Archive for 'Localities'

In the previous post, we highlighted designer Emilio Pucci's extraordinary life up to the end of WWII but his exploits as a soldier and very good friend are only the beginning of the story! Just read on to learn more about this fascinating figure and then find a luxury villa in Florence to trace his footsteps across the city that birthed him.

Pucci first designed clothes for the Reed College skiing team when he was studying there as a young man and he then gained recognition for his ability during is exile in Switzerland in 1947. Pieces that he had designed for a friend were photographed by Toni Frissell, a photographer working for Harper's Bazaar, which lead to him being asked to design skiwear for a story on European Winter Fashion for the winter 1948 issue of the magazine. When his pieces took off, he set up a haute couture house at the resort of Canzone del Mare on the Isle of Capri.

It may be news to some, but Florence is actually where many different fashion brands were born including Ferragamo, Gucci and Pucci. In previous posts, we've looked at the history of the former two but, as of yet, had never discussed Pucci at length. As the brand is one of the most iconic in Italy and the man behind it is so fascinating, it is worth delving into it, as well. If you are a fashion lover, it is a must to find a luxury villa in Florence and make a pilgrimage to the pertinent spots from his life and career and the flagship store on Via dei Tornabuoni.

While our Pucci is the most famous of recent decades, the name has been an important one for centuries as it is one of Florence's oldest noble families. Born in 1914, Emilio Pucci was a larger than life character who was a keen sportsman who swam, skied, fenced, played tennis and raced cars; a decorated soldier; a rich party kid; and, of course, the creator of one of the world's biggest fashion brands.

We've recently written a lot of posts about shopping and fashion in Tuscany and Florence, in particular, is a great place for those interested in Italian fashion to go shopping. While Milan is more famous for her fashion and one of the main fashion capitals of the world, Florence is also a very important city in Italian fashion and has been ranked in the top 15 fashion capitals of the world. Famous designers like Gucci and Pucci come from and are still headquartered in the city and there are endless great places to go shopping all over.

Florence is known for her museums and the Medici, in particular, were instrumental in building, and leaving behind, the extraordinary wealth of priceless artworks that live in the city today. However, in addition to their collecting of art, they also assembled a vast selection of natural specimens such as fossils, animals, minerals and plants. These examples and a large collections of books are held today in the Museum of Natural History.

Opened to the public in 1775 by Grand Duke Pietro Leopoldo, it was originally comprised of several natural history collections housed within the Palazzo Torrigiani on Via Romana. It has grown immensely over the centuries and is now one of the finest collections in the country.

Tuscany is a wonderful and magical place at Christmas; historic cities all lit up with twinkling lights, traditional Christmas markets, incredible live crib scenes, Santa's grottoes and chances to meet Befana (the kindly witch who traditionally delivers gifts at Christmas in Italy), and absolute piles of delicious food all over.

If you are thinking of spending Christmas abroad, it is an ideal destination that is full of festive cheer!

In this series, we have been discussing different cities and towns across the region, each of which has their own unique selling points that can suit you whether you are interested in markets, Christmas sweets, ice-skating or other specific festive activities. Here are more of our picks of great Tuscan destinations this Christmas.