2012 was a wild ride of a year. Business improved greatly over 2011, and still has plenty of room for future growth. I’m excited about what 2013 holds for our parent company, Gardner Glass Products, and the world of Dreamwalls. But it’s always helpful to look back at one’s accomplishments, so here are a few professional high points in my year:

• Celebrating 50 Years in Business. It’s no small feat to be able to survive economic downturns, ownership changes, and industry shifts for any business in today’s world. Our resilience and ethics are key to achieving our longevity, and we look forward to serving our customers for many years to come. (On a related side note, I celebrated 19 years with the company in July! And yes, I did start when I was 4.)

• I was named to US Glass’ 2012 “The Industry’s Most Influential” list in the Decorative Glass Industry. What an unexpected honor, and I was flattered to be included in such a list.

Dreamwalls NeoCon 2012 with Brandon Smith & Rose Dostal

• NeoCon in Chicago was an amazing amount of fun, where I got to meet some of our Twitter friends face-to-face,…which is always really great.

Glass Magazine Awards: St. Regis Bal Harbour Resort - NGI Designer Glass

• I was a judge for Decorative area of the Glass Magazine Awards. It was a thrill to have a front-row seat to see so many great, creative products going on in the world.

• I was sworn in as President of the Mirror Division of the Glass Association of North America. Serving a 2-year term, this has been a wonderful experience and honor for me and our company, and I look forward to helping further the use and education of mirror and decorative glass.

Thank you to all the wonderful designers, bloggers, business people, and experts I’ve had the pleasure to speak with in 2012. I look forward to growing the world of Dreamwalls even more in 2013, and look forward to adding you to the party.

-Mandy

We are so lucky to have great customers who enjoy Dreamwalls Color Glass. We take pride in the ease of installation, quality fabrication, and consistent color-match capabilities that Dreamwalls’ proprietary technology can provide to professional glaziers and contractors. There have been several stand-out projects this year: Vintage Shutters, Park Avenue Designs, and Salem Distributing all created interesting projects this year.

But the top prize for 2012 Dreamwalls Color Glass Installation of the Year goes to: Allliance Glazing Technologies

To be the winner, we at Dreamwalls look for projects that stand out for their complexity in application, creative use of our Dreamwalls Color Glass product, and professional installation. This year’s winning project stood out on all fronts. The backlighting effects, the marker channel, the sheer size of the marker boards, as well as the fun use of blue in the bathrooms,…all of these made this project a winner. Thanks to Alliance Glazing Technologies, for creating a data center that has it all: brilliant color in Dreamwalls Color Glass, LED backlighting for added effect, True White Dreamwalls Color Glass for high contrast message board, and with lovely lines to top it all. Congratulations to everyone involved in this project!

View the slideshow of the entire project here:

Are you going to NeoCon 2012 in Chicago?

…and all those images were just from last year! Be sure you come visit Dreamwalls on the 8th floor, booth 3130C. Same spot as last year, by the Interiors & Sources Materials Pavillion. We have new things up our sleeve to show that are all about new customization options you have to see to believe. We packed up the samples, hot out of the oven, and I can not wait to unveil them at the show! But if I tell you any more, I may not make it to Chicago,…so just be sure you come by and see them for yourself. See you soon! (and for those of you who can’t be there, I’ll share more next week.)

Best of NeoCon Gold Award 2009

Best of NeoCon Silver Award 2010

H&M Glass Hershey Lime Dreamwalls Color Glass Backsplash

This year has been a big one for the growth of awareness in the possibilities for Dreamwalls Color Glass. We’ve had a lot of fantastic customers that have done some amazing installations. We are so happy to see our product used in so many creative ways. This is a short list of some notable projects we’ve been involved with over the past year. They stood out from the others for their use of color, the difficulty of the installation, their importance to the overall design concept, and for their overall “wow” factor. Congratulations to the winners.

#5 – Hershey Test Kitchen by H&M Glass – Hershey, PA The dark chocolate color of the cabinetry contrasted so nicely with the lime Dreamwalls Color Glass, and the unique use of the glass counter top completely encompassing the column made this recent project a winner.

H&M Glass Lime Dreamwalls Color Glass Countertop

#4 – Dreamwalls Color Glass Tile Display installation – Chicago, IL This prototype display for the NeoCon show was our first opportunity to showcase the fact that we can take any CAD .dxf file and create a pattern for tile from it. Combine the custom shape capability with Dreamwalls Color Glass custom colors and optional glass thicknesses, and you have a complete game-changer for the world of tile.

Dreamwalls Color Glass Tile Display - NeoCon 2011

#3 – Key Bank – Cleveland, OH This award-winning LEED project used Dreamwalls Color Glass as dry erase boards in collaborative areas to encourage brainstorming and team-building. Their non-staining brilliant white helps this historic building redesign stay clean and practical. Technically, it was completed in 2010, but the awards were handed out this year, so the judges – which is me – allowed it. VIP Restoration-Glazing was the installer.

