I am curious as to who's design the glass armor was. I always understood the East Empire Company to be the ones that mostly control the mining and distribution of glass, yet originally I understood it to be a Dunmer design from Vvardenfell (in accordance to Morrowind)

On the UESP it says it is an Altmer design which confused me for two reasons.
http://www.uesp.net/wiki/Lore:Malachite

Altmer use Elven armor. They are not a race connected to smithing or melee combat so it seems strange that their cultural would produce such as grand design. Elven armor I guess is Altmer producing an armor based on earlier Ayleid armor as seen by iAyleid artefacts looking very similar. I also guess the Altmer would produce it with the Bosmer market in mind.

In Morrowind I can remember being attacked by the temple guards near the volcano as I was wearing "their" sacred armor type.

Am I mistaken and the UESP is correct? Or was the temple guards attacking me not something I just imagined

The Skyrim glass is Altmeri. And every race is connected to smithing and melee combat. It's an entire race we're talking about.

then how come the Altmer high ranking soldiers of the Aldmeri aren't wearing it but we see them all wearing elven (the name elven makes me assume that elven is Aldmeri). Elven armor was a armor made in a process only known on Summerset Isles (I'm thinking it may also have been an Ayleid knowledge prior to this hence the Ayleid artefacts in Oblivion looking elven but the knowledge was preserved by the Altmer). Where does glass come into this?

Glass I understand to be mined from Morrowind & Skyrim which is in the far north. Did the Altmer even mine glass?

How come the Dunmer temple guards at the Ghost gate in Morrowind would attack me accusing me of wearing "their" faction armor. If glass is from the volcanic north then surely so is the armor.

Ordinators will attack players for wearing the indoril cuirass or helmet (and High Ordinators will attack if you wear the Her Hands cuirass or helmet), but no one attacks the player for wearing glass armor.

I am certain I was attacked when I went to Ghostgate. The Buoyant Armiger who were a temple military order wore glass armor and I sure they would accuse you the same way as the Ordinators would for wearing "their" armor

Unless it was something like they caught me stealing the set from them and I was mistaken. But then surely it would be the guards arresting me.

There's ordinators at Ghostgate. Any of them could have attacked you. Buoyant Armigers do not attack if you wear glass armor.

edit: and the buoyant armigers have no special association with glass armor. Glass armor is simply a top of the line armor that the organization has access to. The rank-and-file members are more often than not equipped with chintin. In fact, unlike indoril armor, glass armor can actually be bought, with Dronos Llervu selling a nearly complete set, and Bols Indalen will manufacture a set for the player. The simple fact of the matter is though that the buoyant armigers will not attack the player for wearing glass armor. It simply doesn't happen.

They do at high levels. Given that this is Skyrim, not Oblivion, I think there's a reasonable chance that this is supposed to reflect some sort of lore-reality.

High Elves supposedly designed (Morrowind) Orcish armour too. Apparently the're just that good at designing armour. I should expect that there are quite a few High Elven architects, fashion designers and engineers too. They get commisioned to design it and the smiths of whoever paid them make it. I don't know where or if patenting comes into it, but somehow the design or imitations of it at least, becomes widespread. I'd have thought the Buoyant Armigers would have their own design, but maybe the're simply pragmatic enough to adopt a better one made by Altmer. That would explain the attitude Ravanger's described.
But once the East Empire Company gets hold of the glass, it would be way too expensive to equip too many officers in the Aldmeri Dominion.

I had assumed that in each game we get the local way of making that material into armor. The Thalmor warriors in glass armor make me think most glass is from the Dominion since the loss of Vvardenfell, the Cyrodiilic one is much more smooth and curvy than the other two, etc.

That's my interpretation as well. Each race has access to the same basic materials, although in varying quantities, and the glass armor seen in Morrowind is of Dunmeri fabrication and design, while the armor in Skyrim, made with the same material, looks completely different, having presumably been designed by the High Elves. In the real world, even though most armors are made of the same basic materials (iron, steel, bronze, and so forth), armors made in two different cultures will look pretty different. It's the same with Tamriel. Dunmeri glass reflects their culture, and Altmeri glass does the same. Now, a race can create the original armor and refine the process, but as the knowledge of its construction spreads individual smiths will add their own flourishes and make changes that reflect the culture they grew up in.

The Thalmor do wear Glass. You just have to be a high enough level. Go play Skyrim.

It would actually surprise me more if glass and ebony weren't still being shipped (smuggled?) out of Morrowind, most likely in a refined form. Morrowind had glass in a dunmeri style, Oblivion had it in an Imperial plate style, and Skyrim (as said before) had it in a Altmeri style.

Altmer are pro-haute couture (in my own mind at least) and for extravagant designs. It's not that farfetched that their armor is so...fabulous. The altmer favor form over function, as their magic is more useful in combat than their actual martial prowess.

In fact Morrowind lore seems to give idea Altmer (and Dunmer) of more feudal culture, where selected few wear absolutely the best (glass, daedric, ebony) while rest of scum just svcks it with poor equipment. Like armies in feudal societies, warrior class in full metal armor and weaponry and levies with wool and pitchforks, and limited amount mediumly equipped sergeant's (or what ever they get called). So i'd expect real Altmer elite to be super deadly enemies. Then again Skyrim doesn't support this idea in-game (which probably is just game mechanics), as there are lots of regular scum svcking altmers with their medicore armor running about.

Legion in other had is more level headed, everyone gets issued decent equipment. Not nearly the best in any standards but there's plenty of these averagely equipped soldiers.

Don't have sources at the moment just impressions i got during Morrowind, i might as well make this up in my mind.

That's why the domion wasn't crushed. The legions don't have cool armor any more.

The only source that we have as to who designed glass weapons is:

Garothmuk gro-Muzgub, Smith on "glass"
These light and elegant weapons of High Elven design feature extravagant use of rare metals and cutting edges made from rare crystalline materials. Duelists and assassins appreciate the delicate balance and sinister sharpness of glass weapons.

If there were any other designs, he would have mentioned them. However it's worth noting that he only talks about glass weapons. The design of glass armour is merely implied to be Altmeri.

I've never heard that before. Source?

You know, I was thinking maybe Glass has a relationship to the Crystal Tower/Crystal-Like-Law?

Although, IIRC, Crystal-Like-Law was blue-ish marbly, not green and glassy...

The game guide says the orcs based their armor designs off of designs from summerset isles.

I think this is by far the best explanation of all the different armor designs..

The Glass in Morrowind doesn't appear to be of Altmer design. Altmer don't design anything to be so rigid and ugly and gnar.

To me, Morrowind glass armor sort of looks like a rough variation of Daedric armor.....