Only after I returned home from a secondhand store, that I noticed the tag in the Venice Burano Tablecloth. There was just a small tag stating Venice Burano, plus the date of 2018. The piece is stiffly starched and looks, to my eye, brand new and never used. I’m thinking this is a souvenir piece that someone brought back from a trip to Burano, Venice. It was priced at only $3, so I purchased it thinking I could use it for a celebratory meal. Of course, I also thought it is quite lovely.
In each of the four corners of the small Venice Burano tablecloth is a lovely red and pink rose and yellow flower design which is finely cross stitched. Cross stitching is way of sewing which uses two stitches to make an “X”. The edges of the tablecloth are nicely made.
So, why I’m I curious about the piece? Another shopper in line behind me starting to look at my piece. Then she asked if the store had any more. She, also, stated hand stitched items are expensive. Unfortunately, I bought the only piece like it.
Venice, Burano
Not knowing much about Burano, I decided to look it up on the internet. My research shows that Burano is an island in the Venetian Lagoon. It is known for lace working or tatting and for colorful painted homes. It is a lively fishing island with fresh seafood. There is a large ferry that takes people to the island and it gets a lot of tourists.
In Burano, starting in the 16th century, making lace was a community effort. During this time, a group of women each specialized in a stitch. When they completed their stitching or tatting, the piece was passed on to the next lady, and so on. This way, it could take a month to make one lacy tablecloth. As you can guess, a handmade lace tablecloth from Burano is very labor extensive.
Looking at the backside of the design to see how the stitches are ended.
Ending Comments
Wow, the Venice Burano tablecloth is definitely a lovely piece at a great price. The rose and flower design is beautiful. Although the piece is finely made, I don’t think it is handmade because the cloth tag also states it is 100 percent polyester. I don’t think a person would put that kind of work into a piece that was made with polyester. So, I’m thinking they would use a good linen or such material. I’m also not seeing the hand knotting on the back of the pattern.
However, that doesn’t matter to me, I love the piece and will use it at some future date.
Front Design of Tablecloth.
Resource Sites: www.walksofitaly.com and www.collinsdictionary.com