It’s About the Jeans: Since our arrival in Italy I had been focused on learning our new town, people, customs, food and then speed nesting in our new apartment – but all along I was observing what people were wearing.  I have now had time to assimilate what I have observed and am ready to focus on, well, me! Cinzia M., who’s enthusiasm and generosity knows no bounds, agreed to fill yet another important role, fashion consultant.  This was a very odd match-up as Cinzia is petite, slim, a decade younger than me and her style is very eclectic and hip.  She has a great way of layering and putting things together that I have never achieved but have always admired and I’m feeling game.  I use to love fashion and buying clothes, but that was back when I; 1) had a place to wear them, and 2) liked what I saw in the mirror –  making that about ten years and two pant sizes ago. One item I am determined to live without is a bathroom scale.  It’s a dispiriting game I no longer wish to play and, personally, I think they make you fat.  But I could tell by the fit of my clothes that I had lost some inches, so I put 50 cents Euro in the scale in the pharmacy.  It gives you a printout with your weight, percent of body fat and height.  If I’d have known that ahead of time I’d have stood up straight.  Good news – I’ve lost 10 pounds and enough inches to take me down a whole pant size!  I’m pretty sure our life-style change since we moved into our apartment – not eating a fresh cream-filled croissant every morning, not eating in restaurants every day, and not ending each day with a gelato – just might have something to do with it.  Not to mention that, for the first time in my adult life, I have hardly a care in the world (take that cortisol!) and we are still walking everywhere.  Good news – my body is now a size 12.  Bad news – my skin has decided to stay a size 14.  The largest organ in my...

This was my first joust, so I didn’t have a clue what to wear. Since we were in the expensive seats (50 Euro each), certainly we should consider our bella figura. The weather actually made the decision for us. Since it was so hot and humid I wore a sundress I purchased before we left home and Larry wore a nice pair of shorts and shirt. Since the last fashion post we have made some more observations. Mature local men and women rarely wear shorts in town, except during the dog days of August. The women mostly wear sleeveless tailored shifts and sundresses when it is really hot so next year I’ll have to get some. My legs were delighted when August arrived and I could set them free in shorts. Now the younger folks are a different story. The guys don’t really wear baggies (thank goodness, I hate them). They wear a closer fit short that stops just above the knee, this year with the cuff turned up, and in bright colors. (All the better to show off their tight bun.)  The only baggies I have seen are on tourists from other countries. If not wearing tees, they wear polo shirts with the collar up, often with the designer name printed on the back of the upturned collar. Most wear Converse/Vans type tennis shoes in bright colors. Many guys have a haircut which is closely shaved on the sides and front with the top cut to about two inches. Not a mohawk, more like a small field of hair on top. I think it’s dumb looking, but I’ve seen worse. The girls/young women wear shorts that sometimes barely begin, but if longer end mid-thigh. There is also a newer fashion emerging that, until now, I had only seen on lovely Caterina (who was obviously on the cutting edge of fashion). Harem pants, starting low on the hips, loose and gathered at the bottom or crossed over the front of the leg, are being seen more frequently now that more tourists have arrived. The trend is spreading fast and I don’t blame them for quickly discarding those uncomfortably tight pants. There is also a shorts version that is looser...

Sitting on the piazza people watching is one of our favorite pastimes and many fashion observations have been made. First, I must say the Italians (young, old, single married, attractive or not so) work very hard at looking good, staying fit and on their game, plus they are much more secure with their sexuality and nudity. When it comes to fashion, you will see every possible variation on off-the-shoulder, transparent, strapless, backless, cleavage-revealing clothing you can imagine. I’m not talking slutty here, I’m talking classy eye candy in most cases. If the point is to be noticed, mission accomplished! Considering the reputation of Italian men, isn’t that like throwing fuel on a fire? Maybe it IS because of the reputation of Italian men that everyone works at it so very hard. When you see a group of women from 15 to 50, often you cannot tell the difference in their ages without examining their faces carefully. I’m not jealous, really, as I admire the care they take and I’m not looking to stand out. However, occasionally I do feel like the poster girl for Lands End, so maybe over time I’ll learn to kick it up a notch. Did I mention the men look great too? I told one of my friends before we left the U.S. that I felt fortunate to be going to live in Italy without having to live with an Italian male ego. I am sorry to report that tattoos are in fashion here, even for some of the more mature and well-off women, but fewer tats per person than in the U.S. So far I’ve only seen a few guys with massive numbers of tattoos and I don’t know if they are tourists or not. I’ve seen few tattoos my life that I thought were attractive, but I’m old. My friend’s 40-something son once said that, “everyone gets a pass for one tattoo but for every additional tattoo you loose points off your I.Q.” I’m also sorry to report that, although the government has wised up to the dangers of second-hand smoke and is banning smoking in an increasing number of public places, many Italians will light up whenever possible (although in fewer numbers...

