We've moved from Baltimore, Maryland USA to Venice, Italy in pursuit of living our dream!



Friday, December 2, 2016

Countdown to Christmas, Venice Style - Day 2



DIY Santa Advent Calendar
from randomtuesdays.com


Ciao tutti!

Welcome back for another day of my Countdown to Christmas. Did you enjoy my Venice version of the 12 Days of Christmas?  Were you singing it all day today like we were? 


I love the Advent calendar idea I selected for today.  When I first looked at it, I thought you removed a cotton ball each day. Duh!  You put a new one in place each day.  Perfect. I loved it so much I had to put it here on Day 2 instead of later, so there are plenty of days left in the month in case any of you wanted to create one for the little ones in your lives to use. Have fun sticking cotton balls on Santa's face! 

Ok, so, on to what I have in store today. Instead of highlighting things or places around Venice that say Christmas to me,I've decided to give this years December Advent blog posts a different spin.  I'm shining a light  on people instead.  I've been incredibly fortunate to have met so many wonderful local people over the years. Time to share them with you. I hope you enjoy meeting these talented Venetians.

So without further ado, here's my pick for behind door #2.

I met Paolo Brandolisio the first year I ever visited Venice, on one of those days we were exploring (maybe it was more like wandering aimlessly lost) in the Castello district. Every time I stop by his shop, I am transported to another time, a very old Venice when artisans handcrafted everything, including the oars and forcole needed to row the gondolas. Inside Paolo's studio you will find him carving beautiful works of art, with tools handed down over the years from maestro Giuseppi Carli.  Now Paolo is the maestro himself.

handcrafted forcola by Paolo Brandolisio

Paolo Brandolisio the forcola maker

To me, Paolo is artist, craftsman and magician, all rolled into one. 



Inside Paolo Brandolisio's workshop in Castello

old tools used to make the oars and forcole in Venice

The smells of freshly hewn wood and shavings all over the floor spell one thing only - Paolo's studio.
You can find him at Castello 4725,  where you can purchase one of his replica forcole, feri (the front piece on the gondola of iron, although Paolo's are wood), oars for kayaks, and now gorgeous handcarved bracelets. 

Link to the 2014 Countdown to Christmas Day 2 blog post.  Hope you also enjoy this one too, featuring the Pandoro, a traditional holiday dolce. 

Buona sera, tutti!






1 comment:

Michelle said...

I can even smell the wood shavings. Grazie!