[1] Start off with a Cylinder. Change the Parameters: Radius to 20.0, Height to 100.0, Height Segments to 10 and Sides to 20.
[2] Right click the object itself, and Convert To > Editable Poly. This will make the object editable. From here, go to the right side menu and choose Polygon Selection from the Selection tab.
[3] Go down and open the tab which says Soft Selection. Tick the box which says Use Soft Selection and change the Fall Off amount to 20.
[4] Begin to select the middle Polygons of the Cylinder itself, this will start to make a rainbow effect on the splines. This is where the shape will draw in when you start pulling it in with the scale tool.
[5] Select the scale tool, after selecting the middle Polygons, and scale down using the mid section of the scale. This will draw in the mid section of the hourglass itself.
[6] Make another cylinder, this time change the parameters: Width to 25.0, Height to -5.0, and Height Segments to 1.0.
[7] Hold down shift and use the Move Tool to move and copy the cylinder shape which you have made and move that on top of the hour glass object.
[8] Make sure to move the cylinders into place. This will make the top and bottom rests for the hour glass to stand on.
[9] Create another Cylinder. Change the parameters: Radius to 1.5, Height to 103.0, and Sides to 10. This will be used to hold up the stands, and keep the glass in place in the middle.
[10] Shift click, and add two more away from the original that you have created. This feels like it gives more character to the hourglass itself.
[11] Select the top stand, right click it and Convert To > Editable Polygon. We are going to add more detail to the top.
[12] Select the top polygon of the Cylinder. Right click, and select the black box which is next to Inset. Change the amount to 2.0, this will give the object another polygon in the middle of the top half.
[13] Right click again, with the newly made polygon selected, and press the black box next to Extrude. Change the total amount to 2.0. Repeat and do the same for the bottom Cylinder.
[14] The Hourglass is now complete! Do the UVW Maps, and texture them. When you have done that, apply your textures to the assigned areas.
[15] Don’t forget to add the light source, to give more of a realistic touch to the object.
EXTRA – How to make a Glass Texture
[16] However, for the glass itself, you can create a Glass texture which can make it seem more believable. Open up the Material Editor at the top of the main stage.
[17] As the window opens, make sure to go to Modes and change it to Compact Material Editor. When that is done, look down and find the Specular Highlights tab. Change them: Specular Level to 160 and Glossiness to 30.
[18] When you have done that, find and open the Maps tab. Scroll down and find Refraction, click on the button that says None. When the new window pops up, find Raytrace.
[19] Now apply the texture to your Glass, and render it. You will now see that the glass is now invisible, and looks very much like glass!
[Bonnie Simpson] - Games Design 
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