It's May 06th 2023; it's a rainy day in London, yet this doesn't stop the trumpets, shots fired, bells and notes of God Save the King echoing through the city. For those of us who observe from afar, it is the first time in history that we are allowed to observe everything.. really every-thing, down to the smallest of details, the subtlest of gestures. This is why, together with Maria Francesca Broggini, expert gold embroidery artisan, we can focus on the extreme Beauty of embroidery techniques applied to each component of the ceremony, along with their traditional (and very personal!) symbolisms!

Villa Wolkonsky is one of the many secret oases dotting Rome; a precious, hidden, treasure chest, usually inaccessible and unknown, which I had the privilege of accessing thanks to the FAI (Italian Environment Fund) during the “FAI spring days”.

Villa Wolkonsky is not only a place of incredible historical and architectural value, with its enchanted park full of treasures; for somebody, it is home..

"Almost” disappeared, because one of the very few artisans in Italy left to carry on this technique is Maria Francesca Broggini, founder of Aembrosia, a very young and talented Italian craftswoman, who preserves and interprets the savoir-faire of gold embroidery by applying it to haute couture jewellery and luxury hair jewellery.

The name of Gabriele Maselli is just as known as Via d’ Ginori, the street in which his father, Paolo, founded the bottega in 1955: just name "Il Maselli" and any Florentine would start daydreaming and telling about how his/her family keeps one of Maselli’s wooden frames in their livingroom.

Let me tell you a story..
”Once upon a time, it is said around the year 1000, during the domination of the Moors in Sicily, a beautiful girl lived in the Arab quarter of Kalsa (in the heart of Palermo). She dedicated her days to the care of her beloved plants. One day, from the top of her lush balcony, her beauty was noticed by a Moor who was passing by. As soon as he saw her, he did not hesitate for a moment to declare his love for her. The girl, struck by this declaration, returned the Moor's sentiment with passion, yet, dear readers, as often happens in tales of romance, their story, which began with such ardor, was destined for a short life..