It’s been a few months since I mentioned the incomparable Sofia, so in honor of gearing up to go see her new movie, Somewhere, here ya go:
“You`re considered superficial and silly if you are interested in fashion, but I think you can be substantial and still be interested in frivolity.” – Sofia Coppola
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What is it about those Italian women? You know the ones I’m talking about: beautiful, sexy, dressed to the nines just to take the kids to the park. They have a certain something that is indefinable. It is in the way they dress, the way they prepare their meals, the way they spend their leisure time.
It is because they know the importance of la bella figura. Roughly translated from Italian, it means putting you best foot forward in everything you do. It means cutting a beautiful figura. The opposite of la bella figura is la brutta figura, which is what someone might say about the falling down drunken guy at the party or the super tackily dressed woman at church. It means ugly figure. La bella figura is much more than your appearance. It goes much deeper than that. It is about how you act. It is about how you treat others. It is about how you care for yourself, your home and your family. Living a life in line with la bella figura doesn’t take money. In fact, it is more about how to have class without a lot of money. Someone who exudes la bella figura will have clean, pressed clothes and be well groomed. They will not be rude or sloppy. Their fingernails will be impeccably groomed. Their hair shiny and clean and their shoes will be polished. They will not have stray threads hanging from their suit hems. They will not be driving a car in need of the car wash. La bella figura means driving that 15 year old car and meticulously cleaning it and caring for it. It means keeping your belongings in good repair. It means taking time to clean your house and not cluttering it up with meaningless objects. When you focus all your spare energy, time and money on the things that bring you the most amount of pleasure, then you are truly living a life in line with la bella figura. The best part about it is that you don’t have to be Italian to do so. You just have to think like an Italian. Italian children are raised to present la bella figura in whatever they do. From the time they are small and are groomed perfectly to attend church or school, they know that appearances count. They count because it is the first thing people judge about you. That first impression does matter. Appearances are also important because when you take the time to look nice, you are showing that you care about yourself. When you care enough to look good, it shows you have good healthy self esteem. Nothing is more attractive than self confidence. In addition, dressing nice also shows respect for others. If you invite people over for dinner and greet them in flip flops, baggy sweats and a stained shirt, it is really disrespectful to them. The same if you dress sloppy to go to church or even to the market. By dressing nicely and being well groomed, you show respect for everyone in your world. Having la bella figura means presenting yourself in the best light possible in all your interactions. |
I love that photo. How did you like the movie?
Finally saw it last night Steph. I liked it, didn’t love it, like some of her other films.
It was a very quiet, very stark, stripped-down, bare-bones movie but had some eloquent moments, especially the underlying theme of loneliness that pervades the movie and the poignant beauty of a father-daughter relationship. He lives a seemingly envious life, with fast cars, beautiful women, hotel suites fit for a King … but it is all empty. … it seems the only joy in the father’s life is his daughter. And he realizes this at the same time he realizes he has missed out on years of her life.
I LOVE the back of her dress. I wonder if I can find a wedding dress with a back like that! PS. I am back to blogging and have a new site!
Perfection!
I am a Sofia fan, too!
The back of that dress is divine!