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Marble Information

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SIZING

 

The marble sizes given are always approximate. With machine made marbles the sizes will typically vary by up to a mm either side of the size given, so a 14mm marble could be either a 13mm or 15mm marble.

 

This is normal and is part of the process of making marbles as it is always going to be difficult when working with liquid glass to get an exact size.

 

Size variations will look more obvious with smaller sizes and could vary more than a mm for larger size marbles.

 

Further to this our marbles are made in batches to bring them to you at the best prices possible, however the sizes and colours of any one marble will vary from batch to batch and this a normal part of the process. Colours seen in glass are affected by the humidity, temperature and other conditions on the day they are made, as is the size as atmosphere effects the rate at which the glass cools. While every effort is made to make marbles as similar as possible to one another, their differences are what make them unique and special. We believe this is why they are so treasured around the world – NO ONE will have exactly the same marble as you have!

FINISH

 

There are several finishes that your machine-made marble could have. These include:

  • Lustered – these are marbles with an opalescent finish on the outside of the marble which is transparent but with a multicoloured sheen.
  • Frosted – frosted marbles are marbles with a tumbled style finish. They are still completely round but are harder to see through if they are clear.
  • Textured – Textured marbles have pieces of coloured glass dropped into the outside and are therefore not completely round. Some textured marbles can also be lustered.
  • Standard – Standard marbles have no lustre, no texture and are not frosted. They can still be simply marble-ous though!

Handmade marbles tend to just have a standard finish but the product description will state if it is different.

 

‘Roll Marks’ are a normal part of any machine-made marble as a making-mark which indicates the way the marble was made – from rolling molten glass through a machine to shape them. These marks tend to be more visible in the largest sizes of marbles (Giant 35mm, Massive 42mm & Enormous 50mm) but there is a potential for them to be found in all sizes of machine-made marbles because marbles can always be affected by the conditions on the day they are made (atmosphere, humidity, daily temperature). A lustered finish may also highlight these marks where they would otherwise be much more difficult to see (which textured finishes tend to mask roll marks that may be there).

VARIATION

Handmade Marbles

 

Handmade marbles are stunning and vary widely. There will also be variation from marble to marble and this is part of the uniqueness of them. It makes them special and more collectable.

 

On occasion, there may be makers marks which are an enduring mark from the process of imbibing a particular design. For example, eyeball marbles may often have a small poke mark in the front of the design where the pupil has been added.

Machine Made Marbles

 

Machine made marbles are made from rolling molten glass. The larger the marble the clearer it is to see how they were made. These are called ‘roll marks’ and while they will be imperceptible in small marbles, enormous marbles will almost always have visible signs of the making process. massive and sometimes giant machine-made marbles may also sometimes have these marks.

Collectors Marbles

 

Collectors’ marbles are always unique from one another because they are handmade and larger in size than our own range of handmade marbles. They will be made using a range of unique methods and variety of types of glass, for example by adding millefiori designs, and using borosilicate glass.

 

Collectors’ marbles are often signed by the maker and may have a year of creation marked on them as well. This can sometimes be done by adding text in platinum or engraving the glass. This is normally done very subtly and adds to the unique nature of these marbles.

Where we have several marbles of the same design, for example with our Teign Valley Glass & Glass Eye Studio Marbles, the images shown are not of the exact marble you will receive and we would expect variations, with the image to be used as a guide only. This is because the atmosphere on the day they are made (temperature, humidity, etc) and the maker themselves will affect the exact detailing which will include things such as colour vibrancy, the amount of additional elements which are presented (such as aventurine or dichroic pieces) and also the shape and size will vary slightly too. These are all elements which effect every handmade marble but they are usually more visible in marbles where several of the same design are made.