Italian Inspiration

Inspiration can be found all around us...
Our inspiration, found in an Italian Farmacia.

The play of light is fantastical in Italy, bouncing off the golden hills and ancient stone walls, glinting back from the sea and canals, trying to awaken a sleeping beauty that lies within.

Things appear the way they are lit, and lighting can arguably be one of the most important aspects of design.

Without light, you can't see a thing!

Great lighting shows off the details, sets a mood, gives story to the atmosphere. This romance is the inspiration for our Italian hand-blown Murano glass lights, a centuries old practice, where the secrets of the craft were vehemently protected.

The patina of each piece carefully replicates that of an Etruscan excavated glass object, giving a new creation the personality of one that has existed for ages.

Glass fragments awaiting their rebirth.

The master glass artisan shapes and perfects the form by rolling the still pliable glass onto a slab.

Back into the fire, the glass looks like molten gold.

The form becomes revealed.

Attention to detail, buffing the raw glass edge to a smooth finish.

Precious cargo awaiting packaging and the long trip here.

Our Murano glass lights...Only a few of the possibilities!

Just believe...

I am, without a doubt, feeling a bit overwhelmed lately. (I was able to finish all 7 Harry Potter books...because it has been such a long winter for us in Montana this year.) Being a bit tied up with business and personal things, I can't help but be of the mindset to just retreat to my own private domain for some "me" time. Don't we all need this every once in awhile??? My last post was the beginning of this wishful thinking. I am still there, in that world, where I could spend my days doing exactly as I please. Does this world exist? I don't yet know, but I fantasize about it daily. I am a big believer in the Law of Attraction, where thoughts become things. In the words of Napoleon Hill, "What the mind can conceive and believe, the mind can achieve." My daily ritual consists of conjuring these thoughts of my ideal world, with the hopes that one day, they will materialize. I am beginning to take a few steps in the direction of creating my own reality of these thoughts. Starting with working on my house...It is way less than what I want it to be. All of my attention has gone into the store and making it look fabulous; so, my own house suffers. It doesn't help that it's a 107 year old fixer-upper. Great bones, great location, not so great conveniences and appearance at the moment. I am hoping that by writing about this here, it will hold me accountable for jumping into this project full force. I plan to post here about my and its progress. Maybe you can get a glimpse into the behind-the-scenes of Monte Regalo as well. After all, many of my own wishes and dreams are fulfilled in the store. Let's see if I can make this translate into my personal life! So with that, I will leave you with an image: Where the play of light is unmatched by any other place, where the sound of water playing between the buildings is a song to lull me to sleep, where the echoes of drunken footsteps, singing and laughter bounce to my window at night and add to my dreams--my soul drifts to Italy. Is this where perfection exists?

Brrrr...Wave a wand, and make it warm, please!

OK, it's chilly here. A balmy 15 degrees to be exact. It has me thinking of curling up in bed with a great book. I am currently getting lost in the Harry Potter series. They are such an international phenomenon, I figured I should see what all the buzz has been about. Turns out, I am really into them. I had all seven books (started getting them when they first came out), but never had time to read one. They truly are great fun; I can see why their mystique is infectious. But on a design note, how would it be to curl up in this bed reading about Harry Potter??? Seems magical enough to me...