2007 VGCI Convention Photos

No trip to San Antonio would be complete without a trip to the Alamo!
The Riverwalk is less than a block from the Alamo!  This shot was taken before the crowds arrived for lunch.
This display is by native Texan Mike Di Gennaro.  His display was of the ROSE pattern by Tiffin.  He won the awards for best theme and best visual display.  Please notice the stuffed armadillo, complete with a bottle of Lone Star Beer.  That is a Jackalope at the top of the display.  There was also a longhorn steer bleached skull, leaning against a cactus on the floor in front of the display.  The thumbnail picture is of a bedroom tray with heavy opalescent treatment.This display was voted most educational.  It shows the wide variety of colors that can be found in URANIUM GLASS.  There was some vaseline glass in the display, but all of the pieces on the table glow a bright neon green.  A blacklight was available to test the various pieces.This piece won ‘best single piece’ and is owned by Tommy and Linda KapicaAlice Venables’ display was ‘by the numbers’, showing various patterns and the pieces that come with the patterns.  this is a panoramic view, so please scroll to the right.

This display by Susan Fox introduced the members to a pattern we have all seen before and we also knew that Val St. Lambert made the pattern, but what we did not know is that the pattern had a name!  “VALAMBERT”.  Susan had books showing original catalog illustrations with the name boldly at the top.  Check out the HUGE water pitcher!  It must hold about 1 1/2 Gallons!

Jim and Betty Reynolds had an interesting display with some unusual Green uranium glass pieces.  While at the convention, Jim and Betty found out that the unusual vase in the foreground/center, was made in Czechoslovakia!  Sherry Stevenson was a guest speaker at the convention, and Sherry’s expertise is in Bohemian and Czech glass.

Squeaker and Ike Bootsma brought their Belmont Daisy and Button with Lace Edge pattern with them!  This has always been a popular pattern with vaseline glass collectors!

Kris Moorhouse shipped her glass from Oregon to San Antonio, just to do a display!  (Sadly, one piece was broken).  Kris displayed some terrific art glass, including a matching epergne and Bride’s Basket bowl with amethyst interior, vaseline rim, and milk glass exterior.  This is also a panoramic shot, so click on the larger image, then scroll left to right.  On the far right is opaque pink, fading to vaseline glass.  We also discovered at the convention this year, that it was made in the Bohemian region of Austria, about 1880-1910.  The maker is still unknown, but we now know that this combination came from there, not England.

Frank and Melissa Keathley arrived late Friday, but still got a display put together, showing some wonderful Murano creatures of the sea.  The close up to the left is of an octopus.  The large shark with the smoky nose in the back row (center) was a monster piece and received lots of oohs and ahhs!  They also had a small cabinet with miniatures that did not make it into this photo.

Jack Loranger was a Keynote speaker at the convention and these are two of the pieces that he brought for visual aids, and they were then he sold off his visual aids to convention attendees!  Due to the lack of vaseline glass cullet in the US, Jack has had to explore alternatives to making glowing glass.  The vase on the right has a thin layer of vaseline glass from glassmaker’s stock obtained from New Zealand.  The exterior of the piece is clear glass.  Jack also feathered in green adverturine glass, which has microscopic glitter particles in it.  The little blue and white vase has phosphorus imbedded in the glass!  You can actually ‘charge up’ the vase, using household or UV light, and it will continue to glow for 2 or 3 hours after the lights are turned off!  The large photo is a Panoramic shot, and the photo at the far right shows the piece glowing with lights off!

This huge decanter was converted to a lamp, complete with the stopper being used as a finial.  It was donated to VGCI for the Silent auction by Peggy and Louis Wester.

Another photo of donated glass for the silent auction, which helps immensely for convention and club expenses!