In this article, I will take you on a journey through my inspirations for this Christmas. My gift suggestions have one thing in common: these are pieces I went looking for with a touch of glam and the style I believe should always be in everything. Suggestions for gifts that can bring a loving message to the receiver and also some ideas for gifting yourself. The theme is always uniqueness, refinement, craftsmanship and love that each of the creations reflects.
The ideas are many and for all tastes. Here is the list:
1. Mytablitas - Placemats Sets
2. Evin Candles - Scented candles
3. Beltepà - Basques with Uzbek fabrics
4. Unoaerre - Fashion Jewellery
5. Vanni - 100% Made in Italy eyewear
6. Fidenza Village - Luxury shopping
7. Babi - Women's tailored shirts
8. Caramì - Lingerie and Activewear
9. Chia - Handcrafted knitwear and precious pyjamas
10. Artistante - Art foulard
11. Laross Unconventional Chic - Kimono
12. Anna Russo - Sculpture "A world of love"
13. Stradivarius Castell'Arquato restaurant (PC) - Gourmet box
14. Bibliothe & Co Milano - Gift box with 'Metti che Vivo' novel + Chocolate infusion
1. Mytablitas - Placemats Sets
Christmas starts from the table and I want to tell you about one of my Christmas traditions. From the first of December every year my table from breakfast to dinner is finely dressed for Christmas. It is a way to create anticipation in the Advent period, inventing a different and original decoration every day. Of course it takes a thought behind it. But since I discovered Mytablitas placemats, it is much more fun and original. The concept goes beyond the simple placemat: Mytablitas proposes placemats made of beautiful fabrics in beautiful colours that surround a solid round base. There are many elegant designs and the table set like this immediately takes a chic touch. These pieces are born from the love for beauty of the designer Marta who added the colour and energy of Brazil and the Mediterranean to a classical training and the rigor of the northern European countries where she lived.
For this Christmas there is really something to indulge in with his ideas that represent a piece of his aesthetic universe, including precious velvets, tartan with gold thread, reindeer and horses, flower arrangements, toile de jouy . These creations are beautiful but above all convenient to use. They have fabrics that are resistant to any stain and you don't need a bevy of maids to iron them. A very valid substitute for linen tablecloths and silver and crystal placemats for a truly unique Christmas table, where you can also place the pomme à fleur centrepiece, also designed by Marta.
And if you've seen "The Crown" on TV, have you noticed that royals hardly ever use tablecloths?
Find all the proposals on his IG @mytablitas and website www.mytablitas.com
2. Evin Candles - Scented candles
The atmosphere of Christmas is created through the magic of the light of a scented creation that illuminates the evenings of waiting. Evin Candles creations are not simple candles, but lights that emanate warmth and charm and decorate our homes. I always keep one lit on my desk in the study and I get elated with its fragrance, but I also have it in the living room, dining room, bathroom. The vintage and contemporary touch glass jars are handmade and gilded before being filled with the vegan and sustainable coconut oil from the candles, which have unique and persistent, sumptuous, spicy, vanilla fragrances. A 'must have' to bring the spirit of Christmas into homes and the most suitable for a Christmas gift are undoubtedly the red 'Holiday Wishes' candles with geranium top notes or the pink ones 'Champagne Moments' with freesia.
You can choose and order them directly from the website Home — Evîn (evincandles.com) and go to visit the IG account @evincandles
3. Beltepà - Basques with Uzbek fabrics
You can breathe the charm of a trip to distant lands wearing one of Beltepà's pieces. The history of this brand starts from the far away Uzbekistan and through the silk road, the mythical Samarkand, brings us the craftship of skilled Uzbek women with their traditional embroidery works and wooden looms producing these silk, velvet, wool fabrics with evocative names (adras, bakhmal, suzani, ...). Thanks to the passion and expertise of a family from Turin, unique pieces are born from the marriage of precious Uzbek fabrics with Italian design: Coats, Overcoats, Bags ...
For a Christmas gift, a particular piece that I propose here is the basque. Symbol of Paris, of artists and revolutionaries, worn by Picasso, Hemingway, Lady D and many others. In silk velvet, with interiors to be discovered, you will never find another like it.
A curiosity, where does the name of the Beltepà brand come from? This is the popular neighborhood on the outskirts of Tashkent, the capital of Uzbekistan, where it all started with a meeting of special people and cultures.
