mountains in glass
Why is there a mountain in the glass?
Isn't it also as real as the real thing? This mysterious glass is "North Drinkware". It is a product with craftsmanship that came from Portland, Oregon, USA. If you're a free skier, you've probably seen this mountain floating in the glass. Mt.Hood (3,429 m), the highest peak in Oregon, is a popular location for ski movies. This is the memorable first work of "North Drinkware".
What is North Drinkware?
This "North Drinkware" is a design project that started with the idea of three friends who love mountains. The three of them love the outdoors, and their hobbies are traveling through the mountains of the United States whenever they find time. The three of them, who have specialized fields such as design, engineering, and marketing, and a wealth of business experience, continued to have the desire to turn their favorite mountains into a product with their own hands.
As a result, they came up with the idea of engraving the local mountains they love so much into a glass.
It is also a product with a lot of attention to detail that draws the details of the mountain from topographic data of the USGS (United States Geological Survey) and faithfully reproduces the real thing in a style called hand blowing (hand blowing). Even if the person who climbed the mountain returns home, if he/she picks up the glass, the scene of the mountain will be projected vividly, and he/she will be immersed in the memories of the trip.
Here, please see the photo of Mt.Food above and the glass photo below.
Comparing them, they are very delicate and finished in the same way. Putting clay and plaster aside, the material is glass. It can be said that it is the culmination of the efforts of the producers who truly love the mountains and the high technical skills of the craftsmen.
Process Is Everything
The shape of the mountain floating at the bottom of the glass is based on detailed data obtained from USGS terrain data. Based on that data, the design is confirmed by 3D printing and a prototype mold is created.
And to make hand-blown glasses, it is said that making hand-blown glasses requires years of experience and skills, and a complete order-made process.
It takes more than 15 processes in two days to make one glass, and craftsmen repeat this process hundreds of times a day, carefully handcrafting each one. No matter how hard a craftsman works, he can only make 7 or 8 pieces in a day. That's what makes it so valuable. Please watch the video to see the artistic craftsmanship of the craftsmen.
Success story background
Started by three friends, the "North Drinkware" design project kicked off in February 2015. They announced the first work "The Oregon Pint" with Mt.Food engraved on the glass on Kickstarter, the largest crowdfunding service in the United States. The project's initial goal was $ 15,000 . It is said that it only set the manufacturing cost and shipping cost of the mold necessary to deliver the product to the supporters.
Unexpectedly, however, the results of the crowdfunding campaign were staggering. Exceeded the goal of $15,000 in just 5 hours and 15 minutes, achieved 200% funding in 28 hours, surpassed 2000% in 5 days, and finally acquired 5,620 backers in a month campaign. (about 55 million yen) which is 35 times as much .
This great success was covered by many domestic and international media outlets, including The New York Times. After that, they released a series of mountains in each state of the United States one after another, and now the lineup of "North Drinkware" is 11 works. Let's take a peek to see if there's a mountain you know. Of course, the Grand Teton, the highest peak of the Teton Mountains, which the long-established ski movie TGR (Teton Gravity Research) is based on, is also included.
Lineup list:
https://sputnikshop.jp/blogs/products/north-drinkware-collection
Introduced by sputnik What
made Japan debut
"Sputnik" introduced this "North Drinkware" for the first time in Japan. The representative, Hodaka Endo, is a true travel lover, outdoor enthusiast, mountain lover, and of course a skier. He founded “sputnik” in 2017, and since then has been importing and selling “things that resonate with the heart” found on his life’s work, traveling around the world.
From ski-related items such as helmets and goggle covers to lifestyle miscellaneous goods, the brands they handle all have stories of Mr. Endo's travels and encounters with people.
(It's very interesting, so I'd like to tell you about it another time.) When I was in America, a designer I worked with told me about the designer of "North Drinkware" and told me there was something interesting. received.
When I heard the story, I was fascinated by the craftsmanship style of making each item by hand and the story behind it. It was 2017. The designer was a snowboarder, so they went to meet him and played in the mountains together, and they hit it off. Due to their busy schedules, it took some time to develop in Japan, but in August 2020, they finally made their Japanese debut. Sales have started at outdoor and mountain specialty stores, limited 5 stores, and sputnik online store. However, since it is a completely handmade product, the number of production and imports is limited, and it is said that it will be sold in limited quantities for each season. ...... That means that it can be said that it is a premium to get in Japan.
No matter what you pour into the glass, your drink will be delicious in this glass. Spend a relaxing time while admiring the sparkling mountains recreated in a glass. Why don't you enjoy your rich time?
A masterpiece unique to Japan? ! Project in progress with hot expectations
Secretly at the end?
Notice to STEEP readers. According to Mr. Endo of sputnik,
"If we're going to develop it in Japan, we'd like to make a product of a famous Japanese mountain that we're all familiar with. Actually, we made it so that we can release Mt. Fuji as our first work in Japan in December of this year. It is difficult to make one by one from the mold, but I hope that eventually I will be able to make one work a year, such as Mt. Tateyama or Mt. Yotei in Niseko
. This is so much fun.
The Oregon (Mt. Hood) PintOregon (Mt. Hood
)
pint glass
¥9,000 (excluding tax)
text : STEEP Editorial Department Photo : sputnik