Our Story

L’Antica Vetreria was born from our personal dream, nurtured for ten years after we came to Italy for the first time, landing in Umbria and Tuscany for our honeymoon. We fell in love with the region, the people, history, culture, food and wine. Returning again and again, we explored both Umbria and Tuscany to find the perfect place to welcome guests to experience life in a welcoming village.  We found it in 2004, a vast glassworks abandoned since 1943, and set forth on an evolving journey to rescue this historic jewel, one of the most important structures in the village of Piegaro with its 750 years of glassmaking history.  Our vision for a beautiful resort captured the imagination of our architect and the mayor who immediately made land available for our pool and terraces, built a private road, and helped us to find the best local craftsmen who took great pride in restoring this beautiful, but long neglected, gem.  Using only locally sourced ancient stone, wooden beams and ironwork made by hand, we lovingly brought this remarkable property to life and, in the process, contributed to the life and energy of a welcoming village.  We have integrated ourselves into village life, we live here full-time and are on hand to make our guests’ experience of authentic Umbria a reality.  Making a life within the nurturing and embracing arms of an entire village is really a dream-come-true.

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Colleen was asked to write a guest column for "Renovating Italy"; and there is so much more about our story here: http://www.renovatingitaly.com/lantica-vetreria-the-glass-factory-renovation

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