First Impressions
Milan to Venice offered vastly different experiences. In comparison to Milan’s seemingly high-end, bright clothing store widows, Venice seemed to focus on more of a middle to lower class. We didn’t see many clothing stores during our time in Venice, perhaps because it is a holiday venue and the ratio of tourists to Venetians is large, perhaps Venetians shop outside of the city. There are Venetian suburbs of sorts where it is much less expensive to live. The style of clothing that I observed amongst people walking about was more sidewalk friendly than runway friendly. I saw nothing that compared to the bright colorful pants that are vivid in my memories of the shop windows in Milan.
Our tour guide pointed out that Italy is shaped like a boot, and in a country that is shaped like a boot, it only seems appropriate that different styles will be found in every city. It is expected that Venice would be different from Milan. I gauged clothing style based on the appearance of people we saw on the street. The older women tended to wear clothes that looked as though they came from the 1950’s. They wore long coats and knee length skirts that were wool, all in dark colors. This seemed practical given the slight damp chill blowing in off the Venetian harbor. Many of the women despite their ages wore dark, almost black pants or skirts and dresses. Many of the dresses were dark grays that one would associate with a cloudy day. Some were also navy blues and blacks. Walking around Venice, it was difficult for me to tell who the tourists were and who locals were.
I find the style of men, not only in Venice, but the other cities as well, to be rather refreshing compared to home. I adore that the majority of men wear scarves to accent their outfits. At home scarves are almost seen as feminine and many men don’t wear them. After having a conversation with our tour guide, I learned that the Italian people think that first impressions are extremely important and try their best to look their best. She informed me that people here don’t have extensive wardrobes. It’s almost as if clothing is timeless. They often wear less expensive clothing underneath an expensive jacket to make that first impression memorable. They wear makeup and one or two nice pieces of jewelry to accent their outfits.
Style, is not all about what you wear but how you wear it. Having the most expensive articles of clothing is not necessary when one can pair items and add accessories; looking presentable is what style is about.
Scarves are the pop of color I saw in many peoples’ outfits. The men tended to wear more blues and greys. Many were solid colors but there were some with stripes of red and black. The women, tended to don scarves in shades of pinks, blues, greens and purples. The majority of these shades were still on the dark side of the color spectrum. Many were solid colors as well but some had a paisley pattern. The majority of scarves being sold by street vendors were patterned while the majority of scarves people seemed to be wearing were solid colors. Those being sold at vendors were geared perhaps to the tourist population, many of which seem to wear patterned scarves. I tended to look at the scarves with patterns opposed to those that were solid and even purchased two with very different patterns and bright colors!
Unlike at home, I have yet to see anyone wearing sweatpants. The clothing style here is very chic and put-together no matter the city you visit. Slacks, dark jeans, black pants or skirts with nice jackets and tops are the norm. While there are accessories such as scarves, they still tend to be dark colors and simple patterns. The men and women both, tend to dress more business casual and it is obvious that Italians shy away from sweatpants and sweatshirts. I have noticed that while the clothing styles are not significantly different the way in which people dress is. We have similar clothing in the US but tend not to wear it as much; we often do not dress business casual on a daily basis. The style in the U.S. is less formal and more laid back. So do we think less about first impressions than the Italians? That’s an interesting question.
-Rachel Davis
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