After we left the beachside towns of Cinque Terre we headed up North to visit the fashion capitol of Italy, Milan. 

Two years ago I did an exchange program with Pratt (in NYC) and one of the design schools in Milan, La Nuova Accademia de Belle Arti. I studied fashion design there with some of the most innovative designers I have ever met.

Although Milan is not known for being a “pretty” European city, it is a city that offers the best innovative and awe inspiring fashion as well as interior and product design out there. 

So, after spending so much time there I wanted to lead Chelsea through the city. We walked all day and covered everything from 10 Corso Como (famous for designer clothes) to the Navigli district. While there we made sure to keep it Italian eat gelato to stay cool, pizza for dinner, and espresso for breakfast! 

Above is the main cathedral of Milan and my personal all-time favorite cathedral, the Duomo. Located in the center of the city and surrounded by the best shopping and opera, Teatro alla Scala, in the country the Duomo couldn’t be situated in a better place for visiting. Below is Chelsea standing in the door of the Duomo!

 Chelsea and I bared the heat one night and went out dancing. One of the best things about Milan night life is that it has aperitivo (happy hour) where you get one drink and dinner for about 8-10 Euro. This is perfect for students and travelers with a budget who still want to eat great food!

 Here I am on the canal in the Navigli district of Milan where I used to live. The canals in Milan were designed by Leonardo da Vinci and where once used to transport goods into, out of, and around the city. However, only two are still open and they are lined with great bars and restaurants. 

Milan fashion week has ended and we should take a minute (Paris fashion week has already started rolling) to remember some of the “moments” from the shows.

*Prada’s “plus-size” models and curvaceously tailored dresses

*Dolce & Gabbana’s re-cap of their history ending in an army of girls with no pants on

*Dsquared² laboratory Frankenstein power dressing

Here is Style.com’s recap of the week of fabulous fashion told by fashionista’s themselves!

“Color is a way of expressing light, not so much as a physical phenomenon but as that light which exists in the mind of the artist.”
-Henri Matisse

Color, and the exploration of it in all of its abstract forms, is the bread and butter of the famous Missoni Family of Italy. The Missoni fashion house and its colorful history were founded in the province of Varese, Italy, where a factory was founded around scarves and embroidered fabrics.

After the first runway show in 1958, the decorative patterns — including multiple colors, stripes, abstracts, shapes, and florals — became the staple of the Missoni House. The utilization of various textiles, such as silk, rayon, linen, cotton, and wool, is another signature Missoni attribute.

 For Fall 2010 Fashion Week in Milan, Missoni showed a variety of crop tops, knit wrap skirts, and blanket-like coats that had pin closures. What was really interesting about Missoni’s collection was that the pieces were totally versatile. The pieces could be worn reversed, with the back changed to the front, as well as being able to be pulled up or down in any direction.

My favorites from this collection were the the big wool jackets and wraps accessorized with sun glasses. The wraps were draped to hang and frame the beautiful faces of the models in just the right way.

I WILL ONLY STAY 3 DAYS!

Hot new news has just arrived from the forefront of Milan’s Fashion Week! The breaking news: Anna Wintour decided to stay only three/four of the five days of Milan’s fashion week.

What does that have to do with anything?

Well, first of all, after the launching of The September Issue (the documentary about Anna Wintour) following the popular The Devil Wears Prada (also based on Anna Wintour), Anna Wintour has become synonymous with VOGUE instead of being the editor of Vogue. The blessings of Miss Wintour seem to change the outcome of one’s success within the fashion industry instantly, and as Rodarte has seen, this blessing can be the basis of a fashion career itself.

This being said, it is VERY important that Anna Wintour herself is at the fashion shows of fashion week, which has become in many ways, Wintour’s week!

This year five days worth of shows in Milan have now been moved into three/four days. That is 88 shows crammed into no time at all! The consequences of this is that models, stylists, designers, and photographers will be hard pressed to make even half of the shows (which will be running just minutes after each other).

What was Milan’s response to this dictator-like approach to influencing fashion week? Thanks to Attila Bene Ortz, a flash mob of Anna Wintour look-a-likes was organized to stand in front of the shows!

Anna Wintour… I will only stay 3 days in Milan catwalks

Although many of the reviews state that this flash mob was done in vain, it was reported on almost every single major fashion blog and site around the world! So, girls, was it done in vain? Doesn’t look like it to me! I’m glad to see that fashionistas aren’t willing to settle, even if they are “told” it is necessary.

Viva LA MODA di MILANO!!