red underwear for NYE

Buon Anno- Happy New Year!!

Here we are at the end of 2015 and like every year, we made it to the "red week", or that week of the year when Italians devote some of their time to buy red underwear to properly welcome the new year.

Xmas dinner @CasaJasmina

A couple of months ago, we were contacted by world-renowned Sci-Fi author Bruce Sterling who is currently living in Turin. He's a fan of Turin Epicurean Capital and had a question about wine for his guests at Casa Jasmina. This is how we found out about this amazing project in collaboration with Fab Lab Torino and Officine Arduino.

Bruce Sterling and Miss Bee

the Malvasia winery

In Turin, 2015 was the year of Malvasia di Castelnuovo Don Bosco produced by Cascina Gilli. 

We have already presented Malvasia as a Piedmontese wine in general, but this specific variant by this small local producer is so unique that it deserves a post on its own.

the Dragon in Turin

The largest collection of Asian art in Italy is in Turin at MAO - Museo d'Arte Orientale. This is one very special museum because it hosts unique pieces and constantly entices the public with unusual events and rare temporary exhibits.

We love it because it constantly offers new opportunities to experience Asian cultures and single aspects of the Far East we would never get the chance to know otherwise. 

During Turin Epicurean Capital 2015, for example, we were invited to admire the special National Geographic exhibit about the world of the spices. Visitors plunged in the aromas and the colors of the original countries where the most exotic spices we use today are from.

Shocking Elsa Schiaparelli

Adriana Delfino wearing her own homage to Elsa "Schiap" 

Turin fashion designer Adriana Delfino in collaboration with Talen.To closed her fashion presentations about women designers with Elsa Schiaparelli. After stylish Coco Chanel and genius Madeleine Vionnet, Elsa or Schiap's sense of fashion can be described as artistically shocking and highly creative.

Her creativity survives as new to our days as we enjoy her fashion legacy on a daily basis whenever we wear fuchsia, wrap dresses, decorative zips, huge pockets and many other things that are now considered "normal".

All her creations witness her quick wit, education and curious nature, Elsa is born in 1890 to a wealthy Roman family: her father is an intellectual, one of her uncles an astronomer, the other one was Ernesto Schiaparelli, a famous archaeologist who directed the Egyptian museum of Turin. 

She grows up surrounded by culture and books but, as she later writes in her autobiography Shocking Life her mom has always made her feel very self-conscious about her look.

After a short time in a boarding school in Switzerland - where she is sent after the publication of a love poem booklet, she follows a family friend to London.

Paris is the first stop of this trip and also her debut in the fashion world because for an important evening, she makes herself a wrap dress with a sheet. Unfortunately, as she can't sew, over the hours the dress falls apart.

Vionnet the fashion architect

This week, Turin fashion designer, Adriana Delfino held the second presentation about French designer, Madeleine Vionnet.

Adriana's presentations takes place at Spazio 28 in collaboration with Talen.To in Corso Vittorio Emanuele II 28, in the courtyard, in Turin,

Adriana will present Elsa Schiaparelli on Tuesday, Dec 1st @6:30pm and on Wednesday, Dec 2nd @10:30am.

To reserve, e-mail: torinospazio28@gmail.com or

call: 335 666 1281

As Vionnet is Adriana's favorite designer, we just couldn't miss, and a whole new world of fashion architecture opened to us under Adriana's guide.

Because of the many movies we all tend to consider Coco Chanel as the main female fashion innovator, however, Madeleine Vionnet was years ahead of her times for many things, and as a highly educated woman, the fashion style she developed is still unique, timeless and virtually impossible to copy! No wonder Adriana is so fascinated by her.

Lake Orta is Paradise

Enjoy our friend Jim Dunlop's guest post about Lake Orta, one of the one day destinations from Turin!

Originally studied Chemical Engineering and Sales and Marketing, Jim worked for some large multinational companies including in Casale Monferrato  and Bergamo. He ran his own consultancy and sales business before retiring a few years ago. Married to Julia hence the title of this post which is our retirement project!

As yet he has not started a blog but he will do once he has enough stories to put in it.

Travels with Julia (a few Days in Paradise)

As the first rays of sunshine burst over the hills behind Sacro Monte di Orta, bringing a summer vibrancy to our balcony I put down my pen and let the warmth sweep over me in the cool stillness of the morning. Not a sound was heard save the solitary cooing of a pigeon on the roof above. Isola di San Giulio lay at peace with itself and from this distance the morning traffic on the opposite shore could not be heard. Nothing was stirring in Pella. High above on a precarious ledge Madonna del Sasso sat watching another day arrive.