Shaping pads
Also called newspaper pad, wet pad
Wet newspaper pads and their modern covers and carbon-fiber substitutes, for shaping hot glass by hand.
What it is
The traditional shaping pad is a folded pad of water-soaked newspaper, roughly 15 cm (6”) square and 1.3–2.5 cm (½–1”) thick, held in the bare hand.[1] Makers now sell covers and alternatives: Standard Glass’s Newspaper Koozie is a woven graphite-fiber cover for your own newspaper pad,[2] and Leviathan’s Carbon Weave pads are dual-sided pads with a cotton insert.[3]
How it’s used
Wet newspaper shapes the piece much as a block does.[1] Covers like the Koozie are meant to extend the life of the newspaper and, in Hot Glass Color’s words, prevent “smoke and ash from getting all up in your grill”.[2]
Sources
Shaping pads in the archive 4
| Photo | Tool | Maker | Sellers |
|---|---|---|---|
| Carbon Weave Steamer Pad, 6" × 6"A dual-sided carbon weave steamer pad with a cotton insert, for shaping without the smoke. | Leviathan GlassWorks | 1 | |
| Carbon Weave Steamer Pad, 8" × 7.5"A larger dual-sided carbon weave steamer pad with a cotton insert, for shaping without the smoke. | Leviathan GlassWorks | 1 | |
| Newspaper KoozieA cover for a wet newspaper shaping pad: woven graphite on the working side, sewn with Kevlar thread, so the paper never touches the glass. | Standard Glass | 3 | |
| Shape Shifter Carbon Wool Pad, 9" × 10"A 1/4" carbon wool shaping pad, big enough to protect the hand and arm while shaping hot glass. | Leviathan GlassWorks | 1 |
