Great Go-To Glass Sandblasting Solutions
Most people who have seen the stunning results of modern, artistic glass sandblasting techniques are astonished to learn that the basis and application of this procedure date back as far as 1870. This was when one Benjamin Chew Tilghman patented the first artificial sandblasting process. The process is also known as abrasive blasting because it utilises the abrasive characteristics of various media, especially sand.
In Nature
Sandblasting, in its most natural form, takes place in the great deserts of the world, during notoriously huge dust or sand storms. Sand is an abrasive material, particularly when it’s whipped up, borne and driven at high speeds in high wind conditions, which drive or blast the sand horizontally, until the wind’s strength eases, dropping the sand particles back to the surface of the earth.
Desert camels have evolved, developed, and adapted to withstand the sandblasting effects of such severe sandstorms. Their bodies are coated in rough, thick sand-coloured fur, which protects the underlying skin, while their feet are broad, allowing for optimal weight distribution when traversing desert environments like sand dunes and plains. For the protection of their vulnerable eyes, camels have particularly long and thick eyelashes, and they breathe through slit nostrils, which they’re able to close to prevent the ingress of wind-borne sand.
Anyone, who has ever been on a beach when the wind is blowing hard, will be all too familiar with the stinging, sore sensation on the body’s sensitive skin, caused by wind-driven sand particles, peppering away at everything and everyone in its patch. Uncontrolled, sand travelling at extremely high speeds has the ability to wear away, damage, pit, and dull various human-made surfaces, such as paintwork, metals, and glass.
Sandblasting Applications
Modern humankind has found numerous uses for glass sandblasting in a host of practical interpretations and applications. These include:
- Converting a plain piece of glass into a work of creative art.
- Transforming clear glass into semi-opaque surfaces to provide a measure of privacy and a screening effect whilst still allowing some light to penetrate the material.
- Changing a plain, practical item into a designer décor element.
- A method of creating signage or permanent branding on a delicate surface or object, made of or covered by glass, be it a window, door, drinking vessel, trophy, award, plaque, or memento.
Specialised Branding Services
Located in a Pretoria suburb, Trophy & Medal Boutique offers wholesale and retail clients a comprehensive range of products and specialised services.
The latter category – services – includes screen printing, pad printing, sublimation and heat transfer printing, digital printing, embroidery, laser, rotary and subsurface engraving, embossing, indoor and outdoor signage, and sought-after glass sandblasting, a delicate, precise art, craft and science, which is a sophisticated, attractive branding and customisation solution.