"borrow from the boys": the italian way

At Pitti Immagine 91, in Florence, is all about the pants, big pants The New York Times says in an exhilarating (well, at least to me) article that describes how Pitti Immagine is all about fashion.

Styles, colors, fabrics, a delight and endless array of men and women dressed to the nines that become a pleasure to all the senses, the venues of the events nothing short of Renaissance buildings or green houses and gardens, the Sala Bianca in Palazzo Pitti and … the Sala Bianca in Palazzo Pitti 

Pitti is a thing, an event that any lover of fashion will have to experience in their life to consider themselves seriously inducted. When Pitti happens to you, it will never be the same, you can’t really get it any other way.

WARNING: there's a term for these boys, it's "Peacocking" 

I hoped with the book to explain a bit more, my university final thesis was on how Italian fashion was seen and portrayed in the UK in the 80s, point is, here, not to give a lecture on fashion history, but the story telling about what’s really the “fashion” that is a passion of mine and happens to be kind of in the genes of many Italians.

Chapter 6 of the book is called “Borrow from the boys” as part of the Italian way of dressing is to borrow elements from a man’s wardrobe. It’s actually more of a stealing, hence their imperfection, big pants, bigger watches, lace-up brogues or double monk moccasins, sometimes it's a perfume or a overcoat. And, please, who didn't steal a cashmere sweater to their [insert whomever male gender you were close to]. 

Women in menswear feel comfortable, look cool and sexy, things thrown together almost by mistake are worn with nonchalance and manifest empowerment. Pants are two sizes too big? Wear a thick belt at the last hole and wrap the hem all the way up and wear super duper stiletto.

Imperfection leads to effortless, there’s no premeditation, the eye catches a gorgeous tweed deconstructed jacket? There’s no cliché, in anything that you put together, add a feminine touch, and if it’s a pair of stiletto lace ups in suede with mink accents like my Baldinini borrowed for the occasion, why not?

I barely go out with a mini-dress, but these shoes called for it.

How divine are they?

With frayed jeans, culottes, leather mini dress and animal print I could have definitely be in Florence, but even if I wasn’t, these heels are perfection: the patchwork of the different colored suede , the arch perfectly designed, an architectural heel that resembles the rooftop of the Empire State building and those mink pom poms are to die for.

They are fabulous also on a pile of books like this, kind of "Coveteured", after I took them out on the town.