Drooling for Italian Fashion

It should come as no surprise that Italian people are stylish. Many a famous designer label has started from the mind of an Italian: Valentino, Versace, Prada, the list goes on. What may be surprising however, is that everyone is stylish. I mean, babies wear clothes I’d never dream of drooling on.

Italian fashion, at least in the winter of 2009, is simple. Women wear a tailored winter coat over skinny jeans tucked into gorgeous leather boots. And yes, those boots are healed and yes, the women don’t hesitate to march on the cobblestones. This leads me to believe that Italian women officially have the most durable ankles in the world.

Men wear equally stylish winter overcoats above tailored and pocketed slacks just grazing the tops of their leather loafers. By the way, this is what they wear to work, but also what they wear to coffee shops. Looking good is a part of life and is not reserved for the uncommon special occasion.

While it’s amazing how beautiful (and thin) the women and men of metropolitan Italy are, there is something lacking as well. I’m not just talking about body fat; I am talking about color.

I arrived in Italy after traveling in Nepal and India for a month. In these countries, colorful Kurtas and Saris adorn every woman and real men wear pink not because it’s the new trend, but because it’s what’s clean. The people of Nepal and India are unabashedly colorful. The people of Italy could teach you a lot about the grayscale.

My other observance is that individuality seems uncommon in Italy. The woman with the blazing red overcoat was a rare treat, as was the man who had Converse paired with his $200 jeans and blazer. “Go designer or go home” seems to be a mantra worth mentioning. But if everyone wears the latest season, then where does one person begin and the other end?

In my case, I prefer to be around those who mix and match. The ones that throw on a pair of flip flops to meet me for a good vanilla latte and whom I might see a week later at a party looking fly and fancy free. Don’t get me wrong, I’d certainly like to own a pair of those fancy Italian boots one day. But I’m only going to bring them out on a special occasion or when I just want to dance in front of a mirror and imagine I am walking in Florence again.

In the mean time, I’ll window shop till I drop in Italy and drool upon my own worn out t-shirt instead of that Versace baby bib.

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1. Italian Sunsets