"Part shop and part studio, Il Torchia is a brightly lit Oltrarno workshop that showcases the traditional art of bookbinding—updated for modern times. You'll find albums, photos frames, and other gifts made of Florentine leather, in addition to handmade marbled papers and canvas, all of which incorporate techniques that have been practiced in Florence for centuries. Some of the more traditional designs haven't changed since the 1980s, when the shop opened; others (books with olive wood as the front cover and leather-bound books held shut with brightly-colored elastic bands, for example) are more contemporary." - Nicky Swallow