When sugar crystals are mentioned, the first thing that you may think of is food preparation. Sugar crystals are used to decorate food, adding glamour and decadence to the style and presentation. But many other types of sugars like glucose, fructose, lactose and maltose form sugar crystals. Several industries, apart from the food business, use sugar crystals.

Crystals that form out of sugars are used to manufacture glass-like surfaces. These surfaces are used in movie stunts. When an actor comes crashing through a window, for example, he breaks sugar crystals, not real glass. The use of props made of sugar crystals minimizes the risk of injuries, without sacrificing the edgy look of the stunt.

In the kitchen, sugar crystals for use in pastries and other concoctions are easily made. The sugars used in the process usually come from sugarcanes, a bamboo-like plant whose stalks produce juice that is processed to become sugar granules. The sugar can also come from sugar beets. Practiced cooks pay attention to the use of the right quality of ingredients, as sugar crystals are highly soluble and highly viscose.

Growing sugar crystals is easy. There are two simple methods you can use -- the evaporation method and the slow cooling method. These two methods require that you begin with a saturated solution of water and sugar granules. The evaporation method employs the use of heat to separate the water from the sugar. This process may take a long time, depending on the solubility of the sugar in your solution. The slow cooling method produces sugar crystals by letting a very hot and very saturated sugar solution cool down slowly. The slower the processes, the bigger the sugar crystals are formed. The process may take as long as several hours to several days.