Building Our Workshop: A Journey of Learning and Craftsmanship

Our workshop is the culmination of four years of learning and growing. My dad and I began by asking ourselves what tools and processes could make our production better, faster, and more accurate. So, we decided to invest in our dream. We cleared out our garage, like many startups do, and started planning our workspace.

 

The Birth of IN SANA’s Workshop

Nearly two years ago, I made the tough decision to leave Amsterdam and return to Italy to build IN SANA’s workshop with my father. It was time to dive deep into the art of eyewear making and understand the production process from the ground up.

For our first collection, Phase Exeo, most of the glasses were crafted by local artisans. Each piece was unique, requiring specific materials and skills, particularly for the metal components. My role was primarily assembly and quality control—a critical part, but just the final step in a much larger process.

When I began prototyping Phase Armour, I realized things would be different. The metal components for Phase Armour were made through a microfusion process by a skilled goldsmith, but the rest could be done by us. Achieving the perfect finish for Phase Armour glasses is all about time, dedication, and meticulous attention to detail. Polishing metal to a flawless shine involves numerous steps, each one removing tiny imperfections until you’re left with a smooth, gleaming surface.

This is not something you can do in your living room. Polishing metal produces a lot of fine dust that is hazardous to breathe and impossible to clean up entirely. So, it was clear—I needed to come back home and fully commit to bringing my vision to life, owning the process, and learning from it.

We started with the basics—tools every handyman has, like grinders, dremels, and various small instruments. Gradually, we expanded our collection. Now, we have a robust set of tools that allow us to repair any pair of glasses and create prototypes to test our ideas.

We also organized our stock efficiently. While we produce in small quantities, proper storage is essential. Some finished glasses are packaged and cataloged, ready to ship. We also keep raw frames—those that have only gone through the initial production steps. These frames still need galvanization, assembly, and finishing. Having these raw frames on hand helps us improve production times for pre-orders and ensures fast, reliable service in case of warranty issues.

 

The Magic of Handmaking Eyewear

After nearly two years of working in Italy, I can confidently say that this is the part of IN SANA I love the most. Manual work is like meditation for me. It requires focus but also frees my mind, allowing me to see how each action leads to another, each choice has its consequence, and the final result is always beautifully unique.

There’s a certain magic in handcrafting eyewear. Any handmade process can induce this flow, but eyewear is especially captivating. When you finish working on a frame and put it on, everything changes. You see a new version of yourself, and you get to decide if that’s who you want to be—an experience that embodies true freedom.

Wearing my glasses, I feel the depth of work that went into them. Each frame carries the story of its creation. It’s incredible how eyewear is often underestimated and misunderstood. Society rarely teaches us to appreciate artisanal work. When we fail to notice the time, the details (often mistaken for defects), the texture, and the asymmetry of handmade objects, we miss out on their full experience.

I hope that everyone who chooses IN SANA can appreciate the process behind each piece. Every detail makes the object more beautiful, a testament to its unique story rather than a sign of imperfection. Some might refer to what I am trying to describe as what is in the Japanese culture, the concept behind the Wabi Sabi.

 

Conclusion

This journey has been incredible. Our workshop might be small and humble, but it’s the start of something big. It has everything we need to bring our creations to life. I am especially grateful to my father, who continues to teach me the secrets of eyewear making and the production process. Here’s to many more years of learning and creating together.

 

Click here if wanna know more about how our frames are made and our production process, none of this would be possible without the collaboration of our selected local artisans.

 

Thank you,

Silvia Fresco - Founder & Designer