All roads did lead to Rome (in this case the Castelli Romani), which is where the partners of Giardini di Sole International first met and where a shared passion for Italian design and lifestyle quality inspired them to create GdS.

Sandy Grushcow’s start up of GdS in 2005 sprang from her long-standing passion for collecting Italian ceramics which she was able to pursue while living in Italy for two years. A lifelong Italophile, when Sandy returned to Vancouver from Rome in 2004, she began to turn her passion for collecting and traveling into the gem that has become Giardini di Sole. Sandy is a graduate of Simon Fraser University in Vancouver, BC, with a BA in Psychology; she partnered with her husband in the 1980s in a successful IT start-up business.

After residing in Italy and Switzerland for several years, Libby Morris returned to the United States and opened the doors of the Boston GdS Showroom in 2009 in the emerging SOWA neighborhood.  With a BA in the History of Art from Northwestern University and a Masters from the Courtauld Institute of Art in London, she worked in contemporary art galleries in Boston, London, Chicago and New York City during the early years of her career. As she has worked to build the GdS brand in North America, she’s become an active member of the Boston design community and the thriving wedding industry in the North East region.

Josephine Wennerholm Donghi’s Italo-Anglo-Swedish heritage and peripatetic upbringing belie her attachment to Rome as her permanent home.  With a BA in Semiotics and an early career at the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) in Rome, her passion for food and cooking developed alongside her involvement in networking and blogging.  Her blog Frascati Cooking That's Amore showcases the kind of recipes she shares in her cooking classes based in the Castelli Romani.

Sydney-born Liz Macrì’s early professional career was with Alitalia in Australia.  In 1992, she moved to Dubai and her exposure to high-end international events sparked her passion for entertaining, which then evolved into an event-planning and catering business, upon moving permanently to Italy in 1995.  Her enthusiasm for all things stylish spans from home décor to Italian cuisine with a keen eye for emerging trends.