Intermission - Men's Fashion and Other Blah

I'm interrupting the vacation report with a discovery on men's fashion (yes, I notice them more)... We all know Italy is known for designer brands (ex. LV, Dolce & Cabbana) but guess what is the brand that Italian men love which is NOT an Italian design? This foreign mark is making something special in Italy because not only does Italy have so many of its own fashion designers already but also its people are patriotic. I see 5 out of 10 men daily (50%) wearing a nice polo-shirt or shirt with this reptile brand in Torino. My father and his friends used to wear it quite a lot when I was a child in Taiwan but I think these days in Asia and USA, this particular brand is not very popular. Have you guessed it yet? It is...


Lacoste (the crocodile) which is a French brand name. The cost of a polo-shirt (most common) after 30% discount is still a whopping 80+ euros. It is still owned by the Lacoste family in Paris today. Rene Lacoste, the founder, was a tennis player who won the 1927 US Open Championship. The mark, le crocodile, was his nickname due to his tenacious behavior on the courts - never giving up his prey. The high quality and unique fabric (jersey petit piqué) is supposed to take away moisture/ sweat so the wearer is always cool in summer.

You may wonder what American brands are popular in Torino? Well, I have so far seen Tommy Hilfiger, Timberland, and Calvin Klein and they all are on the most expensive shopping street - Via Roma. I've heard Gap is somewhere in the city but I haven't found it yet. For you people who are familiar with Asian brands, the only one that I have been so far is Muji (無印良品). Oh, and of course, the power of Hello Kitty is everywhere in the world... I have seen 2 stores with the cutie cat in Torino already.

Ok, going off on the topic of men's fashion, how about their interests? Many men love cars. Well, you guys are going to envy Italian men because even construction workers and DHL delivery men drive a Mercedes-Benz!

Our New Looks

Our Italian beginner course ended last Friday so you might think that we would now party all night, sleep in every morning, and be lazy bums from this week on. Well, how can you think of us that way? We managed to get up everyday this week around 9am except yesterday (we got up at 5:30am instead to take a train to the beach!). We went running and played frisbee on Tuesday morning. We're trying to exercise at least twice a week to set up a healthy routine living in Torino so we don't return to California gaining 20 lbs. each (darn those yummy buttery gnocchis)!

Since the course is over, Syd and I finally have time to do other things besides studying Italian. For example, we can pay attention to our appearances. Syd now has a goatee (I like it!) and that's all the change he made. As for me, it is more complicated because of my gender. I need to shop (though I'd say I spend only half the time most women shop), compare, think, and then choose. I'm happy to introduce Beth, my shopping partner/ fashion consultant, who accompanied me to spend $ at a big Robe di Kappa (a Torino brand) outlet. We had to take a bus (20 min) and after getting off, we searched for the outlet for 30 minutes because its name is 'Spaccio' instead of 'Kappa'. No wonder we couldn't find it even though it's only 1 block away from the bus stop. Anyways, I love this brand because it has a lot of sporty and simple designs: the style fits my personality. So I contributed to Torino's economy that day. :) Well, what could I do? I have been eyeing that jacket since my first visit to the store in Piazza San Carlo but I couldn't find my size then. I was so happy to find it (only 1 left with my size!) at the outlet that my blood started to boil which blurred my vision so I could only see the jacket. Besides, Beth said I looked good in it. Hence, although it wasn't on sale, I still went for it. I'm not posting a photo of this jacket, you'll just have to wait for its premier in winter. :p I can tell you that it has awesome symbols: an Italian flag, a Torino bull, 2 Kappa marks (which is a man and a woman sitting back-to-back with each other), and the word "Torino" across the chest. Please sit still, my CAL friends, the color of this jacket is Maroon, not RED. :p

My next choice is to get a haircut. Yes, it's a big decision as it's not just a simple haircut... I decided to go for a short hairdo. The first problem we encountered was how to communicate the desired style with hairdressers in Italian. Beth came up with a great idea: find photos of the hairstyle that we like online then we will bringing in her laptop to show them to hairdressers. It worked perfectly since pictures speak a thousand times better than words (let alone our poor Italian words). The experience at the salon was rather relaxing. Hair washing alone was 15 minutes of gentle massaging, washing, and conditioning. My hairdresser was a young man (mid 20s) with blond spiky hair and wears hip pink glasses. He wasn't surprised of my request of a rather dramatic hair style. As a matter of fact, he was the first and only hairdresser who suggested to cut my hair even a little shorter. Well, non `cè problema, I have had the same hairdo for a few years and since I'm in Italy, I want to go for a new look. Now with new clothes and a stylish hair cut, I need to look for earrings and sandals. Gotta go shopping. Again. Now.

Fashion, What do I know about it?

People who know me well know that I'm not a woman... in a sense of fashion and shopping. I don't follow fashion trends and I don't really like shopping. Don't get me wrong, of course I enjoy buying clothes but I just don't like spending a lot of time searching and trying them on. And yes, that's why Syd married me (:p).

Anyways, now we are living in a country that literally invented fashion (ex. Armani, Fendi, Ferragamo, Gucci, Prada, United Color of Benetton, Versace... just to name a few famous designers), how can we avoid seeing, hearing, smelling, touching, tasting, or feeling it? Well, the answer is You Can't! Italians in general just dress up much nicer than us Californians (which means no T-shirts and shorts; poor Syd and Trevor). I think they are accustomed to wear good quality clothes in any daily situation. For example, Syd and I saw a man who was painting over graffiti outside of his store wearing a cashmere sweater. The other day we also saw an old lady who was working in a butcher shop wearing pearl earrings and a stylish black dress top. Perhaps this is what Italians mean by 'fare una bella figura' (make a good impression).

One thing I've noticed that is hot for women here is accessories! A lot of them wear a necklace, or earrings, or bracelets, or a belt, or all above to match their outfits. They must have a titanic jewelry box for all the accessories. Also, Audrey Hepburn is phat here.













However, what fascinates me most is Italian men's fashion. My previous trips to Europe have accustomed me to men wearing red pants. But this time I have seen men's pants also in the color of orange, yellow (not khaki, mind you), green, and purple! In general the men look stylish in these bright colors but when I saw a man who wore a neon purple sweater with bright yellow pants, it was simply too much bling to me. Italians seem to like bright colors a lot! Shining silver or gold footwear is also very popular.

By the way, moving to Torino has improved Syd's sense of fashion... he finally knows what/ who 'Dolce & Gabbana' is. :)