Our eco glassware is certainly something to raise a glass to! Unique and very eye catching designs, these environmentally friendly glassware products not only look very special, but are extremely durable and hard wearing, not to mention far kinder to the environment than buying brand new glasses, or even using recycled glassware. Sit back, let the sun glint off your Grolsch goblet, and let your conscience be salved as you quaff a fruity little Chateauneuf!


Here is an astonishing, and deeply worrying statistic: every year in the UK we manage to get through 2.2 million tonnes of glass. That’s twenty times the combined weight of every single person on the Isle of Wight! Perhaps even more worrying though is the fact that we only recycle about a third of that, with two thirds simply being dumped in landfills across the country. Imagine one and a half million tonnes of glass simply being dumped in waste sites – what a terrible waste of resources and energy.


Our eco glassware is one very easy and obvious way in which this terrible waste can be reduced. We all need glasses, goblets and vases, and most of us are throwing away or recycling bottles made from glass. It’s a simple equation, to turn unwanted bottles into attractive, sturdy and very usable glasses. The method is generally the same for any glass or goblet, and the result will obviously depend upon the original bottle used.


The process of transforming a bottle into a wine glass or goblet has been developed to be as energy efficient as possible. The factory where our glassware is made actually filters and reuses all of their water during the whole manufacturing process. Even the materials used for packaging have been made from recycled materials wherever possible. It is as a result of these initiatives that they recently won the Business Challenge Awards for energy, environment and community.


Each of our glasses is very accurately cut, with all edges smoothly grounded, and then melted to make them even smoother. These are a pleasure to drink from, with no rough or sharp edges at all. They’re also extraordinarily strong, being annealed for a good two hours in a very hot oven. To turn a bottle into a wine glass takes about three hours – probably a lot less time than it takes to drink a bottle of wine using one!


Of course, bottles have been recycled for a number of years, being turned into new glass objects. Whilst this is good, although it would certainly be good to see more than the current 35% of glass being recycled, the way in which our glassware has been manufactured is even more kind to the environment, emitting far fewer gasses and chemicals, and using much less energy.


Recycling glass involves melting it down, extracting certain chemical compounds, and then reforming the glass into its new shape. This process manages to save 18% of the energy which would otherwise be used in creating glass products from scratch. However, our eco friendly glassware can be created in a way which saves 90% of the energy used compared to the manufacture of new glass items.


It’s also worth noting that in the creation of new glass products a number of chemicals are released, including nitrogen oxide, sulphur oxide and carbon dioxide – causing damage to the environment, increasing levels of acidity in rain and contributing to the problems of excessive greenhouse gasses. Recycling glass means that none of these chemicals are released, and of course recycling the glass in the way we do means that not only are none of these gasses emitted, but 70% less energy is used compared to standard recycling methods.


We think that this represents an astonishing move forwards in terms of energy saving and causing less harm to the environment, and as the end products are often stronger and more durable than newer counterparts, as well as looking highly distinctive and a real talking point, these glasses really are good economy all round.


For too long now we have been complacent in discarding unwanted products with little regard to the energy expended in their manufacture, the resources being discarded, or the harm that the natural degrading of those products would do to the environment. Slowly we are realising the need to be more thoughtful with regard to the limited and precious resources we have access to, although even now too little is being done, and perhaps much of it too late.


But by using recycled eco glassware it is possible not only to reduce energy by 90% and emissions by 100%, not to mention reducing that couple of million tonnes of waste glass each year, but to do so in a way which makes it visually obvious that you are fully supportive of such initiatives.


We accept that some people will buy our environmentally friendly glassware simply because it looks good – and we would entirely agree! But for many people it is a matter of deliberate choice, trying in little ways to make a big impact. After all, it’s all too often the small changes which can add up to a huge difference. Just remember, next time you’re enjoying a drink from one of our  Carlsberg wine glasses, by using eco glassware you’re reducing harm to the environment, which all helps to ensure good weather for next year’s grapevines!

