HOT GLASS, HONEST HANDS: IN THE STUDIO WITH HANNAH BAXENDALE
There’s something about glass that feels both ancient and otherworldly. It glows, it drips, it hardens into memory. And in the hands of Hannah Baxendale, it becomes something else entirely – tactile, warm, a little bit wonky. ATOLA PAPERS is proud to collaborate with Hannah on a limited edition collection of glassware called BOBBLES. We sat down with her in her studio to talk about her love for the imperfect, the physicality of her process, and the quiet joy of making things that feel alive.
Inside the glass hotshop where she works, the air hums with heat. Furnaces burn at 1,500 degrees Celsius, radiating the kind of heat that makes your breath catch. “People don’t realise how intense it gets,” she tells me. “You’re in there for hours, drenched in sweat, drinking water constantly just to keep going. It’s physical. It’s full-on. But I love it.”
This is not the kind of delicate, polished glasswork that sits behind museum glass. Her pieces are playful, honest, textured. A chunky vase in bold, childlike colour. A toothbrush holder with a pocked surface that begs to be touched. Objects that don’t pretend to be perfect—and are more loveable for it.
A Craft of Feeling, Not Finish
Her journey began with a fascination for materials and a deep love for making. “I’ve always worked with my hands,” she says. “When I started on the Craft course at Manchester School of Art, I tried everything. But the first time I walked into the hotshop and saw molten glass, I was hooked. It’s so alive, there’s always something new to learn.”
That sense of discovery still pulses through her work. Each object starts with a drawing, sometimes just a doodle in the corner of a page. From there, the form unfolds in the fire. Her pieces don’t chase perfection. They chase personality.
“I like when things are a little bit off,” she admits. “Not everything has to be symmetrical or smooth. Sometimes the charm is in the wobble.”
Texture Is Everything
Touch plays a central role in her process. She thinks as much with her hands as with her head. “Texture is huge for me. It’s the difference between an object you forget and one you want to keep picking up. Glass already has this seductive surface, but I want to disrupt that. I want to surprise people with how it feels.”
Her now-signature bobbles—soft, candy-like protrusions—took years to get right. “It seems simple, but it wasn’t. I tried all sorts—different sizes, colours, techniques. But I love them now. I love what they add.”
And then there’s the colour that’s bold, warm, unapologetic. “I don’t overthink it,” she says. “I go with what feels good. Colours that comfort, or cheer you up. The palette usually reflects how I feel while making. I hope that transfers to whoever ends up living with the piece.”
Craft, Community, and Character
Her work isn’t just about objects, it’s about experience. “I want my pieces to become someone’s favourite thing they own. Something they use everyday. Something that makes them smile. So many mass-produced things today lack character. I want to bring joy back into the everyday.”
That joy extends beyond her own practice. She thrives on collaboration, especially with other craftspeople. “Some of my ideas go beyond what glass can do. So I work with woodworkers, textile artists, photographers. People who bring different textures, colours, and ways of thinking. I love that. It opens everything up.”
There’s reverence in the way she speaks about craft. Not just her own, but others’. A kind of quiet admiration for skill that’s slowly becoming rare. “I want to keep the tradition alive,” she says. “But I also want to reshape it. Make space for new ways of making and new voices.”
From Stained Glass to Glowing Forms
The first time she worked with glass, she was 16, building a gothic stained-glass window in a small village in the Peak District. “I found a tiny class and joined it. That’s where I really started learning traditional techniques. I still send photos of my work to my old teacher. He’s a fellow glass lover.”
Years later, she’s still in awe of the material. Still learning. Still sweating beside the furnace. “Glass keeps you humble,” she laughs. “You never quite master it. But that’s the beauty. There’s always something more to discover.”
SHOP ATOLA PAPERS X HANNAH BAXENDALE AVAILALE NOW
