Blue is one of the most popular choices for favourite colors, and navy aficionados are quite particular about the specific shade of color they love. But even people who prefer red or green tend to admire plates and glassware for the dining table in a rich shade of azure. There's something that draws one to cobalt blue glassware, and has since the beginning of the color creation. How Does The Color Get Into Glass? All glassware is formed of glass heated to demonic temperatures of 2000F and above. While the glass is in a liquid state dyes and pigments can be mixed in to the clear material to obtain rich reds, bright oranges, and many other shades and hues on the color palette. The navy glassware so commonly seen on marketplace shelves and fine shops is created by adding cobalt salts to glass. Some glassware isn't uniform in color. Glassblowers can add tints and pigments in such a way as to create swirls of color inside clear or coloured glass. Spotting and spattering are also some colour patterns used to spice up glass pieces.

For those who may not be familiar, a neon sign may be simplistically described as a lighting display made of neon gas-filled glass tubes bent into the shape of letters or fascinating designs for decorative purposes. When heavy voltage electrical current is passed through the captured gas, the tubes emit light and the illumination lures all onlookers and passers by. With the advancement of technology, today many other gases other than neon gas are used in the manufacture of neon signs. As a matter of fact, the most commonly used gas nowadays is Argon, or an argon-neon mixture. Pure neon gas are seldom used although the nomenclature neon signs remain. To enhance the intensity of the light, some manufacturers add a small amount of mercury to the argon to produce a powerful blue light. To offer a wide array of bright and sparkling colors, manufacturers coat the glass tubes with a variety of tints and phosphor. Optical tints in various colors are also used and the glass at times is left clear without any tint, to create a strong blue light. Manufacturers also use xenon, krypton, and helium gases for bringing out special color effects.