It’s bad luck to wish Italians good luck. Cry wolf instead
In our part of Italy most people think that wishing somebody ‘good luck’ is bad news, believing that doing so is likely to have precisely the opposite effect. So when it…
Category Archives: Knitting Holidays
Sprezzatura! A cool Italian word that could have been invented for Lois
We don’t have a specific word for it in English, but sprezzatura, first coined by an Italian diplomat in the 16th Century, could have been invented for Lois. It…
Irresistib-eel!
Yes, when Flavio Terenzoni, our gardener, brought in the pumpkin and the sinuous squash, and when painting tutor Crystal Beshara arranged them in an artistic still-life, Bill couldn’t resist…
Lest we forget: everyday reminders of past terrors on our Florence doorstep
Embedded in the pavement by the front door of houses next to our apartment building in Florence are half a dozen small square brass plaques which force us to remember…
Knitting tourism essentials: what to pack for a week of wool and wonder in Italy
We’ve welcomed knitters from all over the world to the Watermill, and over the years, we’ve noticed something charming: many of them arrive with suitcases that are, shall we say,…
Reverse benchmarking points the way ahead
Benchmark, Carlisle Cathedral by Adrian Taylor, CC BY-SA 2.0 . Detail. <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons Don’t copy – innovate When I hear the word benchmark, I immediately think…
Why going solo on a knitting retreat might be the best gift you give yourself
A knitting retreat in Italy may not be the first thing that comes to mind when you think of travelling solo, but it has quietly become one of the most…
A Scottish Skating Minister and Winter Inspiration for Painting Holidays in Tuscany
We’ve chosen this delightful image of an 18th Century Scottish Presbyterian minister ice skating gracefully on Duddingston Loch to send our Season’s Greetings to all our Watermill friends and…