>Czech Glass Gallery

>

For those of you who have never been to Prague, I will tell you that it is a tourist mecca. Everywhere you turn there is someone with a camera and a map of the city. There are also hundreds of jewelry stores and shops with 'Czech Glass' signs in the windows. Many stores specialize in either Czech Garnet (Cesky Granat) or Bohemian Crystal. The city has so many of these shops that it is overwhelming! Most of the Czech Garnet shops sold the same kinds of jewelry, and while I did marvel at the Bohemian Crystal, it was a bit heavy for me to bring back on the plane. Furthermore, most of the shops who advertised Czech Glass Jewelry in the window sold only simply strung necklaces or bracelets. In this type of environment, a jewelry shop would have to carry very unique/artistic items to interest me.

I don't know if I mentioned this before, but my blogger friend Pink flew from London to Praha for the weekend to explore the city with me. I was so glad she did, too! It was nice to have an English speaking friend for a couple of days. We had a great time sightseeing, eating, and drinking Budvar and Becherovka together:) We also did a little shopping. One day we were exploring an area in Mala Strana near the Vltava river which we both agreed is one of our favourite parts of Prague. The street which runs under the Charles Bridge is lined with unique shops, bookstores, antiques, art galleries, puppet shops, and restaurants. It is also very intriguing at night... I took Pink to a shop that I had noticed earlier in the week - Czech Glass Gallery. This shop sells very lovely bead-woven jewelry, simply strung jewelry, and loose beads in small packages. This is the necklace that caught my eye:

This necklace was made with the netting technique. This piece consists of netted leaves which were then embellished with semi-precious stones. It is unlike me to buy beaded jewelry that I feel I could make myself, but I really haven't been making jewelry lately. And, the above necklace looked so beautiful when I put it on. Also, there was a bracelet that matched and the price was a steal for the complete set, so I couldn't resist. Pink also found a beautiful blue beaded set for herself! :D

I talked to the man who worked at the shop, and he said his daughter made the jewelry, and that it took her about 8 hours to make each necklace. I was in awe. I would never be able to make that in 8 hours... So, I gave the man my card, and told him to tell her that I think she is very talented and to keep up the wonderful work:) This was the only shop I found that sold this type of complex beaded jewelry. And, while I was there, I picked up the following card which briefly explains the history of lampwork beads:

(click to enlarge) All in all, my trip to Prague was a wonderful experience. I have learned a lot about the country and its glassmaking industry, but I feel I have not learned enough! So, I plan on going back to the Czech Republic at least one more time (hopefully soon!) to explore even more glassmaking towns & factories and to hunt for more beads! Afterall, one can never have too many Czech glass beads. :D