Parlay 5: Four Days of Glass in Philadelphia

By Joey Dulisse (@joeydots) and Greg Silverstein (@sourcatjack, @newyork420week)

Thursday, September 17 — Sunday, September 20, 2026

Philadelphia has been the center of gravity for functional glass for a long time. It’s where Mount Krushmore set up shop, where Marble Slinger filmed Degenerate Art, and where a generation of pipe makers learned that a rig can be a sculpture. So it makes sense that the city’s biggest glass weekend didn’t come out of a convention center. It came out of a show.

Parlay started as a single group show thrown by Kinda Glass (@kindaglass). Five years in, it has grown into a full four-day weekend, with galleries, cafes, bars, a backyard barbecue, and a late-night cheesesteak sesh all opening their doors to the glass community. This year’s edition, billed as Parlay 5, runs Thursday, September 17 through Sunday, September 20, and it is the most stacked lineup yet.

Here is the full rundown, event by event.

Thursday, September 17

“99 Miles to Parlay” NYC Car Rally

Presented by Smug Racing (@smug.racing). Meet up at 9:30 a.m., drive at 10:30 a.m. The weekend starts in New York and rolls south.

Parlay Potluck

Hosted by the collective, 6 to 10 p.m. Attendance is free with a canned food donation.

Friday, September 18

Kissa: Aquariust Exhibit

Presented by Framers Cafe and Just Another Glassblower. 1807 E Boston St, noon to 6:30 p.m. All new work from Aquariust (@aquariust), with a vinyl set and record sale by @courtneeowens in the yard. This is JAG’s fifth year hosting during Parlay.

Relics: Past. Present. Future.

Group show presented by The Book Club Library, curated by Heady Hoarders. 2212 Sepviva St (Inno), 6 to 10 p.m. Free. It’s the Book Club’s first step into glass, and the list runs deep: Mike Raman, Trevy Metal, Liz Wright, Eusheen, Darby Holm, Sibelle Yuksek, Sweater Kingpin, and more than a dozen others.

Neon Noir: Slinger vs. Disk vs. Takao

Presented by The Parking Lot Collective. Starbolt, 1936 N Front St, 6 to 10 p.m. All three artists will be in the building, with new glass and merch.

Parlay Bead Party

Group show presented by Dashpax and Nutsglass. Funhouse Gallery, 2576 Frankford Ave, 6 to 11 p.m. Forty-plus artists, old-school rules: no VIP, no pre-sales, ice-cold cans of PBR. If you see something you want, wait for it.

Essentials: A Guide to Life

Group show hosted by DagoArts and Studio 4. 1935 N 2nd St, general admission 7:10 to 9 p.m. Also open Saturday and Sunday, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Welcome to Philly

Hosted by @phatcatdelphia. Private location, 7 p.m. to midnight. Free admittance.

Heady HQ Dinner, Volume 2

Priority HQ, 8 p.m. Sold out.

The People’s Parlay Pre Party

A Heady Italian gathering with Hightalian NYC (@hightalian_nyc) and Smug, 6 to 11 p.m. An intimate, open-to-all hang inside an exclusive members-only lounge. Spots are limited, so RSVP with @thephlspot3.

Friday and Saturday Late Night

Cheesesteak Sesh

Presented by Smug Racing, Joey Dots, and Hightalian NYC (@smug.racing, @joeydots, @hightalian_nyc). Oregon Steaks, 2654 S 10th St, both nights from 11:30 p.m. to 3 a.m. Smug Tools is dropping a new capsule for the occasion, with merch by Loose Standards Dept. and Classic Kicks. Backpacking is welcome and encouraged.

Saturday, September 19

Parladies: A Showcase of Women in Glass

Presented by Hashinit (@hashinit_), 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. A morning built just for the ladies: a women-only sesh with a glass artist showcase, coffee and tea, music, giveaways, and a curated gift bag for every attendee, sponsored by Diva Dabs and powered by Portal Provisions. Capacity is intentionally limited, and a community raffle benefits the East Falls Glassworks Scholarship Fund. 21+. Location goes out to ticket holders by email the day before. Tickets via the link in @hashinit_’s bio.

Parlay Central

Group show presented by Parlay (@parlayphl). Ukie Club, 847 N Franklin St, 1 to 7 p.m. More than 50 artists and makers across an indoor and outdoor floor, the largest group show in Parlay’s history. Food from Framers Cafe and Haha’s Kitchen. Front Street Gallery runs an outdoor group show and smoke lounge sponsored by Puffco, with Peak Pro rigs from Raman, ESP, Elbo, Kinda, Slinger, Jenkins, Gongster, and others set up for anyone to use. Sunya Glass presents a first Parlay exhibition, with projection mapping by Who’s Boro. Tickets are $30 advance or $40 at the door via @parlayphl.

GZ’s House Party 2

Group show presented by Whatever Forever. 1428 Germantown Ave, 1 to 6 p.m. Burgers, hash, ice cream, a 10-year retrospective of GZ1 shirts and art, and collabs with Helios Hash. Tickets via @gz1whateverforever.

Philly Cup Show

Group show presented by Mike Raman and Front Street Gallery. Starbolt, 1936 N Front St, 7 p.m. to midnight. Tickets at the door, and every entry includes a handmade cup. If you like cups, this is the room.

2 Dye For

Featuring Trevy and Yogu. Time and location to be announced.

Sunday, September 20

Krushmore BBQ

Group show and charity event hosted by Germlion (@germlion). 1714 N Mascher St, noon to 5 p.m. Now in its seventh year, it’s a show, a cookout, and a fundraiser in one, raising money for As I Plant This Seed, a nonprofit working with kids in North Philly. Early-bird tickets sold out in two and a half hours. Advance tickets are still available via @germlion and save you $10 off the door.

The Library

Presented by the Book Club. 2 to 7 p.m., location to be announced. A gathering of art, music, and books. Tickets are $30 early bird, $40 general, or $55 for the Library Satchel, which includes a goodie bag valued at $45 or more.

Big Trouble With Little Henry

Solo show featuring collaborations, presented by Dashpax. Funhouse Gallery, 2576 Frankford Ave, 6 to 11 p.m. Hollingsworth Glass (@hollingsworthglass) makes a first Parlay appearance with collaborations from Kinda, Raman, Slinger, Trevy Metal, Renz Craft, and more.

Parlay 5

Parlay isn’t a trade show. Nobody is renting a booth. It’s a weekend where the people who make this stuff open their own spaces and invite everyone in. Five years ago that was one show. This year it’s seventeen events across four days, run by more than a dozen different crews who all decided the same weekend was worth building around.

Come for the glass. Stay for the cheesesteaks.

Follow @parlayphl for updates and tickets. Follow @joeydots, @sourcatjack, and @newyork420week.

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Originally published on Medium.