This leather jacket is right up our Tuscan Alley

Sometimes you see something and it just catches your eye.  There is no evident reason why that particular leather jacket has you looking for the wish list button – but it does.  Then you start printing off copies and leaving them laying around so your Significant Other can get the hint – or maybe you post it on FB so your Mom knows just what to get for Christmas next year.  Or you do like me and create a dream board with that object right in the center.  Here is a peek at our newest fascination, simple and elegant, clean lines and soft on the hardware:

That leather handbag looks very enticing as well – though I would do a bunk on the shoes.

Was it a mistake or is it #Porselli intervention?

These deliciously handmade ballet flats from E. Porselli have been making waves at Pierotucci Italian Leather Handbag Factory. Truth be known we can’t keep them on the shelves long enough! We just received a long awaited back order of these all leather ballet flats from Milano where there are handcrafted one by one and … AND opps we received a color that we weren’t looking for.

So my question is, did Porselli send it by mistake or …. is this going to be a new must for those PORSELLI lovers out there.

This rich chocolatey brown color is warm and enticing – what do you think, should we make it part of our permanent stock?

Enticing, sassy and sexy: the classic black #leatherjacket

Even it’s dress down day, there is something about the classic black leather jacket that can send an outfit over the top. Take a pair of washed out jeans, add your favorite boots (the ones that have been worn so often that the soles are paper thin) and add a leather jacket . . . and guess what, you are on the cutting edge of fashion.

An Italian leather handbag has the power to

chase those Monday Morning blues away – - – at least that’s what we like to think!

Just have a peek at Daniela who is smiling away with her newest creation!

This Pierotucci Italian leather handbags has been a favorite for years – it’s one of those classic styles that never seems to go out of fashion.  A rich soft grain embossed leather with silver colored hardware accents and it comes in two sizes.

To my Darling Wife with Love from Pierotucci

It is our opinion that Jerry H. from Texas must be one of the most patient and caring husband anyone could wish for.

He came to our store with his wife and she tried on a jacket (probably more than one!)   BUT they opted not to buy right away, they wanted to “shop around”.  However, it was love at first sight and even while browsing all of Florence, this lovely model was the one she couldn’t stop thinking about.  In the end, she went home to the States empty handed.

Her husband secretly contacted us, sending a photo of her modeling the jacket while visiting the Pierotucci Leather Factory asking our help in identifying the jacket and the size . . . and thus the saga began.

The emails flew back and forth: size and color were the main topics – plus a little bit of good Texan humour from Jerry!

IT HAS TO BE GREEN !  Green is her favorite color.

Even though this jacket came in a light gray color in our store, how could we ignore his plea?
We solicited our tailor to find the right shade of green and he did.  A sensual dark shade of emerald
green in a gorgeous vintage inspired leather – Jerry was enthusiastic, and we must admit we were starting to get caught up in the excitement of the his gift giving.

Next step was confirming the size - obviously Jerry couldn’t go taking body measurements . . . at least not without a good excuse

This was going to be a big Christmas surprise and he knew he was taking a chance.  He told us :

Hey, I usually surprise her with diamonds. Tough to mess up on those!

We were determined that he wouldn’t mess up with this gift either.  She’s petite he told us.  Jerry was insisting she would need a size 40 (What a sweetheart! If only my DH would insist that I am a size 40!)  However our experienced customer service knew that this jacket was cut small and insisted on finding a way of getting some body measurement.  With some careful Mission Impossible work,  Jerry managed to get us her measurements, and we matched them up to one of the girls in the office. Our customer service department has found this to be the best way to assure a perfect fit . . . try it on someone with similar height, weight and body measurements!

The jacket was put into production!

But Jerry was anxious to make this the best Christmas yet

“What about gloves to match?”

We knew that getting the same colour green would be impossible since the quality and type of leather used for the jacket is different from that of a soft pair of gloves so we suggested a complimentary color – a rich chocolate brown classic style kid skin glove. We had some more fun and games sorting out the size of the gloves, with Jerry sending us a picture of her “worn” gloves! But his endless funny comments kept us all in the holiday spirit.

Customized Italian Leather Jacket

NOW THE WAIT.

The jacket was finally ready to be shipped.  As nervous as he was about getting the right size, he told us he would not peek but wait until Christmas Day.  He decided to let his Darling Wife open the box and they would both look at it together.

The result? They were ecstatic. Jerry sent us photos of her wearing the jacket next to the Christmas tree and she looked like a million dollars.

Beverley and Donna

Well we did it !!!!!!  It looks great and she LOVES it.

I thank you sooooo much for all your help.

Definitely a great big  Grazie mille! 

I am sending a few pictures I just took.

MERRY CHRISTMAS and a very HAPPY NEW YEAR.

