Festa del Ricamo 2012: The countdown!

News and details on Casa Cenina's most important yearly event are leading you to this event day by day.

» Here you can find the page detailing everything you should know about our event, the "Festa del Ricamo 2012"

• Sunday 27th May 2012
Today should be the last day to send us your samplers… But, please, read our Friday the 15th message, for we have actually decided to give you some more days to run to the post office However, today it's also the last one of our "travel journal". For three weeks, we've been updating you every day with some news about our "getting ready" for the Festa and how we've been working to make it, once again, something special and unforgettable for the all of you! Now, there are only five days left before welcoming you from real and these days are being all focused on tuning up the last details, which are going to be many, quite delicate and necessary, since there's something new to be done every day That's why we're going to devote ourselves to such "tuning up" for the next weekend, leaving you too to your "getting ready": a lot of you are coming from quite far and we're sure you'll also have many things to do, before leaving to join us!
We'll meet you at our Festa del Ricamo 2012, next Saturday and Sunday, from 10 am See you soon!

• Saturday 26th May 2012
As mentioned already, today let us quickly introduce you all the "Cenina guys", who's going to help us next weekend: first of all, our Giovanni - and when we say "our", that's exactly what we mean, for he's definitely Cenina's father, as you all there already know! - who will coordinate, entertain, advise and… Take pictures, as usual Then, we have two Giulio(s): our essential "jack of all trades", helping us with everything - from gardening to moving and handling pieces of furniture and merchandise - as well as our other Giulio, the one from the Venice area, who speaks several foreign languages, is in charge of our Spanish website and customers and has always helped us at exhibitions, too. We have already told you about Luca, who's going to literally "chauffeur around" from and to the station of Arezzo all our friends coming and seeing us by train, all the weekend long. And our great Dutch partner Ton, the ever-accurate husband of Karin from Beardie Designs and skillful IT professional (exactly like our Giovanni), will also be here, ready to promptly support us as usual!!! Once again, we'll also be pleased to welcome the taste and crafting skill of our ten-year friend Andrea "Needleman" (as he likes defining himself!) Carboni, flying to Tuscany from his Sardinia, expressly for our event! Last but not least - and certainly not less important - several key managers from our partner companies are joining us for this edition of the Festa. With so many ladies around, it'll be our pleasure to rely on the careful collaboration of all the above-mentioned "misters", don't' you think so?

• Friday 25th May 2012
So, another week of "works in progress" - we're sure, for the all of you, too, who are still "stitching hard" to send us your samplers - has gone That's why, we'd like to remind you once again that you should ship your work by Sunday 27th. However, if you're thinking this last weekend before our Festa would be so "convenient" to put on your fabrics just those last "four or five" cross stitches, needed to finish your masterpiece… Well, we have decided to give you a little "dispensation", let's call it this way, and procrastinate the deadline to ship us your samplers: so, you can ship them next Monday and Tuesday as well… But, please, don't risk further!!!
Have a very pleasant weekend, you all out there

• Thursday 24th May 2012
And finally, yesterday, late in the afternoon, a wonderful sun pierced the threatening clouds that had been covering the sky all day long... So, we decided it was time to mount our gazebos!!! We were thrilled and a little "scared" - there were about fifty cartons to open! - but everything's going quite quickly towards our great weekend and, be sure, we're keeping pace with it
Hear from us tomorrow

• Wednesday 23rd May 2012
This time, our Festa is going to be a "Festa for our misters", too! There'll be several "Cenina guys" helping us, in fact, and we're going to talk about the all of them by the end of this week But today, let's focus on our "chauffeur": the one who's going to be at your own disposal for the whole weekend of the Festa - on Saturday and Sunday - to collect you at and take you to the station in Arezzo! His name is Luca, he's a long-time friend of ours and you'll be able to immediately recognize him, for he's going to wear - just like all of us - our epoch-making black T-shirt with our logo on. He's going to travel back and forth continuously, with a trendy all-terrain car with seven seats So, don't worry if you're not going to catch him right at the first round, for you're definitely going to catch him at the second one

