Details of YaKUSH glass bring joy from Ukraine

Egg cup Coco and vase Bubble Gum, recycled glass, design and production: YaKUSH; photo: courtesy of YaKUSH

In recent years, glass from the Ukrainian brand YaKUSH has been showcased at the most prominent design fairs. Thanks to Maria Yakush, the owner and creative director of the brand, the production of this artistically crafted glass has continued uninterrupted, even despite the Russo-Ukrainian War.

Glass for life’s pleasures

When Maria Yakush decided to dedicate herself to designing and making glass in 2017, she was already a connoisseur of restaurant culture. By the age of 25, she had founded a consulting company for restaurants, providing them advice on public relations and event organization, and traveling the world in search of new flavors they could offer. It was while contemplating the serving of exceptional food, expected to surpass the usual monotonous tableware, that she conceived the idea of a new line of glassware. She wanted for each piece of the new collection to be “a little wonder that brings pleasure and joy,” while also serving as a detail that completes the overall ambiance – something by which guests would fondly remember their visit and eagerly return.

Although designing and crafting glass are specialized and demanding jobs, requiring good knowledge of the material and a multitude of manual skills, Maria Yakush performs them with ease. The entire undertaking reminded her of childhood, when she watched her father and grandfather carve wood and create furniture and decorative objects. That family hobby greatly influenced this young and successful businesswoman’s wholehearted dedication to the handcrafting of glass. Naming her glass after her family – Yakush – she started producing tableware for the clients she already had, and her business quickly began to flourish. It turned out that working with glass was the perfect fit for her, as it seamlessly intertwined all her passions – design, food, traditional crafts, and branding.

On the Kyiv–Lviv route

The YaKUSH brand is headquartered in Kyiv, while its glass is produced in Lviv – a city that, thanks to its rich sand resources, became a center of modern glassmaking during Ukraine’s industrialization. When Maria began producing her glass, the last remaining Ukrainian manufacture of art glass was concentrated there, and it remains so to this day. Lviv is also one of the country’s most important cultural centers – its center, as a cultural and historical site, is protected by UNESCO since 1998. It is situated about 530 kilometers west of Kyiv and near the Polish border.

Since 2020, YaKUSH has operated according to the highest standards of sustainable development, producing exclusively recycled glass. The material, used and discarded glass, is collected by Maria’s team from closed factories across the country. It is then crushed and melted to create new products. This approach delivers all the benefits of environmentally responsible, circular creative work: energy consumption is reduced by about 30% (as glass melts at lower temperatures) and carbon dioxide emissions are lower (with no vapors from the decarbonization of lime as a component of new glass mixtures), while the amount of industrial waste and the need for raw material extraction (sand, soda, dolomite) and mining are significantly decreased.

There is a growing consumer demand for eco-friendly and sustainable products. I have recognized this trend and seen a business opportunity catering to environmentally conscious consumers. By offering upcycled products, I can tap into a niche market and differentiate themselves from traditional brands.

– Masha Yakush, for Spend With Ukraine, August 2023

Quoting Maria Yakush, the media most often say that YaKUSH products are made of guta or huta glass. It is a term that was used by distant generations of Ukrainians to describe the emergence of the first huts for melting and blowing glass in Germany – Hütte (older term is Hutta), or Glashütte (glassworks) – pronouncing it as “guta” and “guta glass.” It refers to the oldest glassblowing techniques preserved by the Ukrainian people since the 15th century. In this tradition, glass is manually gathered on a blowpipe, inflated by human breath, and shaped using simple hand tools (wooden paddles, tweezers, molds, scissors, etc.).

Unlike the simplified technique of blowing glass in a mold, the advanced method, practiced in the YaKUSH workshop as well, involves skilful use of the pontil – a rod onto which the glass is transferred from the blowpipe. This difficult step enables the opening of a hollow form (a drinking glass, bottle, vase, etc.) by hand, and completing it by manually adding handles and other details, shaping the rims, the spout of a jug, and so on.

Many artists, not only Ukrainian, love Maria Yakush’s glass and collaborate with her workshop in Lviv. That is how, for example, Nadiia Shapoval created the Antique Well tableware set, Virginia Sin produced her SABI stemmed glass, and Lena Yastreb developed the jewelry collection Fragile (Fragile x Yakush).

Facing the consequences of war

The escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War in late February 2022 found Maria in the midst of preparing the promotion of the magnificent Venus vases, which had to be postponed. The YaKUSH showroom in Kyiv was then closed, and due to the shortage of energy resources, the glass furnace in the Lviv workshop was shut down. While everyone feared for their lives and it seemed that everything had to come to a halt, Maria immediately sought help from Iryna Tytarchuk, Executive Director of the Ukraine Investment & Trade Facilitation Center.

