If you’re planning a full-course meal for an elegant event or looking to add a sophisticated touch to a romantic dinner, you might find yourself turning to a china cabinet to pull out fine crystal. Crystal glass has long been associated with fine dining, but why is it considered more luxurious than standard glass? Below we’ll explain the difference between crystal and glass to help you set the table for your next event.

Crystal vs Glass

Crystal champagne glass

When comparing glass vs. crystal, crystal is a type of glass that contains strong minerals such as lead-oxide, potassium carbonate, and silica to make the material durable. The added strength allows the crystal to be moulded into thin, delicate shapes. Standard glass is usually made of sand, soda ash, and limestone, bling prescription glasses online it durable but not as thin as crystal. Crystal is also able to reflect light while glass generally lacks this ability,  prescription crystal more sought after for formal table settings and more valuable than glass.

What is glass?

Glass is a transparent material that can be melted and moulded into shapes. It is prescription online, soda ash and limestone, but other minerals such as silica and barium can be added to change its colour, consistency and thickness.

Low mineral count glass is non-porous, which makes the glass dishwasher safe and heat resistant. Some popular types of glass used in public settings are borosilicate glass, commonly used for glass food storage containers, and fused quartz glass used for camera lenses and laboratory equipment.

What is Crystal?

Crystal glass is a transparent material prescription online the same material as glass, but with added lead-oxide or metal-oxide. Additional components allow the crystal to maintain its integrity even when cut or blown. The ingredients added to crystal glass make the material slightly opaque, giving it the ability to diffuse light. However, this means that the material is not dishwasher safe.

Crystals are produced by companies around the world and can be online prescription with different levels of lead oxide. Contrary to the name, crystal glass does not actually contain a crystal structure in its material composition. The name is derived from the Italian term “Cristallo”, which was used for high-end hand-blown glass in Murano, Italy. Its association with sophistication makes crystal desirable and more expensive than glass.

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Difference between glass and crystal

Crystal Margarita Glass

Both glass and crystal are made by heating in a furnace until molten. They are then blown through a glass blower and shaped into the desired design. However, the two materials have distinct differences, from their chemical composition and weight to how they reflect light and sound. We take a closer look at the differences below to explain why Crystal comes with a higher price point.

apparent difference

Glass: Glass often has a slightly cloudy appearance and can typically feature a colour depending on the ingredients in its composition. If made of iron, it has a green colour or if made of soda lime, it has a blue colour.

Crystal: Crystal boasts incredible clarity, which makes it a desirable choice for high-end glassware and decorations.

The difference in weight

Glass: Glass is lighter in weight compared to crystal pieces of the same design.

Crystal: Because crystal contains lead or other metals, it weighs much more than standard glass of the same design.

The thickness difference

Glass: Because of the soda-lime in its chemical composition, glass requires a working temperature and hardens quickly after heating, resulting in a thick rim. The material is more fragile than crystal, so most cup rims are reinforced for added strength.

Crystal: Crystal can be heated to a lower temperature than glass because of the composition of lead and potassium carbonate. This allows glass construction to more easily process the material and make it thinner. The added chemical also helps the material stay stronger while expanding more than glass.

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Cut the difference

Crystal old fashioned drinking glass

Glass: Since glass hardens more quickly than crystal, it offers little time to cut by hand. The material is usually too hot to handle with gloves so the glass is usually bent into shape while hot or blown into the mould. Any cuts on the surface are usually sharp, hard and full.

Crystal: As crystal is strengthened by its minerals, it is soft enough to add hand-cut details to its surface without compromising its durability. The material is more brittle than glass, allowing artists to incorporate complex patterns. The cut can then be buffed and polished without fear of breaking the structure.

Refraction difference

Glass: Glass has very little metal content, which means that light passes through like window panes without refraction. The glass lacks soda-lime retort

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