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Weekend

March 8th, 2010 Kristi Leave a comment Go to comments

Old Navy Blouse - Express skirt (thrifted) - Sesto Meucci boots - Silver hoops - Silver chain


I had such a great weekend.
Friday night one of my relatives was on TLC’s What Not to Wear (no, she was NOT the nominee), so my SIL had a big party at her house where a bunch of us watched it and drank wine and ate munchies.
Saturday was low key, had some friends over, watched Caprica on Hulu.
Sunday my friend had an oscar party for the ladies including champagne and munchies.
I think we all have spring fever here and are getting the energy to get out and socialize that springtime brings.

I took a trip to the thrift store despite my not a cent in lent challenge. I tried on shoes, blouses, jeans, skirts, dresses, but didn’t buy anything except some more art supplies, which I decided awhile ago, are an investment and are exempt from the challenge. The last time I tried to sell some, someone bought all six pieces, so now time to replenish my stock, so to speak.

Although I love doing a dual post with A this week, I honestly don’t like any of the looks I am coming up with. I am not happy with the tight restriction in my clothing and think I may have chosen the wrong pieces to create a chic look. It’s a good lesson for me. I’m sure A. will do better …
PS This picture was taken of Sunday’s outfit … not part of the dual closet posts …

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  1. Daily Connoisseur
    March 8th, 2010 at 19:36 | #1
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    I’m glad you had such a great weekend. I love a crisp white blouse. You’ve paired it unexpectedly here- it’s a summer winter look that works! xo

  2. aaonce
    March 9th, 2010 at 08:03 | #2
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    I like the skirt and the blouse together, I think it this skirt (with a nice sandal) will work well as a warm weather alternative to the sweater/tight/skirt/boot look that you like right now.

  3. Renee
    March 10th, 2010 at 12:08 | #3
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    I don’t know how to ask this. I don’t want to be taken the wrong way. Do you have a black bra on under that white blouse? I am just curious. PS/ You are beautiful and I enjoy your blog.I admire how you do much with less.

  4. Kristi
    March 10th, 2010 at 12:14 | #4
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    Renee, I actually have a black and beige bra on under the blouse. It is beige with beige straps and sort of black flowers on it. I did it consciously, on purpose, knowing that it shows. But also, I don’t have an all beige bra right now. It’s on the list!

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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.