27/04/2026
This here is a true life version of The Elves and the Shoemaker story that miraculously happened here at Locanda Sospesa❤️
Some time ago Anna and Arthur two young and super talented architects from Vienna stayed with us at the Locanda very quickly sliding into the spirit and rhythm of the house and forming a deep kinship of sorts between us. When they noticed one of our chandeliers had lost all its glass beads, we told them the wind had blown them away but we had found and kept some of them, but had no idea how they could be recomposed. They stared at each for what seemed like a long time and declared the totally unexpected, unimaginable : they would attempt to restore the chandelier and proceeded to spend their last night at locanda organizing all the beads by colour and size in little boxes while we slept.
The morning after we watched them drive off with the whole chandelier in their boot to their architecture studio in Vienna leaving us in a state of disbelief on one side and the rarest feeling of deep love for humanity on the other.
A few months later, they returned—with something extraordinary. Not just a restored chandelier, but a piece brought back to life. They had managed to find the original Murano glass beads, tracking them down through auctions in France and Canada, as the historic furnace no longer existed. Thread by thread, bead by bead, they reconstructed a design so complex it felt almost impossible to replicate—and yet, they did it perfectly.
This had been a family affair with all hands on deck over in Vienna, mothers and fathers included, patiently cleaning and restringing the beads one by one, often overnight, simply out of their good heart, a sense of friendship and a shared love for the old, beautiful and intricate things that are no more.
An act of unique generosity and love as well as - let’s face it -of complete and utter magical folly — and one we will simply never forget.
We will always feel a deep connection to Anna and Arthur and their studio
Some bonds are simply meant to last.