• Tuesday 22nd May 2012
Today, a brand new shipment has taken its way towards Casa Cenina... And it's a ship(ment) full of needlework fabrics from Zweigart! We've included "everything under the sun" (as they use to say in English, even though the sun has hardly been seen lately here, as you already know!) in it and even some little/great surprises. which are useful too, as it's in the perfect German style! Stay tuned

• Monday 21st May 2012
Well, Spring is 2 months old, today... But the weather is still quite "unsettled"... Anyway, our preparations are going on: of this you can be sure! So, today, here we are with our gazebos just delivered: we're going to assemble them quite quickly and we're truly looking forward to seeing them standing, for we know they're going to create an amazing atmosphere! Have a very pleasant week, you all out there!

• Sunday 20th May 2012
OK, it's raining again: another Sunday with rain almost all over Italy... But, we'll tell you what... Let it pour even for all these - fewer and fewer, now - days leading us to our great event, so (though we have to say "maybe") our Festa will even more deserve, if not a more or less shining sun, at least a sky with no more showers to "download"

• Saturday 19th May 2012
And now, some service information that we're going to complete anyway in the next days... So, just to start informing you that we're getting ready for the transfer from and to the station in Arezzo, that you'll have the chance of eating - some tempting sandwiches and typical Tuscan delicatessen - as well as to entertain your children if they're coming with you!
Have a very nice Saturday

• Friday 18th May 2012
Today, just a quick, very quick, reminder... Maybe even a little obvious - you might think - but we'd like you to take note of it anyway And here it is: please, bear in mind that our Festa del Ricamo is going to be held on both Saturday the 2nd and Sunday the 3rd of June and both these days have exactly the same importance and will offer exactly the same shopping chances! So, there's no need for you to hurry on Saturday morning, for - we swear - we have a whole lot, if even not more than a whole lot, of items in stock, for the all of you! On the other hand, you always have the opportunity of placing "pick&pay" orders and, last but not least, if ever anything should run out, you'll be free to reserve it with exactly the same discount applied to any other product and get it shipped to your address 100% for free: and this applies to all the products reserved!!!

• Thursday 17th May 2012
Well, this year more than ever, for our Festa is going to be held directly at our warehouse, we're sure you're looking forward to it even more, to shop as you've never done before: and that's fair! Since touching from real has definitely a special meaning... Mainly when you can touch irresistible, lovely, little things that you're hands are going to turn into something even more irresistible and lovely However, please bear in mind that "seeing" is also important and what are our PCs and the Internet for, if not for this, after all???!!?!?!?? So, once again this time, if you already have some "clear ideas" on what you'd like to purchase, just place your order online and you can then easily "pick & pay" it on the days of our Festa! Remember: shopping (online) doesn't mean you can go on shopping (directly at our warehouse, during our Festa del Ricamo!!!!)

• Wednesday 16th May 2012
OK: it's called "Festa del Ricamo" (literally "the Feast of Embroidery"), but you all know for sure that, for a couple of years now, we've been focusing on quilting as well and today we'd like to share with you our enthusiasm in selecting more and more Japanese quilting fabrics! They're extremely refined, dyed-yarn cottons, standing out for their delicate, subtle shades and their "ability" of turning any idea of creating sewing you may have into something unique! On the 2nd and 3rd of June, you'll have the chance of seeing and touching them all from real: they definitely deserve your attention ;)

• Tuesday 15th May 2012
Monica is always holding a rotary cutter! Why? Well, it's easy: she's cutting a whole lot of quilting fabrics, creating a number of exclusive fabric selections for our Festa, of course including all the latest proposals by the best-known manufacturers of these irresistible cottons! We're not going to miss the "old favorites", of course, but they're going to be skillfully mixed with the newest quilting fabrics coming from the USA and Japan and at the most appealing price, as usual

• Monday 14th May 2012
Hi there! For us, the new week is opening up with more and more of your samplers delivered at our headquarters We know many of you are still "working on their samplers" and we're working, too, to make the weekend of our "Festa", the "Weekend of your Samplers", too, for we know for sure your little work of "needleart" deserve it, as it's already clear from those we are already receiving here at our headquarters! Thanks a lot right from now to the all of you: we're waiting for your samplers and… Yes, we're proud of you!

