Displays Under Glass – Cloches and Boxes
Almost anything looks like art if it is displayed under glass in cloches, bell jars, or glass boxes. It tends to isolate and capture the beauty in everyday objects, bits of nature, found junk and small collections. It will call you closer to stop and look.
Small items on their own seem to get lost or overlooked but grouped together under glass they become vibrant and compelling.
Consider changing your cloche displays with the season. Our creative sister-in-law Lou (that’s short for Lori) changes out her collection of glass with the season. She looks for small decorating items at yard sales, thrifts, and online. Her glass includes belled cloches, stemware, and cake domes paired with interesting plates and stands.
When walking outside or thrifting always look for small interesting bits of beauty that can be used under glass. Metal flower frogs to hold postcards or old photos, small vases for height, bird nests, just junk basically.
The great thing about making this kind of art is you can change it up all the time so it takes the pressure out of getting things perfect.
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Looking for a cloche (that’s the fancy word for bell jar)? Wander through an antique store or save time and shop online. Amazon has some beautiful ones: Cloche Trio
If you don’t own a cloche or during the holidays need more you can use jars like these: Glass Jar and Lid Maybe a big one and a medium sized one next to each other. These classic lidded glass jars have been in production since the 1940s, the perfect see-through for displaying anything from kitchen staples to salads to holiday decorations!
Go outside. Look around. Rocks, pinecones, pods, nests, shells, and moss are free and mix well with vintage paper (big word ephemera) and photos or old postcards or just print something and clip it to a jar as a backdrop. You can also use tape or photo corners or a metal frog. Consider using dried grains, peas, rice, or salt to add dimension.
Don’t limit yourself to glass domes and vases — think anything that is glass!
Play! Just start playing with your collected objects. Tell a story or make a little world. If it doesn’t work move it around until it does. There is no one right way! Everything will look artsy under glass.