Update:  I have been requested by the person this blog is about to refer to his new item as a “shoulder bag” not a purse.  I also forgot to mention that more than half the men here carry them. Before we departed the U.S., I gave away all but my travel purse/backpack (and most of our shoes) with plans to take advantage of the excellent reputation for local leather goods and get an awesome new Italian bag. Well, on Friday Larry and I walked to a recommended leather shop at the edge of town to see what they had. With absolutely no previous indication of desire, Larry announces that he’d been lusting after the convenience that women have of being able to carry everything in one place (as opposed to weighing down all his pockets). As the owner was willing to offer a discount, Larry, in the very primal act of seeing it, shooting it and dragging it home, left the store with a new shoulder bag. Leaving me still in the primal act of foraging. Don’t be concerned (assuming you were), one of our new friends told me that the July (Luglio) sales (saldi) started on Saturday (Sabato) so the next day I made a beeline for the leather store just off the main piazza where I had been drooling at their window display to see if I could make a deal. Yes! I am now the proud owner of an Italian leather bag at 40% off that I consider bella figura (literally ” beautiful figure” or looking good). So Mamma has a new bag...

Okay, so I put off doing laundry for two weeks because I really didn’t want to tackle the washing machine instructions. I wanted to take the easy way out so I sent Larry off with the shirts to what I thought was a dry cleaner, but it turned out to be a leather repair place????? Still hopeful, I asked a couple of our quasi English speakers where we might find a dry cleaner but no one knew what I was talking about. So lucky for me the machine instructions were also written in English and after 30 minutes of intense study I was off and running oblivious to my real problem – drying. I have no dryer, as most people don’t. Many hang their wash out over the street, but I’m on the ground floor. Others, like us, have to use a drying rack. Fortunately, our landlord has provided us with a very nice one as well as an ironing board and the dreaded iron. In retrospect I clearly should not have waited so long to do the laundry because I now have three loads (albeit small because my washer is small) to dry and one rack that is looking smaller by the moment. Problem #2 – the only room in the house without hardwood floors is the bathroom (which is way too small to consider) and the “cantina.” Many older Italian buildings have cantinas which are essentially dry-storage where they keep the homemade wine, cured meats and root vegetables. Our apartment has one, but it is more of a damp-storage. As our landlord explained, it is because we are so close to the river (2 blocks?) that it is damp and musty and she just stores cleaning supplies and building materials there. Now I was never great at science but I’m pretty sure if you put a rack full of wet clothes into a cool damp room they will not dry. So I gave Larry a hopeful estimate that the laundry might be done in three to five days. I checked this morning (48 hours in) and even his wash-out-in-the-sink-dry-by-next-morning-travel-underwear was still wet. Since the clothes were at least no longer dripping wet we moved them into the...

Out of Fashion?

By Larry & Arlene on Jul 13, 2013 in Fashion | 2 comments

Not here.  Here they are into retro big time!  We have only been here two weeks and last night was the third night we have enjoyed this Medieval Pageantry and there will be more tonight. It seems they do this all through July and August as part of a reenactment of events that happened here in the 1500’s. These awesome costumes come with lots of marching in the streets, music, flag throwing, jousts and members of local families, young to old, participate. The costumes are exact replicas from the time and very beautiful, expensive and may I say HOT – these are the hottest months of the year here. All the more reason to admire their investment, dedication and...