Bringing families together with faith and fun
Scroll down to learn more about Gloria & Praise and what we believe in!
Bringing families closer to God and each other since 2019
Our Story: From Our Family to Yours
Glorifying and Praising the Lord through Fun & Family
Gloria & Praise. What a fun name right? And no - none of us are named Gloria! We believe that family is important, and when families have fun together, build memories, and grow in faith, it's a testament to the glory and praise we give to God. And that's what we do!
We are also proud Italian Americans... so Gloria, Italian for Glory, is a great nod to our Italian heritage. And that's Gloria & Praise!
Read on to learn more about our journey:
Family is at the core of everything we do and, well, we'd be remiss if we didn't start by acknowledging our start! Our family history spans continents - from Venice to a small family farm just outside of Rome (where family still farms today!) to the Illinois Valley in IL (where we live!).
We are 1st and 2nd generation Americans and much of our family still lives and farms on the same land in Italy. You can blame our heritage for our love of family and the importance of faith, and fun (because Italians know how to have a good time!)
After immigrating to the US, our father/grandfather became a prominent wood craftsman - known for his intricate designs (we still have some of his creations today!).
You can say craftsmanship and creative design runs in the family!
We put time and effort into things that matter. Quality products with a purpose is what we do!
We started Gloria & Praise after a kitchen table discussion about how we could use our skills to give back. We started with unique rosaries (like the fruit rosary in the picture!) to bring the fun!
Since we wanted our products to give glory and praise to God, we named our endeavor Gloria & Praise, using the Italian word for "Glory" to hearken back to our Italian roots. Contrary to popular belief, none of us are named Gloria! Just Italian American Catholics who are aiming to make a difference.
Our first product line was our Pocket Saints™ - We wanted to create something heartfelt and of quality that people felt great about carrying and to remind them or a loved one about their faith.
Our unique little guys are hand-designed, hand-painted, and hand-assembled. The first time a machine gets involved is the printed label at the end and we are very proud of that!
Pocket Saints™ have become THE choice for a top quality, inexpensive Catholic gift (plus, they are really cute! You can't help but smile!).
For a long time, we've incorporated Christmas crackers into our Christmas festivities. Nothing beats sitting down at Thanksgiving or Christmas and starting the meal with a little bit of laughter and light-heartedness.
We thought...why can't something like this exist, with all the best parts of the Christmas cracker, but center it around faith? Enter our next major product development during Winter of 2020 - Catholic Christmas Crackers™!
Catholic Christmas Crackers™ has become our top-selling item of all time and we've expanded to include different options and prizes...all centered around the glory of the magisterium.
From the Cracker paper to the toys inside, everything points back to the faith!
During our Christmas season, we started to get even more creative - now, on each Christmas Cracker, you will find original artwork or an original design.
Each year's cracker paper is a blank slate to inspire the hearts of those who invite us into their homes.
We are excited to share our love for our faith and art through the beautiful cracker papers that we create from scratch every year.
You could say that we are a little obsessed with sheep! After moving out to our very own farm, we added four babydoll southdown sheep to the herd.
Around the same time, we were trying to come up with a mascot painted in the style of an Italian children's book.
And thus Wemb was born! Inspired by our four sheep and named from the first letter of each sheep's name, Wemb now decorates our website, packaging tape, and more!
In 2022, we wanted to bring the beauty of our Catholic Christmas Cracker tradition to even more people.
These crackers, featuring beautiful buttons with original artwork, could be priced to be more affordable to more people.
Both versions of our crackers have touched hearts as folks invite us into their homes.
In 2023 we introduced the Catholic Sensory Box™!
Made with high-quality items, handstitched felt, and so much more - the box is a breath of fresh air compared to other sensory boxes.
Thoughtfully created specifically for the future saint in your life - from reenacting St. Peter walking on water to sailing out to fish, the possibilities for imaginative play are endless!
Family is at the core of everything we do and, well, we'd be remiss if we didn't start by acknowledging our start! Our family history spans continents - from Venice to a small family farm just outside of Rome (where family still farms today!) to the Illinois Valley in IL (where we live!).
We are 1st and 2nd generation Americans and much of our family still lives and farms on the same land in Italy. You can blame our heritage for our love of family and the importance of faith, and fun (because Italians know how to have a good time!)
After immigrating to the US, our father/grandfather became a prominent wood craftsman - known for his intricate designs (we still have some of his creations today!).
You can say craftsmanship and creative design runs in the family!
We put time and effort into things that matter. Quality products with a purpose is what we do!
We started Gloria & Praise after a kitchen table discussion about how we could use our skills to give back. We started with unique rosaries (like the fruit rosary in the picture!) to bring the fun!
Since we wanted our products to give glory and praise to God, we named our endeavor Gloria & Praise, using the Italian word for "Glory" to hearken back to our Italian roots. Contrary to popular belief, none of us are named Gloria! Just Italian American Catholics who are aiming to make a difference.
Our first product line was our Pocket Saints™ - We wanted to create something heartfelt and of quality that people felt great about carrying and to remind them or a loved one about their faith.
Our unique little guys are hand-designed, hand-painted, and hand-assembled. The first time a machine gets involved is the printed label at the end and we are very proud of that!
Pocket Saints™ have become THE choice for a top quality, inexpensive Catholic gift (plus, they are really cute! You can't help but smile!).
For a long time, we've incorporated Christmas crackers into our Christmas festivities. Nothing beats sitting down at Thanksgiving or Christmas and starting the meal with a little bit of laughter and light-heartedness.
We thought...why can't something like this exist, with all the best parts of the Christmas cracker, but center it around faith? Enter our next major product development during Winter of 2020 - Catholic Christmas Crackers™!
Catholic Christmas Crackers™ has become our top-selling item of all time and we've expanded to include different options and prizes...all centered around the glory of the magisterium.
From the Cracker paper to the toys inside, everything points back to the faith!
During our Christmas season, we started to get even more creative - now, on each Christmas Cracker, you will find original artwork or an original design.
Each year's cracker paper is a blank slate to inspire the hearts of those who invite us into their homes.
We are excited to share our love for our faith and art through the beautiful cracker papers that we create from scratch every year.
You could say that we are a little obsessed with sheep! After moving out to our very own farm, we added four babydoll southdown sheep to the herd.
Around the same time, we were trying to come up with a mascot painted in the style of an Italian children's book.
And thus Wemb was born! Inspired by our four sheep and named from the first letter of each sheep's name, Wemb now decorates our website, packaging tape, and more!
In 2022, we wanted to bring the beauty of our Catholic Christmas Cracker tradition to even more people.
These crackers, featuring beautiful buttons with original artwork, could be priced to be more affordable to more people.
Both versions of our crackers have touched hearts as folks invite us into their homes.
In 2023 we introduced the Catholic Sensory Box™!
Made with high-quality items, handstitched felt, and so much more - the box is a breath of fresh air compared to other sensory boxes.
Thoughtfully created specifically for the future saint in your life - from reenacting St. Peter walking on water to sailing out to fish, the possibilities for imaginative play are endless!
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