• Sunday 13th May 2012
A brand new Sunday and some brand new plans! That's it: freshly from our "ship's log", here we are with two more great brands, which have just decided to join our Festa del Ricamo 2012 as special partners with DMC, PRYM, ZWEIGART, PREMAX: Gütermann and Riolis!
The news arrived yesterday evening!

At present, RIOLIS is definitely among the greatest manufacturers of cross stitch kits in the world. Till the last year, they mainly dealt with Eastern markets, but their steady research for quality and the sprint towards modernization that has been characterizing their business lately, have made them a highly active and very well known brand throughout Europe. In our online store you can already find a selection of their kits, but the growing interest you've been showing had led us to get closer and closer to this company and, in short, we're going to enter their whole collection in Casa Cenina. For our June event, Riolis is going to offer a special discount to you all and showcase some of their most popular and renowned kits from real, so that you can see for yourselves the quality that has made this brand the "Dimensions from the East".

For all quilting addicted, Gütermann means floss. But this epoch-making German brand, together with Amann Mettler, is a worldwide leading manufacturer of sew-all threads. Casa Cenina has recently drawn an agreement for the direct distribution of the products from this company, soon celebrating their 150th anniversary, and their range is going to be entered in our catalog in June. In the meantime, to tempt you and us both, Gütermann has decided to join the other companies taking part in our Festa del Ricamo. We're going to sell their floss at the best price possible - as we've always liked to do - but on the two days of our event, Gütermann has agreed to offer - at an even more special price - some lovely, vintage, little boxes including a selection of their most popular threads. You're going to love them!

... have a very nice Sunday!

• Saturday 12th May 2012
Weekending once again! We're all willing to go out for an aperitif or a pizza with our friends! And for our Festa del Ricamo, if you're hungry and/or you want to enjoy something truly Tuscan, you'll find a space fulluy dedicated to the delicatessen of our friends known as Briganti Toscani (literally "The Tuscan Bandits"): the so-called "porchetta", an oven or spit roasted suckling pig flavored with pepper, rosemary, garlic and other seasonings, along with some more Tuscan specialties , good wine and many more lottle things for our homes and kitchens, which we'd like to enter in our catalog by next Xmas.

• Friday 11th May 2012
And what about if it's raining? Well, of course we hate the idea of getting some more rain... But bearing in mind the past editions of our event, we are already "gearing up", protecting and embellishing our outdoor areas with some proper gazebo that - except in the instance of some tornados!!! - will protect us from any shower and enable us to enjoy both days of our event!

• Thursday 10th May 2012
Just a quick reminder for the winners of our contest The Sampler of My Life. This is an international event: there are no limits for joining it and we're delighted to invite all international cross stitcher to join our contest with their samplers. Casa Cenina has chosen the theme of samplers just because of its "international nature". A clear example of it is Afke Wullink Semplonius, the most famous Dutch expert of this kind of needlework, who's been working to spread it throughout Europe for long. The contest is getting even more challenging, between French, Spanish, English, German, Italian, Dutch and more and more competitors! They're all going to compete for our super shopping voucher, of 100, 200 and - yes, you're reading right! - 300 euro! We have an Italian name, but a universal inspiration!!! And no matter if your sampler dates back to some - or many - years ago: you just' don't have to buy anything new to join our contest!

• Wednesday 9th May 2012
The finicky arrangement of our areas aims at making the access to our warehouse the smoothest and fastest possible, while also avoiding those little difficulties we experienced during some of our Saturdays at Casa Cenina when passing at the "cashier desk". This is why we highly recommend you to tell who's welcoming you at our warehouse that you'd like to have a look at the area on the ground floor (where you'll find most of the products we sell), so that we can avoid "jams" and give you all the chance of seeing what you're interested in calmly enough Don't worry: this is not "bureaucracy", but our will to make the whole thing pleasant for everyone and the only way to allow us starting to ship again, with the usual speed, all your packs right from Monday the 4th of June.