Information on IG @ beltepa.official and on the website http://www.beltepa.com/
4. Unoaerre - Fashion Jewellery
For this Christmas Unoaerre proposes its fashion jewellery creations with lines inspired by jewels that have made a milestone in history, to give as gifts and to treat oneself, which make any outfit shine. One of the peculiarities of these pieces is precisely that of giving light and attracting attention through the details and finishes, emphasizing the preciousness of the surfaces, giving ultra-bright effects. Like these pieces that I suggest, a particular silver choker with a thin chain, embellished with crystals in the grumet mesh, a classic revisited in a contemporary key that can be accompanied with the silver mesh bracelet. Easy-chic jewels with simple and clean lines to complement daily and evening outfits.
If you want to take a look at the Fall / Winter 2020/2021 Fashion-Jewellery collection, here is the link to the website https://www.unoaerre.it/it/ and the IG page @unoaerre
5. Vanni - 100% Made in Italy eyewear
Vanni Eyewear is a 100% Made in Italy eyewear brand "for sure" proudly in the logo, has been producing its masterpieces in Italy from A to Z for 33 years, exporting to 50 countries. Linked to the world of art, for this brand aesthetics matters a lot, as they design a large number of models that always play with different shapes: butterfly, cat-eyes, square, round and always original.
For this glittering period of the holidays, they created a special line of metal eyewear that incorporates, in an updated guise, the styles that have made eyewear history, with iconic shapes of the past and contemporary finishes. The metal is milled in one piece and worked with a diamond tip. The glasses are light and airy, with a stylish detail in the precious finish created on the rim of the front that is worked thanks to a special diamond tip that polishes and scratches the metal to give the effect of a refined engraving. The feminine shapes are soft, on square shapes, in gold and silver versions. The solar lenses have an original treatment, with a light mirror, elegantly shaded.
Definitely a precious gift to put under the tree and also to treat yourself and wear immediately!
I invite you to visit the web shop www.shop.vanniocchiali.com and the IG gallery @vannieyewear
6. Fidenza Village - Luxury shopping
The Christmas decorations of Fidenza Village are truly splendid this year and as Ambassador of this splendid Luxury Shopping destination they are offering you a very practical and luxurious gift idea. The gift card with a value between € 5 and € 500 and which allows those who receive it to give themselves a gift inside the beautiful boutiques of this Luxury Shopping destination. There are many brands present, to name a few: Ermanno Scervino, Etro, Balmain, Eleventy, Frette, La Perla, Zegna, Loro Piana and many others, all united by the elegance and style of their garments. You can buy it online at the link below, choosing whether to collect it in the Village or receive it at home with free shipping. This year the Virtual Shopping service is active which allows you to make purchases from the comfort of your home, via WhatsApp, telephone or e-mail, being able to receive purchases directly at home. Here below the links:
IG @fidenzavillage
7. Babi - Women's tailored shirts
The blouse is the cornerstone of women's wardrobe that the designer Barbara di Babi has made much rarer thanks to the concept of tailoring that comes from the world of classy men's shirts. And therefore starting from everything that revolves around the construction of the tailored, basic and essential men's shirt, Babi has made it feminine, with attention to every detail thanks to the ancient craft of Italian seamstresses, emblem of the savoir faire typical of our country. The wrists, the initials of the name embroidered on the cuff, the buttons, the seams. Behind a concealed construction of a men's shirt revealed by the collar, there is this refined uniqueness, made of rustling silk of the highest quality, perfect fit, blousy and soft. Research and taste that have created an original three in one to wear, different according to the occasion. The simple shirt, or once enriched by the bandeau, as a bow around the neck, over the pullover or in the hair, or with the small black ribbon used as a tie for an attitude inspired by YSL. The pack that encloses this masterpiece is already a refined gift in itself, with the descriptive card, the model sketch, the date, the name of the wearer, the serial number. Because we are talking about small productions, about craftsmanship and sustainability of Made in Italy laboratories. Treating yourself or giving a Babi shirt means putting a precious and unrepeatable garment in your wardrobe.
You can visit the brand website www.babilachemise.it and the IG gallery @babiparma
8. Caramì - Lingerie and Activewear
Caramì is a Lingerie and Activewear brand born from the passion of two sisters, Carlotta and Camilla, who values femininity and creates extremely unique garments that it is a pity to hide. The bra, for example, strictly without underwire, has original and precious details that combine with an amazing fit and that together with the comfortable and sensual lace briefs, becomes an extremely refined gift.
And what about activewear that offers elegance and practicality? The velvet leggings, sporty and comfortable thanks to the technical and breathable fabrics, suitable for performance but not only in the gym, to be worn also combined with an elegant shirt. And then the sports bra, which offers the right balance between support, comfort and elegance. In short, once you try them you will never want to take them off. There is to indulge in all these so chic pieces, a truly beautiful gift that once tried will never be left.
Visit the website www.carami.it and the IG page @carami.collection
9. Chia - Handcrafted knitwear and precious pyjamas
Opening Christmas gifts on the morning of December 25th can also be done in pyjama, but it must be chic and precious, as the one in silk designed and created by Chia, the Made in Italy niche brand knowledgeable in elegance and style.
