"Light this and good things will happen."
That's what Seahawks fans are saying about glassybaby, the colorful hand-blown glass votives that have worked their way into the gameday rituals of thousands of 12s. The Seattle-based company has partnered with the Seahawks to produce limited-edition glassybaby for the past three years; this year's creation, Blue Thunder, was released Nov. 20.
"People come from all over the state of Washington. They stand in line for them," said Tracy Morgan, glassybaby's senior VP of retail. "A lot of people light them on gameday. It's their ritual. They send us pictures, they have [the glassybaby] all lined up."
The latest Seahawks-themed glassybaby is green with a navy feather effect at the bottom and comes packaged in a special blue box with green ribbon. At $75, it's pricier than your usual glassybaby because it has two colors and is more labor-intensive. The process requires five glassblowers and two days to complete.
"People who had never heard about glassybaby are 'in' and they're not just buying one, they're buying a dozen. They buy them as gifts," Morgan said. "You think you know who's shopping you, but [the Seahawks glassybaby] is opening up a whole new demographic for us. These are diehard fans."
The partnership between glassybaby and the Seahawks started with a chance meeting in Sonoma, Calif., on a summer day in 2013. The glassybaby team was hosting a road show, and struck up a conversation with a fan who happened to work for the Seahawks. That connection led to the creation of four unique glassybaby products: Seahawks Pride and Spirit of 12 in 2013 and Blue Friday and We Are 12 in 2014.
This year's Seahawks-themed glassybaby, Blue Thunder, is available in limited quantities at all Seahawks Pro Shop locations. Part of the proceeds of each sale benefit the Seahawks Women's Association. Additionally, glassybaby will be selling Blue Thunder on the suite level at CenturyLink Field on Sunday during the Seahawks vs. Pittsburgh Steelers game.
