Across recent trade shows we have seen how more and more design brands are collaborating with skilled glass blowers to create unique lighting designs. Despite being hard to the touch, these handblown glass diffusers have a soft appearance and an appealing tactility. Layers of subtle color tints, gradations and frosted textures add depth to the designs while traditional filament bulbs and elegant LEDs provide decoration.

Suspended from a simple cord, Johan Lindst©n's Meltdown pendant for Cappellini features a light bulb embedded within the wall of a colorful handblown glass diffuser.

The “28” pendant lamps by Canadian brand Bocci are made using a specially developed glass blowing technique whereby air is intermittently blown in and then sucked out of an intermittently heated and then cooled glass matrix. The result is a distorted spherical shape with a composed collection of inner shapes, one of which houses a low voltage (12V, 20W halogen/xenon) or LED (12V, 0.3W) lamp.

Designers Carlotta de Bevilacqua and Paola di Arianello worked closely with Venetian master glass blowers to create the Empatia for Artemide; a lamp that combines a high performance LED light within a smooth glass dome that reflects light without a glare.

Made from borosilicate crystal with a ribbed inner tube that encompasses a halogen light source, the Fairy SG pendants by R.Toso, N.Massari & Associati for Leucos are crafted in metal with polished chrome hardware and canopy.

Designed by Jeremy Pyles for Niche Modern, the Solitaire pendant features an elegant Edison bulb with beautiful filaments that gently glow inside the round blown glass diffuser.