Annieglass Meet the Artist Event

Annie Morhauser, award-winning American glass artist and owner/ founder of Annieglass, will visit The Butter Paddle in Los Gatos, CA on Thursday, May 7, 2015 from 4:00 to 7:00 pm, for a special Meet the Artist event. Annie has been transforming her designs into handcrafted, luxury glass tableware and gifts for over three decades on California’s central coast. All proceeds from The Butter Paddle are donated to EMQ FamiliesFirst, a nonprofit organization that has been helping children and families in crisis since 1867.

EMQ has been helping children and families in for over 140 years. EMQ, also known as Eastfield Ming Quong, originally grew from two separate entities: Eastfield Children’s Center, which began as The Home of Benevolence (San Jose’s first orphanage) and Ming Quong Children’s Center, which was a rescue mission for Chinese slave girls. In 2008 EMQ merged with FamiliesFirst to serve children throughout California. Today as one organization, EMQ FamiliesFirst annually provides mental health and social services to more than 6,600 children and their families in Santa Clara County and over 16,000 children statewide. EMQ FamiliesFirst offers a variety of programs such as residential treatment, short term and school-based intensive day treatment, mobile crisis intervention teams, intensive outpatient home-based services, addiction prevention services, and outpatient counseling.

Annieglass is a leader in handcrafted luxury glassware. Made sustainably in their Watsonville studio on California’s central coast, Annieglass captures the beauty of imperfection through a special “slumping” process pioneered by Annie. Combining artisanal techniques with new technology, Annie’s imaginative designs inspired by nature are cut into glass, which is set into kilns at high temperatures; the glass then drapes over molds, stretching into individual patterns and rendering each piece of Annieglass a unique work of art. Annieglass’ handcrafted process ensures dishwasher safety, durability and a lifetime of use from the finished luxury glassware. Each piece is hand-engraved with a studio signature for authenticity.

One of the very few American-made glass studios still in production, Annieglass is found in the finest stores, on many bridal registries, collected by celebrities, and used by professional and home cooks worldwide. In 2006, Annieglass became part of the Smithsonian Museum of American Art’s permanent collection.

Despite such broad recognition, Annie says, “There is no better feeling than getting to meet with local Annieglass fans so close to home. My production studio is in Watsonville, CA and I have received profound support from the local community over the years. One of those great supporters has been The Butter Paddle, an amazing not-for-profit store run by volunteers. It is a pleasure to get to meet with folks who not only love Annieglass, but who love the area that has inspired so much of my glassware. My new Spring 2015 collection is a testament to that inspiration and I can’t wait to share these fresh and modern designs with them.”

“The Butter Paddle is once again looking forward to our spring Meet the Artist event with Annie,” shares Vicky Clark at The Butter Paddle. “For over 15 years, The Butter Paddle has been a proud distributor of Annieglass. Created and manufactured in California, Annieglass represents the imaginative and innovative spirit of our central coast. Our customers know that when looking for that special gift or adding to their own collection, they need not look further than an inspiring piece of Annieglass!”