store at No.
325 Kearney street, where two per-
fectly working steam.engines
made entirely of glass, human
anatomy of glass with glass veins,
through which q representation of
the ebb and flow of the human
blood could be seen, and the Pro-
fessor himself at work, were on ex-
hibition, and daily drew crowds of
delighted spectators. Since then
they have been travelling through
out the Pacific Coast and about two
months ago returned here, where
the Professor mediately started
in upon
HIS GREAT WORK.
A Chronicle reporter called on him
recently and he very courteously
showed him the entire process.
Breaking an extra piece out of the
soiled bottom of an already broken
tumbler, he submitted it to the
heat of a blowpipe until 1t became
incandescent and soft. Then, with
stick of glass he touched the
molten portion, and with an ex-
pert motion, which may be de-
scribed as flip, he carried a thread
so fine that it was almost invisible
till 1t caught on the disc Of slowly
revolving, wide wooden wheel, of
nineteen feet circumference. AT a
certain number of revolutions the
strand was complete and the wheel
was stopped and it removed. 1t
then consisted of finnumerable soft
lv glistening threads, finer than
the finest of floss silk. These
strands are spun of all celors and
are then washed in q solution of
water and beet-root sugar, which
toughens them. The spinning is
all done, and occupied many
weeks. The weaving is being done
on an old.fashioned hand-loom, the
warp being nineteen feet long and
woof four feet, SO that the material
will cut to splendid advantage.
Only about ten inches day can be
woven, and the whole piece will
not be completed until some time
in April. 1t IL now of that ex-
tremely fashionable, loose and care
less admixture of colors, known as
the Oriental. When the dress is
made it is to be worn by
A YOUNG WAX LADY
With a glass head blown expressly
for the purpose by the Professor,
profusely ornamented with blonde
glass curls. The dress is to be
made with panier skirt, loop
sleeves and square neck. 1t Is to
beautified with box pleating, and
bound with blue. It was at first
intended to make it low wasted,
like Louisa Lorne's, but grave
fear was entertained that the indig-
nant blood of modesty would
mantle the wearer's crystal cheeks
with blushes, and possibly melt
her wax body irremediably. When
the dress and the wearer are
fully constructed, they will
be put on exhibition in
this city. At the coronation of
Queen Victoria she wore dress the
woof of which was of spun glass,
but the warp of silk. This was
then thought to be the greatest
triumph which could ever be ac-
complished in the glass business.