Thursday, May 31, 2007

Thank You, Kathy Schultz!


Kathy Schultz, the brilliant writer over at NW Source has done all of us at Rosanna Inc. a great favor by writing in her blog about our upcoming Warehouse Sale that's taking place this Friday.

In her article, titled "Fishing for Dishes," she gives great detail about the finds at our sale. As I previously in an earlier post, there will be antiques, vintage finds, and, of course, Rosanna products at wholesale prices. You can see the whole article here.

Thank you to Kathy for a fabulous and well written article, and for supporting Rosanna with such enthusiasm.

Sincerely,





www.rosannainc.com

Tuesday, May 29, 2007

Playing with Plates


Plates are a key component of gracious entertaining. They help to create soulful meals. This is something that I've always known.

Throughout history, plates have been created as objects of beauty; pieces of art. They can do more than to spend their entire lives being hidden under food or stacked in the pantry. That's why I took some pieces of beautiful antique English transferware and created two clusters of wall hangings in my dining room and kitchen area at our beach house.


As you can see, I'm not the only one with this idea. In the latest issue of Budget Decorating, they used some of our plates as a fresh way to decorate.


See if you can spot the Rosanna plates in the two photos above!





www.rosannainc.com

A Lovely Memorial Day Weekend

Welcome back! I hope you had a wonderful and relaxing Memorial Day Weekend. My family and I spent the weekend at our house in Gearhart, a small town on the the Oregon Coast. Since I was a little girl, one of my favorite vacations has been to visit the beach. I find that time magically slows there. Life takes on the soothing blue, grey, green, and taupe tones of the sea and the shore.

If you live on the West Coast, the Oregon Coast is a lovely place to take a short vacation. If you're visiting from the East, the majestic whitecaps of the Pacific Ocean are an amazing sight.

Gearhart is a charming community reminiscent of the small beach towns of the East Coast. Just in case you ever find yourself in the area, I wanted to share with you some of the places I've found that have become favorites of mine.

Whenever my family spends time at the beach, we never miss the opportunity to have dinner at Pacific Way Cafe. They also have a bakery next door that makes fabulous sticky rolls and breakfast pastries.


One of my favorite boutiques is the next town over from Gearhart in Seaside. carries fresh new accessories and apparel. You can find Lulu's at 10 N Holladay Road in Seaside, Oregon 97138, (503) 738-2045.




I hope your Memorial Day was as peaceful as mine!






www.rosannainc.com

Thursday, May 24, 2007

Rosanna's Homemade Tomato Sauce Recipe


As I promised in my last post, here is my celebrated tomato sauce recipe. (This is the one that I make a large batch and freeze in pint jars in order to make a quick meal at a later date.) Contrary to popular belief because it is so delicious, the recipe is actually quite easy to execute. See for yourself:



Ingredients:
2 Cans San Marzano Roma Tomatoes*
1/2 cup good quality, extra virgin olive oil
1 onion
4 cloves garlic (minced)
1 large carrot
2 stalks of celery with leaves
1 tsp sea salt
1/2 teaspoon sugar (but only if the sauce tastes bitter)

Directions:
1. Chop the carrots, onion, celery, and garlic (this can also be done in a food processsor).
2. Put the olive oil in a saucepan, turn the heat up to medium.
3. Add the chooped vegetables to the pot once the oil has heated and saute over medium heat.
4. Puree the tomatoes in the food processor and then add them to the pot as well.
5. Add the salt and sugar (if necessary, but I've found that the San Marzano's are usually sweet enough on their own)
6. Let the sauce simmer, uncovered, for 45 minutes, stirring occasionally.

*San Marzano tomatoes taste wonderful and are not hard to find. You can find them at Whole Foods, nautral food stores, and, if I'm not mistaken, I think Safeway just started carrying them as well.

If you want to have enough to freeze, double the recipe. Then, whenever you want a quick dinner, just take out a container and heat it up (along with a little added water.)

The sauce is wonderful as is, but if you want something fancier, add a couple tablespoons of heavy cream, vodka, and a pinch of hot pepper flakes for a divine vodka cream sauce.

That's the basic recipe, but I believe the best way to do it is to cook by feel. Just go by what smells and tastes right to you.

Bon Appetit!






www.rosannainc.com

Small Steps to Bliss


Since the beginning of Rosanna Inc., I have always strived to introduce dinnerware that encourages people to incorporate small moments of happiness into their everyday lives. Whether it is a special teapot you use to make tea every morning, a whimsical bowl to eat ice cream out of, or a beautiful plate to arrange lunch on, it's these simple touches that make life better. This philosophy was even summed up right in our byline:

"Our Products Create Traditions."

However, the beautification of life in small ways goes beyond the plates I eat off of; the food on the plate is just as important. And you don't have to be Supermom to enhance the quality of the food you eat. And remember- you deserve the pleasure you experience in eating it. In this entry, I wanted to share a few tips I've picked up along the way on how to eat more healthfully and enjoyably.

First of all, I am a BIG tea-drinker. The ritual of making and drinking tea is so soothing. But at the same time, a cup of good black tea like Earl Grey or Enlgish Breakfast can give you a boost if you're feeling tired without the coffee-induced jitters. However, no cup of tea I drink is complete without honey. And the quality of honey you choose makes all the difference.

My girls, Alessandra and Francesca, and I go through honey almost as fast as we do water. We put it in our tea, on fruit, mixed into plain yogurt, and on our favorite peanut butter and honey sandwiches in the oven. Locally harvested honey is almost always the best you can find (depending on where you live of course!) In Seattle, right now is the perfect time to invest in a jar, as the season for the farmer's market is just getting into full swing.