• Tuesday 8th May 2012
Our warehouse is like a sort of gold mine, counting over 80,000 different items, on two floors. To allow you taking a look to all the products you'd like, with no hurry or mess, and to shop what you're going to select, we have decided to create three areas: one on the first floor, another one on the ground floor and the third one in our yard outside. The area on the first floor is that of the samplers joining our contest The Sampler of My Life in a room close to our sector, fully dedicated to fabrics. The second are is going to be right at the heart of our warehouse, on the ground floor, where we use to prepare your orders every day: this is where we're going to give you the chance of shopping, followed by our girls. Last but not least, our garden area, where you're going to find the several areas reserved to the products of our partners, as well as some more special offers Casa Cenina is going to select for our welcome guests.

• Monday, 7th May 2012
A brand new week is starting and all our girls are busy with your packs. However, each single moment "off" from packaging orders is for getting ready our Festa!
Our girls are continuously suggesting how to arrange all products at best in our "Casa", to let you find everything quickly and easily on the 2nd and 3rd of June. But there's something we'd like you to give us in return i.e. your patience and understanding. There'll be probably turns to respect and some areas of our warehouse will be accessible to our staff only, but don't forget that, like any other time, you can place orders in our website and then pick and pay them directly during the event!

• Sunday 6th May 2012
Are you surprised to find us here on Sunday, too? At Casa Cenina we never stand still! We're actually used to taking advantage of the weekend, to fully devote ourselves to the organization of the event of the year! Are you curious?
Just keep on following us

• Saturday 5th May 2012
Here's the weekend! We can finally find some time to stitch, maybe in the garden, to breath some Spring air. You're not going to spend your weekend without some stitching, are you? So, get your needle and floss and focus on your sampler, to join our contest The Sampler of My Life. You still have just a few weeks before the date of expiry of our contest: remember to send us your sampler before the 27th of May 2012. So, take advantage of these few hours of relax, to stitch your little "work of art"! And even though you're not going to win, you're definitely going to feel the great pleasure of having your own sampler showcased in our exhibition and admired as it certainly deserves

• Thursday 3rd May 2012
Here's the first partner that has decide to join our Festa del Ricamo: DMC DMC is going to have their own area and representative, to guide you through their many new, most beloved and best known products. On the occasion of our event, they have decided to offer, at giveaway prices, the cases of their renowned mouliné threads, their precious Natura threads and brand new bags!!!!!

Our second partner for the Festa del Ricamo is PRYM that's going to have their own area and representative, too, to answer all your questions about their latest news, conceived to be used in many segments of all the crafts we love. Just like DMC PRYM too has planned an exceptional discount on all their brand new and classical items.
But don't forget: that's just for the two days of our Festa del Ricamo!!!!!

The third brand we're delighted to welcome at our event is probably the best-known one for needlework fabrics (not just for cross stitch, of course): ZWEIGART with their flax, cotton Aida, Lugana and many other fabrics at special prices (once again, exclusively on the two days of our Festa): i.e. many discounts on their whole selection. ou're going to find their "dedicated table" in the fabric room at Casa Cenina.

PREMAX is certainly the worldwide leading manufacturer of scissors and knives: an Italian excellence loving Casa Cenina. They're also Premax offering you on the two days of our Festa the opportunity to buy their cutting tools at prices you can't find anywhere else!!!

• Wednesday 2nd May 2012
We're almost there: just a few weeks and it'll be time for our Festa del Ricamo once again! From now on, we're going to update you with daily news and details on the most important event of the year, here at Casa Cenina. Today, we have started our countdown, leading us straight to the 2nd of June, all together!
These are going to be 30 busy - very busy - days, with a lot of things to do and preparations scheduled, which we're going to let you share in, day by day, with some quick news about "what's on" here at Casa Cenina. Just like a sort of "daily news", or - if you prefer - a ship's log that's bringing you with joy to the first weekend of June, with ever new and updated details on our event.
So, let's start immediately with the program of these two days devoted to needlework, quilting and craft on the whole. You can find all the practical information about the event here. As you can see, this time our Festa is being held in our warehouse, where you'll be free to visit all the areas we're creating, in team with the most important companies of our sector.
Day by day, we're going to know all the news about our "Festa del Ricamo 2012" together. So, follow the daily updates in our blog!