As I wait and wait for spring, I can't help but think about our trip to Italy in late summer last year. Just looking at these beautiful hand-painted ceramics gives me a lift -- the colors are happy and bright and the memory of shopping in Siena brings to mind amazing architecture and markets -- and yes, wine! That's me there in the banner photo with Rosalba, the proprietor at Rosco Art, who helped me choose this bowl shown here. She and her English-speaking husband will ship their wares anywhere in the world, so you have no excuse.
The designs often tell stories, celebrate weddings and births, and even civic loyalty. These ceramics reflect the artistic Italian heritage (tracing back to the Greeks) and demonstrate how art styles changed during the Renaissance. Patterns range from geometric to scrolly, romantic shapes. And you can choose from a simple blue and white combination to the multi-color super-charged palettes.
I'm also posting a photo album of images of the villa where we stayed. It is an authentic reproduction built from the shell of a farm house. The textures, light, and colors were amazing. My favorite is the robin's-egg-blue window frames -- they match the blue sky -- an idea I will use eventually. It (almost) seems like it was a dream. I know I'll be heading back to Italy very soon.
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