Our Range

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Pendants
Bracelets
Earrings - Murano
Earrings - Pearl & Crystal
Millifiori
Necklaces
Pagani
Masks
Glassware
Glass Clowns
Poreclain Figurines

BRACELETS & BEADS

Silver Bracelets & Chains
Murano Beads
Swarovski Beads
Silver Beads
Silver Beads with CZ's
Silver Clips

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Features

About the Work and Masters of Venice

ASSURANCE OF THE BEST QUALITY FROM VENICE AND MURANO

As owners of the "A Touch of Venice" buiness we work closely with the manufacturers in Venice. We travel to Venice twice each year to source new designs and look at our own designs that are to be made exclusively for us.

We also make sure that what we are sourcing genuine Venetian Glass

Our Glass Masters

Our Glass is all sought from the Murano area of Venice. Over 5 years of seeking out the best in Glass artists we have been fortunate to be able to buy direct from some of the best in Venice.

Not only are we supplying the general jewellery that you might see in the Venice and Murano areas on a holiday but we also have a lot of pieces that are made exclusively for us and to our design specifications.

We make a point in visiting our jewellery artists "Masters" at least twice a year to look for new designs and make sure the quality is to the higest levels.

The Process

Many of our jewellery "Artisians" make their own glass which is then used to make each piece individually. As each piece is specifically designed the colurs and shapes always vary slightly with each design. You will always be wearing an individual piece of art that is not the same as another, thus providing its uniqueness and high quality and will be something to treasure for years to come.

The making of Murano Beads

Beads with the gold or silver leaf sommerso technique
The first phase in making these fascinating beads consists in cutting the gold or silver leaf into the required dimensions (photo 1); a small mass of glass is wound around the copper wire; the gold or silver leaf is applied to the hot glass (photo 2); the gold or silver leaf is then completely covered with another layer of transparent glass using the flame to melt it. The last models the bead into its final shape with the help of a small mould (photo 4). The lens effect of the glass can be seen amplifying the presence of the precious metal within the glass layers.

Making the Flower Beads

The first operation consists in the preparation of the glass threads which are made by stretching segments of glass rods. Using rods of different colours together, the threads can be made multicoloured with pieces of aventurina.These threads can be made of barely a millimeter in diameter, or it can be made into a flat thread. The threads of aventurina are flattened and are used in the first phases of decorating a flowered bead when, after having formed the ball of glass of the desired colour, a central strip is added; the decoration is continued with threads and spots of both avventurina and other colours; finally the bead maker completes her work using threads of white and pink to make small roses.

Making of Millifiori

Before describing this type of bead it is necessary to mention how the millifiori rod is made. Millefiori is the descriotion of the type of rod which contains a pattern which results exactly the same all the way through its length and which we can see when small slices are cut off. These single slices or pieces of rod are called murrine just like the compositions made from them (the well known rnurrine pendants). The modelling of the rods begins by taking a small mass of glass at the end of a 1.50 meter metal pole. By dipping this into different pots of molten glass the volume of the mass increases and it is now made up of layers of different coloured glass. The mass is then squeezed in a star shaped or flower shaped mould which gives it its final form; a last layer of glass will main tain the cylindrical form. Another metal pole is attatched to the other end of the mass; the two glass makers walk in opposite directions, pulling out the glass into a long fine rod of the required diameter.

Millifiori pieces

To make the millifiori bead firstly the rod must be cut into slices, each a few millimeters thick. The bead begins by collecting a layer of glass on the copper wire, then it is covered with the rnurrine, slices of the millifiori rod, in a pattern without leaving any space between each murrina. The flame then into the oven and murrine join together. The bead is then modelled into the desired form with a mould (round, oval, etc.). At this stage the murrina tend to close up and hide their individual patterns so the bead making masters smooth and polish their beads; in this way they obtain perfectly shiny beads.