Muriel Balensi uses a gas blowtorch--a kind of horizontal Bunsen burner--to melt glass. This "lampwork" process dates back to the mid-19th Century, when oil-fired lamps (which had been used previously) were replaced by cleaner and hotter gas lamps.

Muriel Balensi making glass beads

Ms. Balensi grasps a completed bead with a pair of tongs while making a hole in the softened glass with a rigid wire. (In contrast, industrially-made beads are formed around a wire, which is eaten away with acid to leave a hole.)

Venezia'Arte necklace

This simple, inexpensive necklace was made to order for Valentine's Day, using one of several heart-shaped "pearls" from Ms. Balensi's tray of finished beads.

Venezia'Art glass bead workshop

Venezi'Arte is in Castello, next to the Ponte de la Comenda on the Fondamenta San Giorgio dei Schiavoni. For directions and maps, see page 3.

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Venezi'Arte glass bead workshop

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