Field Trip - Florentine Marbleized Paper

July 16, 2010

Everytime I travel to Italy I find great antiques, but I also find incredible artisans who are willing to share with me their craft and explain the process.

On my recent trip I met Enrico Giannini, a fifth generation marbleized papermaker in Florence. He was gracious to show me how he crafts these beautiful one-of-a-kind papers.

Different colors are sprinkled onto a liquid bath that contains a glue he makes by combining seaweed and water. The glue keeps the colors floating and separate from each other

He then uses a series of tools, including combs and skewers, to make patterns with the colors.

He transfers the pattern to paper by carefully laying the paper on the surface of the liquid.

He then pulls it through a blade to take off the excess color and water, revealing the beautiful pattern.

Once the sheets have dried they are used to make beautiful objects, such as decorative frames and boxes. Here is my purchase from this trip. These beautiful pieces have much more meaning and value when you know how much time has gone into their creation. True works of art and all uniquely different.

If you are planning a trip to Florence his tiny workshop is located on Via dei Velluti, 10/R.