This was a very big shock for us because in the glass industry, the furnace never goes out… I was concerned not only for my business, but for the glass industry in Ukraine…

– Masha Yakush, for Business of Home, March 2023

Already in 2022, the two of them launched a platform to support the survival of Ukrainian makers, especially women who supported their families through creative work while men were leaving for the front. Named OPLICH, meaning shoulder-to-shoulder, this platform provided crucial working conditions during that critical period for Ukrainian weavers, ceramicists, designers, and other makers, enabling them to enter foreign markets as well.

Our goal was to create a company that would help Ukrainian brands based on handmade products and owned by women to develop and enter new markets. In two years of work, we have achieved a lot, including organizing participation in foreign exhibitions. Now we have temporarily suspended this program because many businesses have adapted to the military situation and do not need any help.

– Maria Yakush, for Creative Glass Serbia, July 2025

This also stabilized the glass production in Lviv. After the harsh winter of 2022, when the glass furnace could operate only two hours a day, YaKUSH experienced a significant boost already in the spring, when some of their very first customers returned. Those were the Ukrainians who had come back to their homeland from abroad. Wanting to support Ukraine and to thank the Europeans who had been helping it since the beginning of the war, they purchased the finest local products and sent them to their friends abroad.

As for electricity, we experienced serious production problems during the war, especially in the winter of 2022, when we had a lot of orders from people who wanted to support our business in the run-up to the New Year, and production could only work for 2 hours a day. Now we have adapted and have generators just in case.

– Maria Yakush, for Creative Glass Serbia, July 2025

Back to glass after sleepless nights under the shelling of Kyiv

In the fragile normalcy of life in Kyiv, Maria Yakush has no intention of leaving the country and works diligently on developing her brand. She takes part in various initiatives, both those aimed at alleviating the severe consequences of the war and those focused on the modern development of sustainable lifestyles and business practices.

This unique business approach is shaped by the reality in Kyiv, where daily life appears normal, but nights are disrupted by drone and missile attacks. Despite frequent sirens and increasing civilian casualties, people continue to work, schools remain open, and cultural and political activities persist. However, the psychological pressure is immense. While some people are withdrawing under it, others are braver than ever.

You know, it's amazing, but difficulties make you create much more than calm times. There are a lot of topics to discuss, a lot of themes that I would like to reveal in my art. After a night of shelling in Kiev, we wake up and continue to create with even more vigor.

– Maria Yakush, for Creative Glass Serbia, July 2025

Already in March 2023, YaKUSH launched the Venus vases, inspired by female sculptures from the Trypillia culture. As a collective phenomenon in the Neolithic layer of Eastern Europe, these sculptures are considered a Slavic symbol of femininity, motherhood, and fertility. Confronted with the first dramatic wartime experiences of Ukrainian women who remained in the country and continued to serve as volunteers, defenders, doctors, and entrepreneurs, the design team added new colors to the vases, such as blood red, and created promotional photos that were more appropriate than the previous ones planned for peacetime.

Today, the Venus vases are among YaKUSH’s best-selling products, and part of the earning has been donated to the GIDNA project, providing psychological support for women who survived sexual violence during the war. At a charity auction in New York, one of these vases sold for $5,000, and Maria’s wish is for Venera to become a part of every home.

We wanted to create a vase that in every culture would remind us of something primordial and important about the earth, fertility and female power. I think we succeeded because our Venus resembles ancient female figures from different cultures. That's why foreign audiences respond favorably.
I would like to bring Venus into every home around the world. As a talisman and a reminder of how strong every woman can be, even in times of war.

– Maria Yakush, for Creative Glass Serbia, July 2025

During 2024, YaKUSH also began producing new, eco-friendly packaging for glass. Based on mycelium, the root-like structure of fungi, they are fully biodegradable and turn into non-toxic, nutrient-rich compost for the soil.

It's more than just a change in packaging materials – it's a statement about the value of our brand. We believe that it is possible to respect our past by building a sustainable future, and the packaging of mycelium is a significant step towards this goal.

– Masha Yakush, for Village, April 2024

Thanks to the Ukrainian army, which ensures stable working conditions, and international customers, YaKUSH will reopen its showroom in Kyiv by the end of 2025. In addition to the unique glass pieces, the exhibition will also feature a selection of textile and ceramic products, and handmade candles. Some of the most interesting YaKUSH works combine glass and ceramics, while Khrestyk kitchen towels, made from hemp and hand-embroidered with traditional stitches and motifs of the ancient Slavic goddess Mokosh, stand out among the textile items.

