Murano, a small island just north of Venice, is synonymous with glass blowing; therefore, Murano glass was an obvious option when I ran the list of popular Venetian souvenirs through my head. I liked the idea of a mask, but I had a hard time thinking of a spot in my house where it wouldn’t look out of place. I love the lion’s head doorknockers, but I think you have to have a certain type of door to pull one of those off. I am not a fan of knick-knacks and things that say “Venice,” so most of the traditional souvenir stores would not be helpful with this task.

Even on our vaporetto ride to Murano, I still didn’t know exactly what I was looking for. I was a little overwhelmed stepping off the water bus and seeing glass factories (fornace) and studios in every direction. That feeling didn’t go away as we walked down the main stretch with countless glass stores on both sides of the canal. We weaved in an out from store to store admiring what these artists are able to do with some molten glass.

We walked by one store (not too far along) that had vases, lights, jewelry, bowls, dishes and everything in between. I noticed a set of beautiful glass shades that drew me into the store. When I redid my kitchen a few years ago, I put in three pendant lights above my island. I purchased brown marble-like shades to put on them, but I’ve never really loved the way it looked. This was my perfect souvenir (aside from our historical photography project)! Not only could I replace those drab shades, but I would also have a piece of Venice in my kitchen to look at and remind me of this trip every day.

If only it had been that simple. Murano glass is very expensive and I am what some may call “thrifty.” I wanted to know that the price at this store was fair (I had a fear of over-paying after reading a few posts online) and I wanted some time to think before making my big purchase. We went back to Venice and enjoyed the rest of our day, occasionally popping into a store that sold glass shades to check their price. After sleeping on it, I was satisfied with the price and I knew that this was what I wanted. We went back to Murano first thing in the morning to purchase three stunning hand-made glass shades. The woman who helped us both days could not have been nicer and she even showed us a video of the Maestro (Diego Vidal) creating the shades in his fornace.

One nice surprise that the shopkeeper explained to us was that Italy gives non-EU tourists a refund on the sales tax you pay for purchases over a certain amount. This is called a VAT (or IVA) tax and is 20% in Italy. The price that I originally saw on the shades and paid included this VAT tax, so this was like getting a discount directly from the Italian government. I do love a good discount! I was given paperwork with my receipt and had to get it certified at the airport on my way home. Three months later, I received a credit on my credit card statement for the VAT refund. The made it really easy to complete the process and definitely worth what you get in return. If you purchase anything over $150 when in Italy, your receipt should come with a VAT form (it not, make sure you ask for one).