Twelve Years in the Making: Busatti Italian Linens Arrive at Welcome Home
Some brands take a little longer to find their way onto our shelves. Busatti has taken twelve years.
About twelve years ago, John and I were traveling through Italy. He had recently left consulting, and we were enjoying some time away together. While wandering through Montepulciano, we came across a small linen shop.
I walked out with my very first set of linen placemats and napkins.
They were made by Busatti, an Italian textile company I knew I wanted to work with someday. I loved the weight of the fabric, the colors, and the way the linens felt in my hands. They were beautiful, but they weren't delicate or fussy. They were made for a table where people actually sit down and eat.
I've remembered that little shop ever since.
Over the years, as Welcome Home grew, Busatti stayed on my list of brands I hoped we could carry. This year, the timing finally worked out, and I'm so pleased to welcome Busatti Italian linens to Welcome Home.
Made in Anghiari, Tuscany Since 1842
Busatti has been weaving textiles in Anghiari, a historic hill town in eastern Tuscany, since 1842. Located in the Upper Tiber Valley, near the border with Umbria, Anghiari is surrounded by rolling hills, farmland, and a landscape that has shaped local life for generations.
Busatti is still owned by the same family, now in its eighth generation. Its historic workshop remains in Palazzo Morgalanti, a fifteenth-century building in the heart of Anghiari.
In the building's old cellars, shuttle looms dating from the 1920s through the 1960s are still weaving fabric today. They are maintained and operated by people who know these machines and understand the textiles they produce.
There is something wonderful about that continuity. The same family, the same town, and some of the same equipment, still making linens for people to use in their homes.
How Busatti Linens Are Made
The process begins with carefully selected natural fibers, including linen and cotton.
Busatti dyes the yarn before weaving rather than coloring the finished fabric. This gives the colors their depth and helps them retain their character over time.
The threads are prepared for the looms, where they become the stripes, checks, and woven patterns that make Busatti fabrics so distinctive. Some designs are produced on traditional shuttle looms, while more intricate patterns use Jacquard looms operated with punched cards.
Busatti also combines these older methods with newer technology, allowing the company to develop fresh designs while preserving traditional skills.
What you end up with is fabric that has real substance. It feels good in your hands, drapes beautifully, and is intended to hold up to years of use.
A Thoughtful Approach to Making Things
Another reason I'm pleased to work with Busatti is the company's commitment to responsible production.
Busatti processes its yarn in Italy, maintains its historic weaving operation in Anghiari, and uses solar power at its newer production facility.
The company is also a certified B Corporation, meaning its social and environmental practices have been assessed against independent standards.
I appreciate that Busatti takes these responsibilities seriously while continuing to make beautiful, useful products.
And there's something to be said for buying fewer things, choosing them carefully, and keeping them for a long time. That's a philosophy I believe in, both personally and at Welcome Home.
Busatti at Welcome Home
We're starting with a beautiful selection of Busatti Italian table linens, including placemats, napkins, and tablecloths in patterns and colors that work just as well for everyday meals as they do for a dinner party.
Our tablecloth collection includes smaller squares, 106-inch rectangles, and 106-inch rounds, giving you options for everything from a breakfast table to a generously sized dining table.
One of the things I love about Busatti is how much room there is to make the linens your own. With a wide range of sizes, colors, patterns, and custom cuts available, we can help you put together a collection that suits your table, your dishes, and the way you live.
Start with something you love from our shelves, or let us work with Busatti on a special order. Bring us your table measurements, a photo of your dining room, or a few favorite plates. We're always happy to pull out the linens and see what works together.
After all, a beautiful table should feel like yours, not something copied from a photograph.
Looking for the Right Tablecloth? Come See Us.
If you're shopping for tablecloths in Easton, Maryland, or anywhere on the Eastern Shore, we'd love to help.
At Welcome Home, we carry a carefully selected collection of table linens from makers we know and admire. Whether you're looking for a large round tablecloth, a long rectangular tablecloth, everyday linen napkins, or something made specifically for your table, we'll help you sort through the options.
We can talk about how far a tablecloth should hang over the edge, which size works best with your table, what colors will complement your dishes, and whether a special order makes more sense than something already on our shelves.
Our Busatti special-order service gives you access to additional sizes, colors, patterns, and custom cuts beyond our in-store selection.
Visit us at Welcome Home Easton, 29 E. Dover Street, Easton, Maryland, or Welcome Home Chestertown, 107 S. Cross Street, Chestertown, Maryland. You can also browse our table linens online at welcomehomemarkets.com.
You don't have to know exactly what you need before you walk through the door. That's part of what we're here for.
The Good Linens Are for Everyday
If you've spent any time at Welcome Home, you know how I feel about saving beautiful things for special occasions.
I believe a good set of linens belongs in regular rotation. Use the cloth napkins for lunch. Set the table even when dinner is simple. Wash them, fold them, and use them again.
That's what I loved about Busatti when I first discovered it in Italy, and it's what I still love about the brand today.
There's something particularly satisfying about bringing a product into the shop that I've known and admired for so many years. This one feels personal.
Twelve years after buying those first placemats and napkins in Montepulciano, I finally get to share Busatti with you.
I hope you'll love these linens as much as I do.
Jenn