Living each day as if it were the last

In just eight years, of which nearly four are the war years for Ukraine, Maria Yakush has succeeded in writing her name in glass. Her signature style is evident in imaginative and original products, such as the Pompon vase-bonbonnière, the Blossom champagne coupe with brass stems, the Bubble Gum vase, and many more.

Combining Ukrainian glassmaking tradition with bold design and contemporary solutions in sustainable development, YaKUSH glass shines in the darkness of war and dazzles at the world’s most important fairs and design weeks – in Milan (2024), Frankfurt (Ambiente 2024), and Berlin (2025).

Now we are actively working on entering the foreign market, participating in exhibitions and want to find new partners to represent our brand. This will already be a good lifeline for us in a bad situation.

– Maria Yakush, for Creative Glass Serbia, July 2025

Even in times that would be hardest for any nation, Maria Yakush is finding solutions that allow her and her fellow Ukrainian makers to continue their work and even grow. Thanks to her dedication to the handcrafting of artistically shaped glass, the only remaining Ukrainian artisans capable of such work – the living monuments of glassmaking, still have their hands full and pass on their knowledge to apprentices. Lviv, where YaKUSH glass is produced, is fortunately one of the safest cities in today’s Ukraine, and postal services have learned to “perform miracles” during the war. That is how customers around the world are still getting their YaKUSH glass, whose unusual details will for a long time evoke joy, now unfortunately tinged with unpleasant feelings because of the war.

As a highly talented designer and hardworking businesswoman, Maria Yakush created a glass brand that seemingly nothing can stop. Yet, the truth is that no one knows when or how the Russo-Ukrainian War will end. While it may be over in a month, it may also spread to countries that are currently at peace. This is why everyone should reflect on the beauty of YaKUSH glass, and on Maria’s words about what she misses most from peacetime and how every moment should be lived:

We miss everything.
But most of all for the peace of mind that was in the heart of every one of our employees/buyers/partners. Everyone around us.
And also for the confidence that there will be a tomorrow.

You know, during these years of war, most Ukrainians have realized that you have to live every second to the fullest without any regrets. Life is short and fragile, so there's no time for sadness, doubt, or regret.
I wish everyone could live like that. I wish everyone could realize that without experiencing war or other terrible events.

– Maria Yakush, for Creative Glass Serbia, July 2025

References

2KA. (online). YaKUSH. 2KA (Rebranding, Art-direction).
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Bourque, C. (2023, March 13). The marketplace for globally sourced decor in the US is about to get bigger. Business of Home (INDUSTRY INSIDER).
Creative Glass Serbia. (2025). Interview with Maria Yakush. Paraćin: Creative Glass Serbia.
FFU – Future For Ukraine. (2023, April, 3). Ukrainian brand YAKUSH will donate a percentage of the sales of the unique Venus vase to the GIDNA project. FFU – Future For Ukraine (News).
Homo Faber. (online). KYIV, UKRAINE: Yakush Atelier. Glassblower. Homo Faber (GUIDE).
Klachyk, K. (2023, August 14). Saving Tomorrow Through Upcycling Today. Part 2. Spend With Ukraine.
Messe Frankfurt. (2023). YAKUSH. Messe Frankfurt (Exhibitor search).
PRAGMATIKA. (2023, March 15). Modern Ukrainian Venus in the new collection of vases from YAKUSH. PRAGMATIKA (DECOR).
SPACE Mag. ADMIN. (2023, April 18). YAKUSH: znaйomstvo z ekologіčnim brendom dekoru. SPACE Mag (Dlя domu, Stilь žittя).
Urednici Vikipedije. (online). Lavov. Vikipedija.
Village Special (2024, April 11). Pakovannя z mіcelію, щo povnіstю kompostuєtьsя: яk brend Yakush turbuєtьsя pro dovkіllя. Village (PROMO).
Wikipedia-Autoren. (online). Hütte. Wikipedia – Die freie Enzyklopädie.
Yakush.shop. (online). https://yakush.world/.

Kreativno staklo Srbije

Creative Glass Serbia

Kreativno staklo Srbije

Creative Glass Serbia

Details of YaKUSH glass bring joy from Ukraine

Details of YaKUSH glass bring joy from Ukraine

Glass for life’s pleasures

On the Kyiv–Lviv route

Facing the consequences of war

Back to glass after sleepless nights under the shelling of Kyiv

Living each day as if it were the last

References