One of our United States wholesale customers, who had an online store, decided to exclusively import precious stationery from Florence, Italy.  She shares her story how she decided to sell Italian made products on a website, yet to be created. It started during a personal trip to Florence, Italy where she discovered the popular Florentine pattern appearing on social stationery. So enamored with the design, she purchased several boxes of the precious paper.  Afraid her purchases would be crushed in her checked luggage, she mailed home her extra clothes and shoes so she could hand carr ..read more

In our world of social media, A1, X-formerly Twitter, Facebook, emails and texts, the handwritten Thank You card seems as archaic as a dinosaur. Not all is lost, as there are people who keep the art alive by taking the time to sit down to express their appreciation to the recipient. A handwritten card is a heartfelt acknowledgement by the sender that the recipient is important enough to warrant the sender’s time, effort, and cost to send the card. A small business owner once said “I toss the junk mail, set aside the bills and open the handwritten envelope first, especially if I recognize the ..read more

Founded in 1881 by Francesco Pettinaroli when he first moved to Milan from Lago di Orta, this historic store has been known for years as the ‘Bottega Storica”. Right at the start, it took the form of a stationery store with an adjacent printing and binding shop. It quickly became very popular and well known in Milan, as it filled an obvious need. The fine paper, precise and elegant workmanship and high end paper craft were a hit with the customers, who continue to flock to this day, now 130 years later. They come for printing done for their most important events using the most refined techniqu ..read more

We at Rossi are truly blessed to be able to do what we love and share that passion and our products with you. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts. Have a joyous Holiday season.   The post Happy Holidays from our home to yours appeared first on Italian Stationery Blog ..read more

Christmas waves a magic wand over this world, and behold, everything is softer and more beautiful. ~ Norman Vincent Peale While everyone else is off mall crawling, shoppers in the beautiful area north of San Francisco will be hitting the specialty shops in one of Sonoma County’s most charming town: Petaluma, home of Paperwhite, a simply chic stationery and unique gift boutique on historic Kentucky Street. chic Not far from the sea, and distance- wise only 35 miles from San Francisco, but seemingly worlds apart, Petaluma has the feel of a sprawling, agricultural town… grape vines and vineyard ..read more

“You said to me… that if ever you inherited any money that it was yours to dispose of, you would have a house… filled with beautiful pictures and objects of art, for people to come and enjoy. And you have carried out the dream of your youth. “ — ISABELLA’S FRIEND, IDA AGASSIZ HIGGINSON, 1923 info@northspore.com (from the Gardner Museum web site: www.gardnermuseum.org) Isabella Stewart Gardner (1840-1924) was an extraordinary connoisseur who stood at the center of Boston’s cultural life in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century. She was a patron and friend to several important artis ..read more

We love websites that feature GREAT paper… and lots of it, and this is one of the best! So, we wanted to share… and how lucky are we that they are a Rossi customer! Mulberry Paper and More is a site for artists, designers, crafters and paper lovers of all types. They import specialty papers from around the world for use in virtually any art, design or craft application. Most of the papers are hand-made from craftsmen using traditional paper-making techniques. The selection is incredible, especially the intricate hand-silkscreened patterns of Japanese Yuzen Paper and papers marbled by hand in T ..read more

“Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn’t before! What if Christmas, he thought, doesn’t come from a store? What if Christmas…perhaps…means a little bit more!” ― Dr. Seuss, How the Grinch Stole Christmas! For many of us–whether we choose to admit it or not–Christmas is about presents. Children eagerly wait in anticipation of Christmas morning. Far-sighted adults start stockpiling on-sale gifts early in the summer. The procrastinating multitudes flock to the mall in the week or days before Christmas. However, gift-giving did not become the central Christmas tradition it is today until the ..read more

There’s no reason to follow ALL the rules at Christmas, especially when it comes to wrapping presents. In fact, it’s the time of year when you can get a little crazy with the wrapping! Go beyond green, red, and gold and consider some of these Italian-made decorative sheets from Rossi1931. Superbly printed, Rossi is well-known for producing a dazzling array of decorative papers featuring subjects as diverse as shoes to wine labels to vintage airplanes to Pinocchio figures. So as you begin your marathon gift-wrapping season, think outside the box this year, and consider a few of these exciting c ..read more

Pietro Mascagni was an Italian composer most noted for his operas in the style of Verismo, an opera marked by melodramatic plots with characters drawn from everyday life where the subjects are not mythological figures, or kings and queens, but average contemporary men and women and their problems. Considered a virtuoso of his times, he wrote 14 operas and operettas, symphonies and soundtracks for the cinema and toured all over the world. A true divo, he was an ingenious and eclectic composer, open minded to every change and innovation. With the release of our new 2017 catalog, Ross1931 is ple ..read more