House of Waterford Crystal

SINCE the House of Waterford Crystal manufacturing facility and visitor experience opened in June 2010, it has welcomed over one million visitors into its haven of crystal creativity and innovation.

Located on the Mall in the heart of Waterford City in Ireland’s Ancient East, the House of Waterford Crystal brings a visit to Waterford to a whole new level as visitors can witness the creation of crystal stemware, giftware and masterpieces right before their very eyes. Every year the House of Waterford Crystal melts down more than 750 tonnes of crystal and produces pieces using traditional manufacturing techniques. The factory tour is a unique and captivating experience that is sure to enthral visitors of all ages, both national and international. The tour lets people go behind the scenes for over an hour and see exactly how Waterford Crystal pieces are made and they can witness every stage of production, from the initial design stage right up to the final engraving of the piece.

On the tour, visitors first visit the mould room where they witness the mould making, a technique that has remained unchanged throughout the centuries, as the Master Blowers shape the molten crystal flawlessly with the use of wooden moulds and hand tools. The next part of the tour is truly magical, as visitors enter the blowing department where they see glowing balls of crystal transformed into majestic shapes as they are put through the 1300-degree furnace. The Waterford Crystal pieces are then hand marked for precision and accuracy, and they are then cut, sculpted and engraved.

Visitors get a behind the scenes sneak peak of the highly skilled method of crystal manufacturing and see the high standards that the House of Waterford Crystal has for each and every piece that leaves the factory. The crystal is inspected at each stage of production, so each piece no matter how small goes through six inspections, and if it fails to reach the Waterford Crystal standards at any stage it is smashed and returned to the furnace to be re-melted so that the piece can be started again. Some of the best known trophies and prizes around the world have also been hand crafted in The House of Waterford Crystal including the annual Peoples Choice Awards, the Solheim Cup, the Irish Open trophy and the Vincent Lombardi trophy.

The House of Waterford Crystal is also home to the largest collection of Waterford Crystal in the world; so for that special indulgence or a gift for any occasion, why not indulge in one of the designer Waterford Crystal pieces by John Rocha, Jasper Conran or Jo Sampson.

For further information visit waterfordvisitorcentre.com/email houseofwaterfordcrystal@wwrd.com

Tel: + 353 (0)51 317000

Facebook: House of Waterford Crystal/twitter: @Waterfordcrystl Instagram: @waterfordcrystalfactory