Buy Beer Bottle Goblets at Moonrust – New Age Shop.

The history of Runes provides a fascinating insight into the lives and beliefs of a people long since gone, but who have left us a legacy of mystery which manages to survive even in these times of hard facts and measurable science. Perhaps far more than simply survive, Runic history has enjoyed a massive revival, and proves to be one of the most popular items which we sell. Whether you choose our stunning Hematite Runes, the very tactile Sunstone Runes or the striking Bloodstone Runes, we are sure that, like so many people before, once you hold them in your hand you will feel that same connection as us – a connection to a distant people with secrets and mysteries which only deepen with time.


You might notice that our Runes are engraved with the Elder Futhark, but not everyone understands what is meant by this, or its significance. The history of the Runes depicts a journey which, as with many languages, has been like a river, or set of streams, being joined by other streams and swelling to encompass new waters, dividing and becoming separate tributaries, even disappearing underground and becoming lost from view. But to appreciate the Runic history and the importance of Runes it is helpful to have some idea of where these symbols have come from, their original significance, and how Runes today can vary quite considerably.


To begin with, where does the name Futhark come from? Very simply, it is derived in the same way as the world ‘alphabet’, and means much the same thing – a collection of letters or symbols. The word alphabet is created by taking the first two letters of our alphabet, in their original form, and putting them together – alpha and beta. In exactly the same way the Futhark is so named because of the first few letters or symbols.


But in studying Runic history it becomes clear that there is not one single Futhark, but several. There are two main Futharks, the Elder Futhark and the Younger Futhark, although there are many more variations besides, leading to about a dozen in all. Perhaps this is not so surprising, since the Runes have been in use for two thousand years, and many of the symbols have been found on engravings from the Bronze Age. Although scholars have spent many decades studying and tracing the history of the Futharks, there are dark patches, areas of knowledge that are unknown and as steeped in mystery and speculation as the Runes themselves.


The oldest and original Futhark consisted of 24 letters or symbols, although in the 17th century a version using just 16 symbols was in widespread use. The full set of 24 symbols is known as the Elder Futhark, whilst the newer, reduced set, although still 400 years old, is the Younger Futhark. Most people with a serious interest in Runes prefer the full set of 24, and all of the sets of Runes which we stock use the full 24 alphabet, or Elder Futhark.


But Runes are far more than simply letters. Our own alphabet may be little more than lines and circles, with no real significance other than that which we have attached to them in terms of pronunciation and use within words. But Runes represent far more. Many of the symbols are representative of aspects of the lives of the people who created and developed the Runes. Such symbols represent things such as the sun, a horse, and other elements of their lives, the natural environment around them, and of their spiritual beliefs.


Across two thousand years, Runes have carried with them an insight into the lives of those people, celebrating beliefs and perceptions which reveal a great deal about them. In particular, the fact that they were deeply spiritual, and connected both to the spiritual realm and the natural world in ways which far surpass anything we manage to achieve today.


But what were Runes used for, if they were more than simply letters in an alphabet used merely for everyday words? In truth, we know relatively little, thanks to many attempts to crush or eliminate the use of Runes over the centuries. In 1639 the Church tried to rid Europe of the Devil, and Runes were sadly misunderstood, being driven underground to survive only by being passed on through secret meetings and closed circles. But we do know that Runes were used for many things, from casting lots to divination, from magic spells to calling upon the spirits of the natural world to bring good harvests, rain or sun.


Today they are hugely popular for both their historical interest and value, as much as for use within divination. Without doubt, the history of Runes is shrouded in mystery and secrecy, and there is still much within the power of the Runes which we do not fully understand, and perhaps never will. If you have already purchased one of our beautiful sets of Runes, you’ll already understand something of the magic within those simple lines and curves, and appreciate the connection between us, and those whose spiritual connections live on through the Futhark.

Buy Runes at Moonrust – New Age Shop.