First, a "gather" of molten crystal is taken from the furnace by dipping the blowing iron into the molten metal and twisting the iron. Many times in this hand process, tiny air bubbles are trapped in the crystal.

The gather is then rotated in a wooden forming block to give it uniformity of shape being produced.

The glass is blown to form a bubble. The bubble is then shaped to the basic form by swinging the blowing iron or flattened by spinning.

While the crystal is hot, it may be combined with other crystal elements such as handles and stems.

Finally, "shearing," or cutting away excess glass, gives the object its proper size.

After a piece of crystal has been shaped in the blowing room, it must go through a slow cooling process known as "annealing." This is necessary to prevent internal strains from being set up within the crystal. It is affected by placing the object in a specially constructed oven, known as a "lehr," where it is carried on an endless belt through a series of slowly decreasing temperatures. The annealing of vases or table glass takes five to eight hours.