4 Key Differences Between Crystal and Glass

Commonly, people want to buy something fancy for their home or for a really important visit. When they want to make that purchase, they want the very best. Sadly, it’s equally common that they don’t know the difference between materials. Maybe they want to buy a gorgeous sculpture for their living room or maybe fancy crystal china for an upcoming visit, but they end up buying something else. Confusing crystal and glass happens all the time. Because of it, people make the wrong purchase. In this article, we’ll explain the key differences between crystal and glass. This way you make sure that next time you buy something, you’ll make the right decision. Let’s begin:

Components

The difference between crystal and glass is a matter of order. On crystals, its components, atoms, and molecules are arranged according to an organized system following a set of perfectly established rules. This gives place to defined forms with axis and symmetry planes. On the other hand, all of these factors are not present on the glass. This material isn’t subject to a set of rules. It’s formed randomly. 

Nature

Another key difference is that the crystal is created by nature and can be found in different ways. An example of this is quartz. Most of the crystals are formed from the crystallization of pressurized gases. This happens in the inner wall of rocky cavities. Instead of all this, what is manufactured by melting mainly silica sand, is glass. However, there is a kind of glass created by nature following a melting process: obsidian. It’s also known as volcanic glass, which forms from the heat within the inside of volcanoes.

Containers

It’s important to note that food containers, bottles, and jars are always made of glass. They are fabricated in industrial ovens that melt silica sand, sodium carbonate and limestone to 1500°C. This is not the case in crystals. However, you’re probably wondering why they’re so often confused with each other. It’s because to some glasses, certain metals, such as lead, are added. This gives properties in terms of brightness, loudness, and weight are very similar to those of crystals. So to summarize this point, at home you have bottles and jars of glass, but your wine glasses and cups are made of crystal.

Lead

Lead is a chemical component. We’re mentioning this because this component is a key difference between crystal and glass. Lead is included when fabricating crystal. Meanwhile, this doesn’t happen when making pure glass. This is something that, although it is imperceptible to the eye, does have important repercussions on quality.

Which One’s Better?

Now that you know the main differences, a question comes to mind: which one’s better? It’s unavoidable to wonder. If we have to choose between crystal and glass, there are no doubts. Crystal is a perfect choice. There are plenty of reasons why. First off, crystal is way shinier. This is something to keep in mind aesthetically and to enjoy the experience decoration wise. But in addition to this aspect, the crystal has the physical capacity of refraction and dispersion. A feature that, for practical purposes, allows us to use the crystal as a real prism.

Now that you know the differences between crystal and glass, you’ll be able to shop with more confidence. If you’re interested in crystalware, please visit the new section of our website: Nakawa.