Key Bank Dreamwalls Color Glass Dry Erase Install

#2 – Harris Teeter – Baltimore, MD Using tiles for the preparation areas of this new grocery store allowed brilliantly fun color to be introduced in various shades and identify the various areas of the store. The end result was a fun, modern, food-shopping experience. We’ll show more of this project in a future post.

Dreamwalls Color Glass Grocery Store Tile Project

And the winner for 2011 is……

HGTV Great Rooms - Mars Red Dreamwalls Color Glass Backsplash

#1 – HGTV Great Rooms – Chicago, IL This TV show featuring the recent Design Star winner, Meg Caswell, featured a stunning Mars Red Dreamwalls Color Glass backsplash that made this the winner of 2011. Creative Mirror & Shower was one of the very first customers to see the potential of Dreamwalls Color Glass, and their experience and skill really showed with this installation with a tremendously tight time frame. Bravo!

What I am so proud to see in the winners wasthe creativity of these projects in showcasing the various benefits of Dreamwalls Color Glass: as a dry erase board, as an easy-to-clean back splash, as a wonderful palette for colors,….as well as featuring both residential and commercial projects. Thank you to the designers and installers of each of these projects, and congratulations.

If you have a notable Dreamwalls Color Glass project that you’d like to offer for consideration as an award or as a feature focus, please let us know.

When people normally use backpainted glass, it is usually in very sleek modern spaces. But in this exhibit from Patti Glazer – Glazer Architecture, PA, based out of Asheville, NC, you see how they used handmade elements and craftsman details along with a large lime green backpainted panel (and thin horizontal red stripe) of Dreamwalls Color Glass to create a bathroom that is warm and inviting. Dreamwalls Color Glass was asked to help with this project through Britt & Tilson Glass in Asheville, and we were happy to participate. It earned a 1st place prize at the Asheville Arboretum while on display there for Handmade: The Western North Carolina Craft, Architecture & Design Expo this past summer.

The winning entry by Patti Glazer

Notice too, how the mirror is used in large stripes along the wall at both the vanity height, but also at the floor to create a continuity with the natural elements along the floor. Click HERE to see more from the display, and Glazer Architecture, PA. And in case you doubt what a difference the accessories make, take a look at the installation photo from Britt & Tillson Glass, before the other elements were added. See, it easily could have gone very modern, right?

The set in process

So consider backpainted glass for kitchens and bath environments that might be a little more traditional. I think you’ll like the easy clean up, the easy installation, the playful color, and how the reflected light warms up the space. Used with the right accessories and fixtures, it can easily go with any style you choose.

2010 Crystal Achievement Award

On September 8th, Glass Magazine announced its 2010 Crystal Achievement Award winners. Dreamwalls Marble Glass was declared “Most Innovative Decorative Glass Product” by a panel of judges representing all segments of the glass industry. The annual awards recognize the best products and glass applications the commercial, retail and fabrication markets have to offer.

Dreamwalls Marble Glass Pattern Samples

Dreamwalls Marble Glass, from Gardner Glass Products, North Wilkesboro, N.C., features a high-resolution digital image taken from a full-size stone slab, while other comparable glass products use photos of small pieces of stone that are digitally tiled. The image is captured and mounted to the glass using a powerful adhesive that is placed on the image side of the photo without distorting the image or compromising the bond. This also protects it from heat and moisture. As with other Dreamwalls products, Marble Glass uses PPG Industries’ Starphire Ultra-Clear glass to allow the true pattern of the digital image to shine through. All fabrication is applied to the glass prior to the application of the image, and the image is trimmed to the edge for perfection.

“The clarity of the pattern is the most unique aspect of this product,” says Mandy Marxen, vice president of marketing, Gardner Glass Products. The image is such high resolution, and the adhesive that is used is so clear, as is the Starphire substrate. All of those things combine to create a perfectly clear product that looks like marble.”

The product offers 65 patterns applied to glass to bring the effect of nature into a building’s interior. It is a cost-effective solution that provides the look of stone to any commercial space in need of an instant makeover. It can be used to enhance the design of any area and coordinates with virtually any color, as well as with the Dreamwalls Color Glass product line. Numerous stone options are available to provide architects and designers a sleek design with a clean look for any commercial environment, all at a fraction of the price of real stone.

Dreamwalls Marble Glass Countertop

“Dreamwalls Marble Glass opens up an entirely new revenue category for the glass industry,” says Crystal Achievement Award Judge Mark Pritikin, president, Creative Mirror & Shower, Addison, Ill. “Potentially anything done in marble or granite can now be done with glass, and its inherent advantages.”

“From decorative glass products and applications that dazzle, to buildings that push the envelope in terms of design and functionality, to an ad campaign that tickles the funny bone, the Crystal Achievement Award winners serve as a reminder of our industry’s ingenuity and vast potential,” says Jenni Chase, editor, Glass Magazine.

The Crystal Achievement Awards are featured in the Sept. 7 edition of e‐glass weekly and the September issue of Glass Magazine. The 2010 Crystal Achievement Award winners can be found at www.glassmagazine.com