This blog feature is an exclusive bonus installment to the Spring 2026 issue of Blending Magazine: Are the Streets still Made for Dreaming?
After you finish reading, be sure to explore the rest of the magazine online—just follow this link to download the full Fall 2025 edition:
https://jschoolfua.com/images/BM/BM_151.pdf
written by Samantha Mircetic, Jillian Rottman & Jenna Pravecek
For centuries, individuals have shaped Florence’s cultural identity through creativity, craftsmanship, and an enduring respect for tradition. These legacies are not only in history books but they remain alive in workshops, studios, and storefronts throughout the city – especially in the Oltrarno neighborhood, where the spirit of craftsmanship continues to flourish.
There’s one particular street in the Oltrano, Sdrucciolo de’ Pitti, that carries a multitude of craft, history and talent in just one little stretch right down the road from Pitti Palace. Here, you will find a small, quiet road that is tucked away from the swarms of tourists and museum-goers. Along this street lies a stretch of artisan shops, each with their own unique crafts, that make their living and do their part to preserve the traditions and keep the practice of handmade art alive – one little street, yet so many different stories to be told.
La Casa Della Stampa lives quaintly along Sdrucciolo de’ Pitti, and serves as a prime example of genuine craftsmanship fostered by familial pride. Lorenzo Sarubbi, the shop owner, is carrying on the techniques of his mother and father who opened the shop over fifty years ago. He uses a familial technique involving antique papers stamped and pressed with handmade designs. This technique is both a blend of artistic excellence and Florentine heritage. The shop’s designs honor Italian cities, nature, and symbolism, and pay homage to a long history through their use of genuine and vintage materials. The shop exudes an intimate family history and tells a story of a dream that came alive long ago. As one of multiple genuine artisan shops in the neighborhood, La Casa Della Stampa represents generations of Florentine success and expertise still alive today.
As you travel a few doors down from La Casa Della Stampa, you will stumble into Giulia Materia – a shop combining design and handicraft with journals, bags, clothing, and more that are designed by Giulia Materia herself. Materia is aware and passionate about the challenges Florentine artisans face today.
“There’s no way to let young people learn about true artistry anymore,” Materia said. “True artisans are being replaced by cheap souvenir shops, [and] now it’s very hard for small businesses to start.”
The prices have gotten so high and the number of people who care about true artisanry is at a staggering low. The dream for artisans to uphold their shops and family legacy is being threatened by sky high storefront rent prices and overtourism. Giulia is a living example of the very few true handmade artisans who struggle to keep their work alive in a world becoming consumed by mass production.
Continuing along Sdrucciolo de’ Pitti, you will stumble upon Arsdecorating. Here, Gabriella Gaeta displays the creative works of her and her husband, who work together to keep art and tradition alive. In a world where technology was beginning to dominate artistic design, Gaeta was determined to preserve her authentically human designs, and took to painting instead.
“I wanted to create something that was impossible to recreate with computers,” Gaeta said.
Then, Gaeta and her husband started to collect and restore antique pieces. In 2009, the couple combined their skills to open the store Arsdecoradting: a shop filled with beautifully unique pieces that capture the beauty of Florentine artisanship as well as the lost art of making things by hand.
These businesses are actively functioning archives of Florence’s past, which is filled with tradition, skill, and identity. In today’s world, mass production and global chains dominate the market, but these businesses stand as an exception to this rule. One little street, Sdruccio de Pitti, and so many stories to be told.
Even in the smallest corners, away from the heavy foot traffic that Pitti Palace brings, lies countless stories and a heritage that stretches beyond the storefront. These artisans have a dream of continuing the traditional practices that make the Oltrarno neighborhood such a well preserved picture of Florence masterpieces. These shopowners strive to keep the spirit of Florence alive in modern times, and as consumers we can all help keep their dreams alive.