Another success story from Pierotucci!

From this . . . . to that . . . the transformation of an Italian masterpiece

In Florence there is a little tale they tell of Michelangelo when he was working on the marble masterpiece of “Davide”.  The story tells of how someone came in while the great sculptor was pulling out the piece of art hidden within the marble and the interloper made the comment that the nose was a little too big on this mammoth statue.  It then goes on to tell how Michelangelo  climbed the ladder with the hammer and chisel, made the movement and sounds of chipping away at the smooth white stone and then let a little marble dust float out of his hand.  At that point he then looked at the critical observer with a tilt of the head, as if to ask “and now?”  The person nodded their head – and said – “now it’s perfect.”

That is not a customization, but it should be a hint as to what you are asking when you request  the craftsman to change their work of art.  You are asking to transform an Italian masterpiece.

But, unlike Micheangelo, our craftsman understand that their masterpieces are meant to be used and that they need to be practical, functional and useful.

Our happy shopper A.S. from Switzerland came to us with an idea about a leather business bag from the Tucci Collection she had fallen in love with on our site. It was the size she needed, it had all the pockets she needed, it was the perfect “war bag” for her business.  BUT, she required some modifications so that she could easily carry all of her necessary items, and she wanted a quality bag, hand crafted with all the trimmings, but without the fancy designer label potentially putting off her prospective clients.

Step by step, the bag took shape. Our master craftsman, Marco Galli has been designing and making bags for most of his adult life, and he knows exactly what will work and what won’t. So for example, when A.S. said she wanted the shoulder strap to be attached at the sides, he immediately knew that this would not work for this kind of bag. It has two gussets and when the shoulder strap would be in use, then the shape and form of the bag would be contorted in such a way that would be ugly and unsafe for the design. So he suggested that the strap be attached to the back and this worked perfectly.

1)  We converted a masculine style bag, into a more feminine, versatile bag which oozes charm and sophistication at every angle.

2)  The top handle was eliminated.

3)  We took away the two shoulder straps and replaced them with rolled leather handles that were long enough for them to be slipped over the wrist for a more elegant and feminine carrying option.

4)  We added a much longer detachable shoulder strap which can be comfortable over one shoulder or used as a cross body bag.

The whole concept of the bag has gone from masculine to feminine with just a few tweaks and for only a nominal fee for the extra work and leather, A.S. has a bag that will take her to every business meeting for a very long time. She was absolutely thrilled, and took the time to write to us and praise us on a job well done.

Even fully loaded, as you can see in the picture I made, it holds its form beautifully.  Your craftspeople are to be congratulated on a great concept and job well done.

We try to accommodate every customised request, some we can do, others not. Pierotucci is one of the finest Florentine factories in Tuscany and they go that extra mile in trying to satisfy the needs of the customer, be it colour and type of leather, length of handles or monogramming.

What’s in Production today at Pierotucci?

Each handbag goes through 4 phases before it can be checked at quality control, and packed up for storage in the warehouse.

First the leather, lining and in this case the canvas accents needs to be cut.  Secondly, all cut pieces of leather need to be sealed, pressed, punched with holes and sanded down.  Third on the list is the accessories for each bag need to be counted out, this includes the zips, the straps, the snaps and handles.  The last step is the assembly of the bag – starting from the inside out – each bag is composed by putting together first the lining, then the leather casing and finally all accessories and name plates.

In this photo you can see Marina working on the outer panels of the our Toscanella canvas and Italian leather tote with removable shoulder straps.

When a description is all you got to go on

A photo is certainly what will catch your eye faster than a wordy or detailed title, but if you are going to buy you need to read in between the illusions in the title and the hype in the description.  A good product description is absolutely a must !  Of course there are those who will play with innuendos and double meanings in a description in order to hood you but then once you get your package – rip open the box and pull it out . . .  there is always that tell tale slump of the shoulders, turn at the mouth and general sense of disappointment because you “thought” you read one thing, the picture seemed to show you what you were reading yet the final product just doesn’t match up.

We were recently pulled into this drama while flipping through runway photos of the new FW 2013 lines of several top designers when we found a bag that we just adored.  Particularly appealing was the use of contrasting colors and the design was reminiscent of Bottega Veneta, Cosci (now defunct)  and Pierotucci.  We downloaded the photo to use in a blog post – similar to this one.  But then today – another photo (different angle) of the same product opened our eyes to the fundamental difference . . . and this is where a detailed ACCURATE description makes all the difference.

The second photo labeled the bag as a braided leather effect.  First off, braided leather? Is English their first language? When I checked out the Webster definition

Braided = Interlace three or more strands of (hair or other flexible material) to form a length

. . . and

Weave:   interlacing long threads passing in one direction with others at a right angle to them.  When I was 9, I would braid my hair and it in no way resembled this Givenchy pocket clutch.

