robbiegirl:

Here's what someone on this forum suggested, and it worked great for us. Just pack your 22" suitcase, but lay a collapsible duffel bag at the bottom. That way you can carry on your suitcase on the plane, fill up your duffel bag with souveniers while you're in Italy, then on the way home, check your suitcase and carry on the duffel with all the goodies.

Florence: a tiny ceramics store (I forgot the name) in a small street south of Duomo. Bought 2 ceramic tiles as gifts. The lady who owned the store painted them, and the designs on the tiles were my friends' profession.
Also bought porcini mushrooms for myself, and a Prada wallet for a friend.

Capri- bought a ceramics oil & vinegar bottles set as a gift. bought lots of limoncello chocolates for myself.

Rome- bought a table runner from TAD (on Via del Babuino). However, haven't been able to locate it since I've moved. bought dried pasta at Rome's airport to use up a few remaining euros.

What I wish I would have bought: MORE limoncello chocolates!

BTW, I totally agree with what Jocelyn_P suggested. That's what I do as well. I don't use suitcases, but a backpack instead. But I also pack a duffle bag which I could zip it up into the size of a frisbee. On my way back, the duffle bag is full and I take it on the plane as my carry-on.

In Sorrento, beautiful handmade intarsia jewlery boxes of contemporary design. They are my true favorite. In Anacapri, wonderful essential oil perfumes. My only regret, I didn't bring home enough limoncello!

In Florence, Leather belts from Santa Croce (that place is great!!) and a leather covered flask for my Husband, and a leather coat for me!

I'm a New Yorker who usually does not even like to shop! But the minute I set foot in Italy...it's like I'm a different person! Shopping suddenly becomes irresistible! I think that's for a couple of reasons: 1) Salespeople in Italian shops/boutiques are much more friendly and knowledgable than a lot of the "attitude-plagued" or clueless salespeople that I have encountered in too-many New York stores. The Italians really seem proud of their products...as they should be!
I never regret what I buy in Italy. Shoes, food products, wine, bath products, jewelry, ceramics, glassware...they're all well-made and bring back memories of a gorgeous country full of artists and craftsmen.
LORAC 1127: Like you, I'm CRAZY about the lemon soap from southern Italy. I've started collecting them! Am really fond of bath products from France and Italy in general.

Milano - Frette Sheets and related products.

great idea about the duffle. I have a vera bradley duffle that might work. Any type in particular which is recommended?

Limoncello-I L O V E limoncello. How many bottles are you allowed to bring back? Is it possible to have it shipped back? I found one brand I loved at Ritz Carlton but can not find that brand elsewhere but by now, I forgot the name of it. The one we purchased in our local Crown was not as good.

what are the favorite brands of limoncello to purchase?

Limoncello is produced all over Italy, usually by local shops/distributors in the region. In the Cinque Terre, for example, their version is called "limoncino" whereas everywhere else (esp. So Italy) it is called limoncello. I have found buying a hand-painted or decorated glass bottle of limoncello from Capri or Amalfi, or the CT makes a great souvenir gift. The bottles are small (usually ~6" tall) and I bubble wrap them and put them the bag that I bring with my suitcase as my "take-home souvenir" bag. The major airlines only allow 1 bottle (of wine, limoncello, etc) as a carry-on, but don't limit the number you carry INSIDE your suitcase. I got smart and started lining my suitcase with bubble wrap, then was able to bring home 4 bottles of wine, 1 bottle spumanti, and 2 bottles of olive oil - all safely wrapped and uncracked in my suitcase.
(Wedging then in-between socks, pants and other soft clothing items helps!)

Re: the duffel bag, I have found the large Ikea coated plastic bag (comes in yellow or blue) works for me. I can take tons of stuff and it still meets the space requirements for dimension/size. Last Christmas, I brought home 2 espresso machines in there - not to mention lots of other gifts and souvenirs!

Huitres, I would have <i>loved</i> to see you deplaning with all that wine and those espresso machines !

In Venice some amazing glass bought from a glass blower who knows that masters.

A fortune - yes - but for quality it is worth it.

Have since seen vase by same artist for sale in NY - for twice the price plus the tax

Betsy, it was funny alright! They were saying &quot;Signora e' troppo&quot; to me in Milano and I just smiled....of course, once in the States, those infernal UA agents picked me out of the crowd to inspect my bags(they unwrapped both machines, looked inside everything!) As if my bag of childrens' shoes and clothing, leather coat, etc wasn't interesting enough huh?!?

Huitres - what should we buy in Cinque Terre to remind us of our visit there ? I am glad to hear that somebody else collects espresso machines too. Best wishes for your proposed visit to CT.

Hi SydneySteve! Long time no chat...I got lots of those limoncino and crema di limone bottles from the CT. The shops sell them in decorated glass jars, or even curved, shaped bottles. In Manarola, I bought some limonverde (lime) limoncello that was in a glass &quot;guitar&quot; shaped bottle. I have even bought olive oil in glass blown grape clusters. I go for the unique, different type souvenir, something that is memorable and significant of the place.

I am excited to be leaving on Sept 1st. When do you begin your travels?

We still have our bottle of Lemoncello from Capri in 1996. I think it has probably gone through tertiary fermentation by now. We leave on August 7 for Vegas, Grand Canyon, NYC then Sth America and on to Europe through Lisbon-Sintra around end of August. We should arrive in CT around 11 Sept for three days. Thanks again and have a great trip.

How wonderful to get to travel so much. I wish I could come up with a business that allowed me to travel and see the world. But this nurse works 5 days a week with two weeks off per year..sigh.
How does everyone get to travel and shop so much?

robbiegirl - this is not a frequent happening for SydneySue and I. We havent been on a big trip since 96 but now we have educated our kids (or at least tried to), we are using the excuse of an upcoming 25th anniversary, to cash in 600,000 (business generated) frequent flyer miles to travel around the world up front. As for Business I am hopeful that my Blackberry device will provide a sufficient alibi. You will get your turn.

My Italian father-in-law helped us pick a brand of limoncello called &quot;Piemm's.&quot; The brand is based in Sorrento, but available in many other parts of Italy.

We aren't shoppers really, but last year in Santa Margherita Ligure we bought a lovely small mortar and pestle made from an olive wood burl - beautifully finished. Also, from Genoa, a piece of oil cloth for a tablecloth and an interesting papier mache dish. Oh, and in Lucca, they were selling lots and lots of loose weave, raw silk scarfs in a myriad of solid colors for about E10 to E12 in the open market, also shops. I got several for gifts and for myself and am very glad I did.

Robbie Girl,
Sorry I tuned out for awhile. To answer your question, the tiles are about 2 inches wide and 5 inches tall. They are very thin and very packable. We bought them at a ceramics shop off Il Campo but saw them elsewhere as well. They are meant to be affixed to the house but attached them to the board first because we didn't want to be without them if we moved!