Playing with fire

“Glass is so flamboyant,” says Hank Murta Adams, the sculptor known for his large-scale vitreous castings and vessels, shown here, blown inside castoff cans. “It’s a form of controlled calligraphy with fire.” On Saturday, the New Jersey-based Adams joins over a dozen California glass artisans and educators at Unification, a red-hot evening of demonstrations organized by Joe Cariati (www.joecariati.com), who says it’s “a way of fusing a disconnected community of artists.” Cariati, known for his colorful long-necked bottles, hosts the free, public event at United Glass Blowing, the Santa Ana studio of Caleb Siemon (www.calebsiemon.com), who has designed for the Italian studio Salviati. Along with Adams’ performance, which he describes as “700 pounds of liquid glass poured into mounds of sand in a ridiculous attempt to beat the clock” -- the exhibition will also feature a silent auction to raise money for future Unification events. From 4 p.m. at United Glass Blowing, 3501 W. Segerstrom Ave., Santa Ana, www.unificationproject.com.

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ENTERTAINING

All of the romance, none of the spark

Candles are so 20th century. You need matches, something to catch dripping wax, and another something to shield the flame from the wind. Tedious. Now, easily harried hosts can replicate the romance of candlelight dining without the headache -- or hazard. Already in use at restaurants like Fat Fish in West Hollywood, the Smart Candle, left, is a frosted glass cylinder with a battery-operated plastic tea light (2 1/2 inches tall for $10) or votive (5 inches tall for $12.50) with an LED programmed to flicker randomly like a flame. A rechargeable two-pack is $50 and glass sheaths in frosted blue, red and green, $4.50 each, are also available at www.smartcandle.com. KleinReid’s bisque porcelain chamber stick, $135, shown here on a ceramic book, $125, from the design firm’s “Still Life” collection, is even easier to operate. Pure table sculpture, it never goes out because it can’t even be lighted. www.kleinreid.com.

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INNOVATIONS

Your shovel’s new digs

Ryan Grey Smith wants the common shed to shed its utilitarian skin. The Seattle-based USC architecture grad unveiled his Modern-Shed at the CA Boom II design show in Santa Monica last week. A build-it-yourself kit -- “you can put it up over a weekend,” Smith promises -- this shed looks more like contemporary architecture than a temporary structure with pre-painted concrete board siding and a slanted roof. A basic 120-square-foot version runs $7,800, which may seem steep for storage, but the $13,500 deluxe edition -- with a 200-square-foot deck, French doors and maple plywood interior -- seems like a stylish steal for a home office or studio. www.modern-shed.com.

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OPENINGS

Art gallery? Antique store? Yes, both

Working at Juxtaposition, his brother’s furniture store in Newport Coast, gave Paulo Santos a bright idea. “What if I opened an art gallery where you could see the work surrounded by furniture, as you would in a home?” says Santos, seated here beside “Theo,” a painting by San Diego artist Marie Najera listed at $4,900. Santos created Tate, named equally for the gallery in London, and, he says, “the fact that it was a short, easy-to-remember name.” With a crisp mix of curiosities, black and white furniture and Najera’s colorful canvases, Tate has been a memorable addition to the Laguna Beach retail scene since its premiere this summer. In addition to smartly refinished period pieces, antique bottles, old clock parts and art books, Santos also stocks his own upholstered designs, the Tate chair, $1,650, and a deep, rectangular linen sofa studded with nailheads, $4,350. “Those are custom orders,” he says. “Everything else is instant gratification.” Tate, 1233 N. Coast Highway, Laguna Beach, (949) 715-0182.