The designer who gives her name to the brand has always had a passion for beauty.
Overlooking the shores of Lake Como, she designs garments reflecting the art and beauty of Italian culture, restoring it in the refined and essential shapes and lines of the proposed pieces through collaboration with a tailor's shop and some top-level knitwear workshops, using the best of Italian yarns.
You can visit the IG page of the stylist @chiamaglieriaartigianale
10. Artistante - Art foulard
Behind the Artistante brand and Paola's creations there is an aesthetic philosophy that comes from painting. With a very particular exercise, by detaching the paintings she has painted from the walls, Paola makes them wearable, bringing her designs back to fine fabrics, with which she creates commonly used but unique accessories such as artistic prints. Twill to put around the neck, hoods, stoles not only to enrich a look, but to wrap yourself in the beauty of the artistic and sartorial tradition that enters everyday life. All the patterns are printed in very limited editions making them more unique than rare, out of fashionable and never out of fashion, with particular attention to quality, sustainability and work ethic, exclusively Made in Italy. The colour palettes are intertwined with a pattern that makes each piece original and that once discovered transfers its value to the wearer. Treating yourself and giving one of these pieces as a gift is to take a journey through the canvases of the art gallery of a talented painter, giving a touch of great style to your outfit.
You can visit the artist's website www.artistante.com and the IG page @paola.artistante
12. Laross Unconventional Chic - Kimonoàporter
After many years as a fashion journalist, Rossella Molteni started a new adventure in 2019 as a designer of Laross Unconventional Chic.
Japanese inspiration, "Milanese" fit, the silk velvet kimono is worn like a dress: soft and enveloping, it slides over the body. It is inspired by tradition but is in perfect metropolitan style. These garments are original and versatile: to wear on jeans in the office or on an evening dress. Here I propose two, in burgundy silk velvet with chiffon interior printed with two different floral motifs. To go out or, why not, to wear at home instead of the usual dressing gown to always be impeccable. But I invite you to go and visit the IG account to find out how unpredictable they are: unique pieces that hide interiors with always different fantasies.
They are made of silk, silk velvet, linen or brocade, short jacket or long duster.
Information on IG @larossunconventionachic or at the email address: laross.unconventional@gmail.com
11. Anna Russo - Sculpture "A world of love"
A very original gift linked to art can be a sculpture, "The world in your hands", an exclusive collection of worlds that comes from a dream of the artist Anna Russo. Each world is a unique piece entirely handmade according to a technique that is based on a mixture of resins and acrylic compounds. Depending on the colour, each world tells about an emotion, in this case with red and gold we speak of a world of love and passion. I think this would be an important message conveyed through this masterpiece. But there is the possibility to pass other messages: if you want to give a world of success, the colours will be gold and white, for a world of joy green and gold, for a world of harmony blue and green.
You can visit the artist's gallery on her IG profile @annarussowordsart
13. Stradivarius Castell'Arquato restaurant (PC) - Gourmet box
Castell'Arquato at the entrance to the Val d'Arda in the province of Piacenza, just an hour from Milan, is a medieval village where history has stopped so much that it has been the setting for films and commercials for its intact and unique atmospheres . Here the Piacenza culinary tradition gives its best at the Stradivarius Restaurant, where in a building still owned by the family of the famous luthier Stradivari it is possible to taste excellent dishes, rediscovering authentic flavours and specialties of the territory.
Now you can comfortably receive these delicacies of the Piacenza tradition, fresh, made with raw materials of the highest quality and strictly handmade: the Batalabar (clap-lips) tortelli "with the tail", the Pisarei e fasò, the famous Coppa Piacentina to name a few, all wet with an excellent Gutturnio.
The gastronomic box of the Stradivarius Restaurant can be an excellent solution for lunches and dinners during this Christmas period both for you and as a gift for some friends and relatives who, unable to go out ... are desperately trying to learn how to cook!
To receive the complete menu and information:
ristostradi@gmail.com
Tel. 0523 803381
14. Bibliothe & Co Milano - Gift box with 'Metti che Vivo' novel + Chocolate infusion
And finally, at the Bibliothe & Co bookshop in Milan, a gift idea: my novel "Metti che Vivo" by La Torre dei Venti, elegantly packed together with the chocolate infusion of La Via del Tè in a beautiful box to be reused for personal items.
A reading for the days of the holidays to reflect and I hope to give some inspiration for rebirth after a period like this.
It can be sent anywhere by calling +39 3480116704
I hope I have given you a good range of inspirations and I can only wish a great shopping and a Merry Christmas to everyone!