River Timber Lighting

The idea for this exquisite lighting and art glass series of flowing, organically shaped glass was born in the devastating aftermath of the 2015 Wimberley/San Marcos floods. During the floods, the area was devastated and many hundred year old trees fell along the river system. Our founder Tim de Jong’s desire was to transform what were symbols of tragedy into works of supreme and lasting beauty. Working with a local sawmill, Swift River Pecans, these trees were developed into the molds used to create beautiful vases. As it was refined, the technique was then utilized to create an art installation, and now a stunning lighting series.

Each mold is made from one log divided in half to be a two part mold and hollowed out with a chain saw. As the glass is blown into it, it picks up all of that texture from the chain saw and slowly starts to burn the log. As the log burns, the mold continues to change shape, rendering each piece unique. The burn texture in the glass creates a beautiful refractive pattern when lit. 

Due to the organic shape of the glass and the irregularity, the glass needs to be extra thick for it to maintain its integrity through cutting, polishing, and grinding.  This creates an extremely heavy piece of glass, pushing the weight limits of normal lighting fixtures. Our specialty Tri-Pin fixture was created to hold the weight of the glass while maintaining the airy look of the fixture. Utilizing aircraft cable, the glass piece is able to be easily suspended while the electrical component falls through merely holding the weight of the light bulb. The light bulbs shown are specialty T10 medium base led light bulbs from Satco which evenly lights the glass and enhances the sparkle. These fixtures can also be used to hang other types of heavy glass such as cylinders.

SHOP RIVER TIMBER LIGHTING