Another trick I've learned after packing 100's of lunches for school. Instead of buying prepackaged lunch meat, which is often pumped full of nitrates and preservatives, I like roasting a free-range turkey breast and slicing off of that to make sandwiches. It's much healthier, tastes fresher, and feels more satisfying.

And then there's dinnertime. At the end of every work day I am exhausted, and the thought of cooking a full meal is so unappealing. My friends and family love my homemade tomato sauce, and a great solution to the dinnertime conundrum is to make a large batch and freeze it in pint containers for other nights (recipe to follow).

None of these tips are rocket science. They aren't even as notoriously complex as what you find in the pages of Martha Stewart Living. But, they aren't Rachel Ray and her 5-minute meals either. It just goes to show, with a little creativity, you can have your cake and eat it too.

Happy Living!






www.rosannainc.com

Wednesday, May 23, 2007

Rosanna on StyleHive


In my continued exploration of the wonders of the internet, I recently came across StyleHive, "a global social shopping community, dedicated to discovering and sharing the most exciting new products, the stores that sell them, and the people who find them."

With all of its diverse communities and forums, StyleHive is great resource for finding out what's hot now. As I looked around the site, I was pleasantly surprised to find that Rosanna already has a community!

I look forward to hiving you soon!






www.rosannainc.com

A Family Affair

It is an irresistible temptation to brag to the world about one's children. I'm sure that many of you reading this feel the same. Their intelligence, talent, maturity, and ingenuity are unparalled. They are worthy of the highest praise, and naturally, everyone else should be let in on the secret.

I am so pleased that Rosanna has truly become a family-run business. As most of you know, my husband Mimmo has been the CFO of Rosanna for 13 years; we have run the company together since then. But now, it's not just the two of us.

For the past two months, our son Marco, who graduated from The University of Perugia in Umbria, Italy this fall has been doing financial analysis, accounting, and business planning for us. Next fall, he will begin his graduate work at Bocconi University of Business in Milan, the most prestigious business school in Italy and one of the most well-respected in Europe.

We also have our oldest daughter, Alessandra, working in the office. She is a natural writer and creative thinker, so I've asked her to help me with one of the most exciting new projects we're working on- a book! Alessandra is currently doing research and outlining for the overall vision, concept, and content of the book. She just finished her freshman year of college at George Washington University in Washington, DC. Last week, we were thrilled to find out that she was accepted to Brown University in Rhode Island. She plans to transfer there for her sophomore year.

Finally, my 4th grader Francesca is in the process of designing her OWN tabletop collection! While Alessandra is the writer of the family, Francesca is definitely the artist. Her designs are creative and still retain that wonderful unselfconscious freedom of childhood art. Her collection, Portrait of a Young Artist, will debut Spring 2008.


In world that is going so fast that the days become a blur, I love the fact that I can walk into the next room and see my family. I feel so fortunate to be in this unique position, and to have all of them so near me. Hold your family close. Appreciate the time you have with them. These days, I feel this way more than ever.






www.rosannainc.com

Tuesday, May 22, 2007

Rosanna Warehouse Sale, June 1st!

Mark your calendars- next Friday, June 1st, we will be having our annual Warehouse Sale. In case you haven't been to one yet, here is the definition:







www.rosannainc.com

Tuesday, May 15, 2007

Pitcher Plus!

Hello Everyone,

I wanted to share the news that my American Bungalow Lime Country pitcher is featured in the Home section of Real Simple's June issue. Although, this pitcher has been discontinued we still have a fabulous array pitchers to choose from! We have our Coral Baroque pitcher, Fleur pitcher, and Dottie Baroque pitcher.

I encourage you to pick up an issue because the article we're featured in is quite useful. It describes how pitchers can used for be so much more than cocktails. A pitcher can be a vase for a bouquet of spring flowers, an original way to store kitchen tools like wooden spoons and spatulas, a flatware caddy, or a less conventional holder for your office supplies.

Real Simple is one of my favorite magazines because it's so easy to apply their suggestions. See more at their website: realsimple.com




Until next time,







www.rosannainc.com

Thursday, May 10, 2007

Welcome!

Hello!

I'm pleased to debut this new facet of Rosanna, and to have the opportunity (through the event of technology, which I am ever in awe of) to connect with all of you who have supported us as our company has grown and changed over the years.

In this blog, you will find entries about our ever burgeoning media exposure, information on upcoming Rosanna events, dates of gift shows I will be attending, and feature pieces on our newest collections.

However, I want this blog to be more than just a platform to promote the company. I am so thrilled about this blog because, as it is characteristic of how I approach each collection design. I have so much enthusiasm for the potential of this new "project." I envision this blog as way to connect with everyone who admires our dinnerware. I am so thrilled to have a direct pipeline to reach those who understand my philosophy and the inspriation behind the design.

My company, my business, is not strictly about business. The ideas for our collections come from so many sources- I find inspiration in my 10 year old daughter's artwork as well as in photographs I took while I was studying in Italy my junior year of college.

I see this blog as an opportunity to share with you the wisdom I've garnered about about how one leads a fulfilling life, my musings of the moment, and even a little personal history because I have a place where I can share more of myself in a less formal setting than our official website.

So, to close the first offial post, I'd like to thank you for stopping by. Please come back and visit back often. The door is always open.







www.rosannainc.com