Ever Thought About Visiting This Place, Where the Sun Shines More Than 300 Days of the Year?

Santa Barbara, my home. A lovely place on the southern coast (although typically referred to as the central coast) of sunny California. This is where the sleigh bells will ring for me this Christmas. In less than 48 hours I will be California bound, driving down the famous highway 101 with the ocean breeze caressing my face, throwing me into a fit of pure joy.

It’s the best of both worlds really, splitting time between Florence, Italy and Santa Barbara. Florence with its old world charm, the romantic streets of cobble stone surrounded by rustic colors of terracotta and traditional green shutters lining every stone building. The family owned shops, trattorias, and cafes with their handmade leather goods, traditional local dishes, and their perfected cappucinos. And don’t forget the wine bars whose walls are lined with endless bottles of some of the best wine in the world.

 Then, of course, there is Santa Barbara. A little corner of the world unlike any other. With its red tiled rooftops and beach town vibe, this city is as charming and mediterranean as they come. One of my favorite places for an absolutely one-of-a-kind and spectacular view of the city is from Stern’s wharf. It’s a view that’s breathtaking. Imagine sitting over the ocean, on the pier, eating a bowl of freshly made clam chowder soup with the salty breeze running through your hair. Out in one direction you see the vast, blue Pacific Ocean with boats, fishman, and very often the sight of dolphins and humpback whales. You take a glance in the opposite direction and you have the sandy coastline decorated in an endless abundance of palm trees that follow the boulevard, one right after the next. Beyond the immediate coast, the city is picturesquely set against a mountain range, ever so perfectly tucked away between the mountains and the water. Sounds great right?

Like Florence, Santa Barbara is a striking little town, much of which can be reached by bicycle. If you’re staying downtown having a bicycle is the perfect way to get around. There you’ll find the lively and picture perfect State Street, the main avenue for shopping, filled with boutiques, cafes, department stores, and a number of restaurants boasting all types of cuisine. I can’t resist a day of shopping with my coffee in hand strutting down State Street, especially with all the unique and lovely boutique shops there are to take advantage of. It also turns into the main area where all the night life can be found. Everything from your back door pub to your nightclub for dancing is either on or right around this street. And for those who like something a little more low key, you can always have a cocktail on one of Santa Barbara’s most scenic rooftop terraces.

I consider myself to be a very lucky girl! Now if only I could take these two worlds of mine and collide them into one, it would be in my idea of paradise. But for now, I’ll settle with one at a time. If you’re in Italy looking for a winter escape, Santa Barbara is the place for you. And I suppose, if perhaps you’re simply reading this from the East Coast or somewhere else with frosty winters, Santa Barbara is a wonderful, not to mention warm, winter escape. Otherwise, to all my Santa Barbarians, come venture to Florence and see what I mean about experiencing the very best of both worlds.

To everyone, warm wishes this holiday season from sunny Santa Barbara!

The Christmas, Heidelberg Market in Piazza Santa Croce, Florence Italy

Every year I get more and more excited as Christmas approaches. It’s just that feeling you get as people whisk through the street in the crisp air with their shopping bags and smiles on their faces. It’s really the build up to Christmas that I love. The gorgeous decorations that fill your city’s streets and the insides of your home, the Christmas music playing that can be heard from restaurants and bars as you pass by, and all the chocolate and christmas treats you wait all year for that are very specific to the season.

I’m all about tradition and since living in Italy, it seems as though I could be loaded with them. With a tradition for just about everything. there is definitely one tradition that I feel particularly lucky to be a part of. Every year in Florence for Christmas the well-known German Christmas Market in Piazza Santa Croce, also known as the Heidelberg Market, comes to the city and dresses up the square brilliantly. The wooden stands are set up with their red and white striped covers displaying all the wonderful goods they’re selling. This German market brings brings loads of German Christmas confectionaries, wurstel, strudel, and my favortie, vin brulee (hot mulled wine). Beyond the stands with traditional German food, there are handmade toys, traditional ceramics, and articles of clothing and accessories to make the winter weather a little easier to enjoy.

I spent part of my day at the picturesque market and enjoyed all it had to offer. I set off from home bundled up to the brim and headed out towards Santa Croce. Within 15 minutes I was in the midst of the market shopping and searching for goodies to buy. My first stop obviously being the vin brulee, I mean a girls got to stay warm in this weather afterall. So while I delightfully sipped (or guzzled depending on your interpretation) my hot spiced wine, I browsed the stands, one by one. I ate the traditional wurstel with sauerkraut and bought a pretzel for later in the day. After I was properly stuffed with delicious food I bought a few Christmas gifts, most of which were handmade.

The Christmas market is always something to look forward and feels even more whimsical by night, lit up to the tee. So if you’re in town, come celebrate, stroll by the market and find me hanging close to the mulled wine.

