Ciao! I am excited to announce the launch of my new travel vlogs on YouTube! Join me as I explore some of the most beautiful destinations in northern Italy. In my first video, I’ll be sharing the itinerary for my one day in Venice during February of 2022. Coming soon are packing tips for travel … More Italy Travel Videos
10 days in ITALY!! Trip details/cost is here. We will begin in Venice and visit the best vendors, historical sites, and opera/fine dining of the Serenissima for 3 days at the end of Carnevale in February 2024 (because those crowds are meh). Next we will take the train to Ferrara and have a 3-day tour … More Italy with Gigi 2024
Here are my tips on planning a trip to Italy. When I start planning my own trip I think of it in steps each time and I want to share that process for any who might be thinking of planning their own. In fact, I may host a bespoke trip in 2022 for a small … More Italy Travel Planning
The spread of the Covid-19 virus has triggered an epidemic of advice. This advice is important, but it seems destined to make our lives more miserable and isolated. However, there is an unusual source of counsel which offers another way to deal with an epidemic. That source is the Decameron. The Italian Renaissance author Giovanni Boccaccio wrote the Decameron in … More Surviving the Corona Virus: Medieval Italian Style
My Starting Point As usual, I look for images. I fond this one and love it. This piqued my interest and I began my preliminary internet research. The description on Wikimedia Commons: “The dead woman, her name inscribed on the base of her chest, was clearly a well-to-do lady. She reclines upon a … More Etruscan Research Part 1: Intro and References
Did Starbucks know they were paying homage to a 7th-century Italian motif when they chose their logo? The first one below, on the left, is a melusina (melusine) or mermaid in the facade of San Michele, Pavia, Italy. The second one, on the right, is from the crest of the Colonna family. I’m taking some … More Italian Connection: Starbucks Logo
http://germanrenaissance.net/drawn-thead-work-the-hemstitch-tutorial/ By Genoveva von Lubeck Drawn thread work likely began in the 16th century and was popular in Italy, Germany, Sweden, and England. I discovered it while researching pleated aprons and I theorize that some German aprons utilized drawn thread techniques based on imagery. Drawn thread work can be seen in a simple form on … More Repost: 16th Century Drawn Thread Handkerchief
I found this and *had* to share it for all those who would like historically accurate font types. Reblogged from: http://www.pia-frauss.de/fonts/st.htm#pd “This font is based on the handwriting of Giovanni Borgia/Joan Borja, duke of Gandia, who was the son of a pope and the grandfather of a saint, member of a much-decried family, and founder … More Italian Renaissance Font
Here is what I wrote to a friend planning her trip to Italy after my 2006 journey to Verona, Lake Garda, Florence, Venice, and Rome… I hope you guys have a blast in Italy! I went for a few months last year and had the time of my life. Here are some suggestions (I’m not … More More Musings From Italy
These would make excellent additions to any meal, especially at a living history event. Cabbage Salad From The Fruit (Herbs and Vegetables of Italy, Giacomo Castelvertro, translator Gillian Riley. Redaction by Gretchen Beck) “I once happened to be in France in the company of a group of ladies and gentlemen, and we came one afternoon to a large … More Recipes from Renaissance Italy
La Bella Donna 