Close up of the embossed leather – effect weave.

The second thing was the use of the word “effect.”

Have a look at the photo and the truth comes out.  From the point of view of the above image it appears as if there are actually two different pieces being put together.

But alas, with the wonders of modern photgraphy AND with these up close images on the web sites I was actually able to see that the word effect was just another way of saying – embossed!  It was a printed weave effect on the bag, not even a true weave.  This purchase would have 100% resulted in one very unhappy shopper.

Looking at the detail you can even see that the paint job was a little haphazard – only making you really wonder how long the color would last with continual use of the bag.

From the photo I would have thought that the final product was closer to a Cosci leather handbag.  If you lool at the photo of the designer handbag below you can actually see the two different pieces.

Last year Toscanella Italian leather accessories came to the market with a weave using three different colors  in a weave to create a unique one of a kind image.  There are four different color patterns, using a terracotta chamios intertwined with 2 of the seven main colors of vegetable tanned leather.  Now this is a true weave and one where the colors will truly stand up to the test of time.

Close up view of the Toscanella three color weave.

Cultural mistake

I never been one much into fashion myself – I come from Miami where all we really need to go out is a pair of shorts, a t-shirt, flip-flops and a 2 piece …. my experience certainly didn’t include Paris Fashion Week.  After college, my next stop was Europe on a student budget – so once again, shopping at Milan Fashion Week was not high on my list.

This little fact never really bothered me or even put me into serious ridicule.  My friends and cohorts were in the same situation as myself – we didn’t have the $$ to spend of fashion and we just didn’t keep up with the “Kardashians”.

However, after deciding to prolong my visit to Italy, my new environment (namely my ex-boyfriend) made it quite clear that my lack of knowledge (and my dismal fashion sense) were definitely a hindrance in our relationship.

This is not my him, however if mine had looked like this . . . note he is sporting a jacket in panno Casentino

Nothing made this ever so evident as when I was finally introduced to his “best friend.”  It was a bit of a big  ordeal, because his friend lived a couple hours away with his new wife and child.  And since this was definitely going to be a grown-up evening I was eager to put my best American foot forward.  I was prepared to highlight my playful nature and sense of humor.

It was a pleasant evening all the way around – nice people, good food (in Italy when do you not eat well?), stimulating conversation – tons of questions about the USA and the president (who at the time was Regan – I think)  - and a few fun moments cuddling the baby.

As we are walking out the door to start our long trek home (thorough woods and over the hills) I made a “humorous” that has haunted me ever since.  Teasing my then boyfriend, his wardrobe came up and I told his friends that they should try and convince him to spend a few dollars (the ones he saved not going to a restaurant but eating at their house) and change out his winter coat – to make my point, I showed them how the one he had on had all those little balls that aged wool gathers.

Three adult turned to stare at me as if I had just insulted the Pope himself…grown three heads….and turned a dramatic shade of purple …. all at the same time!

Perhaps I really should have known better.  Critic an Italian about their fashion sense … and then wouldn’t you know it?  The material that was used to make his coat  was the prestigious panno Casentino, prized for the curling tufs of wool on the surface – the very same which I had attempted to ridicule.

Note the rough texture – this is a distinct feature of panno Casentino.

It could be that since I was presently residing in the Casentino Valley, a small but very self sufficient area located approximately 45 km southeast of Florence they thought I would automatically know “la vita, morta e miracoli” of the area.  For example maybe I should have known that the valley at one time was extremely famous for its wool production, in fact in the 1800′s the sheep count was 86,000 – more than triple the number of residents in this Italian valley.  And … yes that’s right, maybe I should have known this was the birth place of the panno Casentino – a resistant and lightweight wool distinguished by these surface curls, the very thing that makes it water-resistant.  Not only that, but maybe I should have known that it is well recognized among the Italians as a status symbol!

What I can say is that I now know all this (and so much more)  - and even after 20 years, I have not forgotten that evening, the embarrassment and the many qualities of the panno Casentino.

In my attempts to tease this guy I wound up setting myself up to be the last laugh.

Sometimes you just fall in love with a detail

Sometimes, you don’t fall in love with the entire collection – just the details … and then sometimes you fall in love with the entire collection. Zac Posen, an American designer, has both the collection and the details to grab ones attention.  A mix between the Gothic beauty of Morticia from the Addams Family and the classic lines of a movie star from the black and white films.    In fact, the designer has defined the collection as “Maria Callas going to Argentina.”  Callas was a highly dramatic soprano opera singer and his designs would have graced her on the stage when she made her fame in the early part of the 20th century.

Have a look at the intricate darts on the back of this ladies jacket trimmed with a short fur collar, elegant and sophisticated . . .