Let the Crazy Out of the Box this Winter With the Help of…

Black. I’m a firm believer in this magical color. So, it’s time to find your winter style and trust me, it DOES involve the color black. I know how easy it is to get bored of jeans during the cold winter season. Pants and jeans become a daily routine when you have to bundle up. But why not try something a little different? Add in your touch of color, whatever tickles your fancy really, with some fun, printed or downright crazy leggings. Now is a time where you can push the boundries of fashion no matter your age or personal style. So why not add a bit of edge to your winter black this season. Go metallic or animal print crazy and have a blast. Fashion is meant to be fun afterall and an expression of how we feel on the inside.

I believe in Pink because its not just a color but

I think pink is a soft, sexy, romantic attitude.

Now that’s a mix between Audrey Hepburn, Miley Cyrpus and me!  If you want to feel ultra feminine there are just a few things that fit the bill – dressing in pink, dressing in silk and dressing with diamonds are some of my requirements.

What do you look for when you want to dress feminine?

Pink isn’t just a color di naturalitalianwoman contenente givenchy

Just a quick reminder for all you fashionistas

there are less than 24 hours left for the FORTUNATA designer Italian Leather Handbag Sale.

all models online are 15% off original price (a 30 Euro savings!!)

No matter which way you look at it, it’s a fantastic deal for a limited edition handmade Italian leather handbag.

Yellow! What is there not to like about this color?

Especially when designers like Marc Jacobs, Porselli and OdR are using it on the catwalks. I don’t know if I could get away with wearing only this fabulous shade of sunshine . . . but I wouldn’t mind trying with these pieces.  Those yellow leather gloves would be just the perfect accent to my winter coat – now that I believe I could pull off.

Luce, Luce su varietà di naturalitalianwoman contenente nars cosmetics

Toscanella Leather handbag
pierotucci.com

Rubber bracelet
€3,91 - hottopic.com

Moschino Cheap Chic leather glove
€150 - asos.com

Wildfox couture
€165 - shopbop.com

Lancôme highlighter makeup
€38 - nordstrom.com

Nars cosmetic
€14 - saksfifthavenue.com

Porselli Shoe Collection Yellow Italian Leather Ballet Flats
pierotucci.com

What do tigers, Leonardo di Caprio and Fortunata Designer Tote bags have in common?

WWF and Save Tigers Now.  Leonardo di Caprio and many other performing artists are working together with WWF to protect and promote growth in the international tiger community.  I have always found tigers to be an exoticly fasinating animal full of energy.  Just the image of this magnificent beast walking across the fields of its natural habitate brings to mind a senual beauty…. or am I thinking about Leonardo di Caprio….

It’s easy for many to donate their time, money and support when we are talking about saving forest land or clean rivers and oceans yet sometimes it is a stretch of the imagination to consider that saving an almost extinct species like the tiger is just as vital to Save the Earth, read here to find out 5 good reasons to save the tiger now.  The FORTUNATA designer handbag was designed as a symbol to save the entire Earth, not just small parts of it and that is why it will be donating proceeds from the sale of the Limited Edition FORTUNATA Designer Tote Bag to WWF to assit them to further their goals.

What are WWF Goal and Strategies?

By 2020, WWF will conserve 15 of the world’s most ecologically important regions by working in partnership with others to:

• Protect and restore species and their habitats
• Strengthen local communities’ ability to conserve the natural resources they depend upon
• Transform markets and policies to reduce the impact of the production and consumption of commodities
• Ensure that the value of nature is reflected in decisions made by individuals, communities, governments and businesses
• Mobilize hundreds of millions of people to support conservation

_{© 1986 Panda Symbol WWF – World Wide Fund For Nature (formerly World Wildlife Fund)
® “WWF” & “Living Planet” are WWF Registered Trademarks}

We at  Pierotucci are using our good fortune and FORTUNATA to help WWF help Save the Earth, one bag at a time.  80 Fortunata Designer Tote Bags are on sale and the proceeds from the sale of this bag will be donated to WWF to further their efforts to Save the Earth.

Fall 2012 in Italy and these things are a perfect match.

I love the way these colors flow together, the winter colors in the Fortunata Tote bags together with the pastels in the Campo dei Fiori small Italian leather accessories and the Porselli Ballet Flats.

Waiting for the first fallen leaves of fall

Perhaps one of my favorite seasons comes with an explosion of warm colors, rich earthy smells and crisp color air on blustery days.  Thinking  ahead to our Labor Day celebration and what I would like to be wearing.  What are you going to be doing for Labor day?

the onset of fall is not far off di delicatessen2 contenente skinny fit jeans

We need your help with some vocabulary here at Pierotucci

We will be inserting a new addition to our Italian leather collection from, but we are stomped and this is where y’all come in…

After having lived in Italy for over 20 years, I find that my once incredible English vocab (OK, anyone who really knows me will remember that my high school nickname was “English as a Second Language” and may feel inclined to  laugh at my self evaluation but it’s true: I’ve quite an extensive vocab AND I happen to be a proud graduate of Florida International University in both English lit and International relations … so …. there …)

Anyway -

I am looking at these new shoes and I find myself discussing with my colleague (well, one could say arguing . . . but she is English and they don’t argue, they only disagree) the correct word to describe these shoes -

please help us choose?