What Is Heady Glass? The Ultimate Guide

You may have heard your friends talking about their "heady" pipes and bongs. Are you too embarrassed to ask what it means? No worries fam, we'll tell you everything you need to know about heady glass.

So you've probably gathered from the context that "heady" is a word to describe good glass. Indeed, heady glass is a style of high-quality pipes, bongs, bubblers, and dab rigs.

What Does Heady Glass Mean?

Heady glass means high-quality artistic glass blown by a glassblower. These are not mass-produced pipes and bongs. These are one-of-a-kind works of glass art made by hand.

It’s also common for online smoke shops to carry heady glass pendants. These aren’t smokable glass items, these are jewelry.

They are made by the same glass blowers who supply their heady functional glass. That said, most “heady glass” is functional art glass.

Where Did The Term Heady Glass Come From?

The term “heady glass” was coined by a Deadhead named Bob “Snoddy” Snodgrass, who saw an art glass pipe in a headshop in 1971. At the time, he was an amateur glass blower.

After convincing the owner of the headshop to let him try the aforementioned art glass piece, Snoddy was inspired. He then went on to make more art glass pipe and bongs. He is now known as the “Godfather of Glass.”

Now, the word “heady” has the same origin as the term “headshop.” As in, it’s something to help you “get your head on straight.”

What Makes A Pipe “Heady”?

When it comes to high-quality glass smoking devices, there are two terms you want to know. These terms are “heady and “scientific.” Heady glass is glass that is made with complex techniques to make it look cool. A heady glass bong will hit great and look good doing it.

Scientific glass is more about practicality than aesthetics. Scientific bongs tend to feature easy-to-use designs with multiple percolators. Heady glass is usually colorful, while scientific glass is almost always plain clear glass.

Heady glass is anything but plain. Heady glass often uses bright, bold colors and intricate designs. You know heady glass when you see it. It’s those pieces in the headshop that make you go “oooohh.”

Maybe it’s a bong with a perc shaped like a UFO, or a glass statue of Godzilla that you can load a bowl in.

Perhaps it’s a pipe with a swirly color design blown into the glass. These are all examples of heady glass. You know it when you see it.

How Is Heady Glass Made?

Heady glass is handmade by an art glass blower. They’ll use artistic glassblowing techniques like using different colored glass, adding linework, or adding pictures in the glass. Some heady pipes will actually be smokable glass sculptures.

Some argue true heady glass needs to be one-of-a-kind. We don’t necessarily agree with that. It’s not uncommon for a glassblower to create a heady “series” of sorts.

This is where they make a bunch of pieces with a similar motif. It takes practice to perfect a glassblowing technique. SO if a pipe is part of a heady series, it’s still a heady pipe.

Pros and Cons of Heady Glass

So now we know what heady glass is, what are the pros and cons of owning a heady piece?

Pros

Heady glass certainly comes with enjoyable features:

• It looks so cool!
• Often starts conversations when being passed around
• Supports local artists
• Can become your sentimental go-to piece

Cons

There are also a few drawbacks to heady glass:

• It’s almost always more expensive
• Complex designs can break easily
• Heady glass can be hard to clean

Heady Glass vs Scientific Glass

As mentioned before, high-end glassware generally comes in two categories: heady and scientific. Heady glass is all about aesthetics, whereas scientific glass is more built for practicality.

Scientific glass is also another term for borosilicate glass, the extra-strong glass used to make these pieces. Scientific glass pipes and bongs tend to feature clear glass and practical designs.

You often find scientific glass bongs all have similar shapes, but vary in the number and type of percs. Scientific glass is made to be easy to use and clean.

If you’re more of a function over fashion person, you probably prefer scientific glass. But if you’re looking for a piece to impress your friends, you’ll want heady glass.

Heady glass is also a great gift for a lover who prefers smokable flowers.

So which is better, heady glass or scientific glass? We’re huge fans of both. We even have bongs that combine elements of both scientific and heady glass.

We hope this overview on heady glass has enlightened you!