|
|
Artisan Discoveries in Tuscany
November 1 – 8
Artisan Discoveries is an intimate tour designed for connoisseurs of quality, craftsmanship, and unique treasures.
Hand-made, one-of-a-kind products are available to you, directly from the artisans who craft them. You are greeted by the artisans who welcome you as friends into their working studios and factories as they share their passion for their craft. With entusiasmo and passione, Tuscan artisans share their personal stories, their family histories in the business, and demonstrate their craft, all hallmarks of the fine quality of “Made in Italy.”
Guided by friends Sharon Portin Parker, shopper extraordinaire, and Paula Sullivan, your host at the farmhouse Selva, your home for the tour, you visit artisans in cashmere, silk and other textiles, linens, embroidery, jewelry, leather, ceramics, and many more, even cheese and, yes, wine.
- Visit Nora and her cashmere goats, whose milk is used to make luscious organic lotions, soaps and shampoo, and whose cashmere is woven by local expert weavers into buttery shawls, capes, blankets and throws, in quality equal to top fashion brands. Visitors in the spring will have the opportunity to meet the newborn kids, possibly the cutest baby animal in the world.
- Meet Carlo who will measure your feet to make customized shoes and boots in fine Italian leathers and suedes, or he will create a made-to-order jacket for you. His customers worldwide order shoes from him, confident they will always fit perfectly.
- Watch Grazia, among the last of the women with her talent, fashion exquisite embroidery on antique and handmade linens, for tablecloths, napkins, baby clothes, nightgowns worthy of trousseaus and many other uses.
- Consult with Gino about monograms, stationery, business cards, and ex libris, designed for your personality, using classic references, with templates crafted by his son, and traditionally printed in handset movable type with brass templates. This type of printing lasts for generations, and Gino’s work is sought out by respected artists, musicians, and other notables worldwide. Your ex libris crafted by Gino is recorded in the Italian Ex Libris Registry.
- Enjoy the rhythm of weavers working in cashmere and silk on antique chestnut looms at a weaving school in the mountains, where their work goes to top designers, except for those held back to sell directly to you at their shop.
- Explore the collection of precious jewelry designed and crafted by master goldsmith Mauro in his small workshop. His designs include those both traditional, reflecting the history of Tuscany, and innovative. He also consults with clients to create jewelry which reflects their personalities and personal taste.
- Other excursions include visits to ceramicists, a vendor of certified antique Italian prints, mixed media artists, producers of yummy chocolates, one of the oldest shops in Lucca selling antique jewelry, and a monastery producing regional products.
And there’s more to round out your Tuscan experience:
- An unusual visit will take you to Germana, the shepherdess on the estate, to watch her work the magic of pecorino cheese and ricotta, from milk taken that very morning from her herd of sheep.
- A guided tour of Lucca, its cultural, artistic and historical highlights, a stop in the morning for the ‘best cappuccino in the world’ and a pause during afternoon shopping for the ‘best gelato in the world”.
- Meals outside the farmhouse are chosen to enhance your culinary experience of Tuscany, from ravioli with ricotta and pear, to a souffle of pumpkin, to, of course, the ‘best tiramisu` in the world’
- You’ll discover the pleasure of ‘slow food’, enjoying the moment and stretching it out, a concept which has become a worldwide effort to honor local food products, the Slow Food Movement.
- No visit to Tuscany is complete without a wine-tasting or two, and we’ve chosen wineries for you to visit which are among the best we’ve encountered.
- Lucca is the hometown of Puccini, and you will enjoy a concert of arias given in a medieval Romanesque church with excavated Roman ruins.
- You’ll make your own limoncello and try it out on pizza night.
The April tour coincides with the monthly antique market in Lucca, where vendor’s stalls line the winding streets of the city; afterwards you can join the traditional passegiata (stroll) in the streets or along the boulevard atop the famous Renaissance walls.
The November tour coincides with the Christmas market and ‘open doors’ of merchants during the holiday season. Lucca does Christmas beautifully, and you’ll enjoy the lights and the warmth of holiday wishes from shopkeepers and strollers alike.
Tuscany is not only a place but an experience . . . and you’ll bring home unique memories from your artisan discoveries.
|
