The Good Life | Valentina Expressions

Au Revoir Holidays | Valentina Cirasola | Author and Designer

06 Jan 2014 Leave a comment

by Valentina in The Good Life Tags: #ChristmasFood, #ChristmasGifts, #EpiphanyDay, #ItalianLifeStyle, #ItalianTableCustom, #RedVoyageIntoColors

Last night, I closed the holiday season celebrating Epiphany day, which falls on Jan. 6.
Epiphany Day in my native Italy was the day when kids received their Christmas gift, note I said a gift in the singular form and received nothing for Christmas day. Christmas was only a religious celebration, a time to spend in holiness, reflecting on spirituality, with family cooking, laughing, loving and enjoying one another.

On the evening of Jan.5th, my parents told us kids to go to bed earlier than usual to allow the Befana (Epiphany) to come down through chimneys or other ways if there was no fireplace and leave one gift for each kid of the house. They also suggested leaving a little something to eat for the Befana. Flying on a broom from home to home, delivering gifts, made the old woman very tired, thus she needed to replenish her strength. A reminder of possibly receiving black charcoal at the Epiphany Day instead of a gift loomed over our head during the year, it kind of forced us to be good kids all the time. Black charcoal was only a chunk of sugar colored with black food coloring, but still, receiving it, was such an ordeal.

We went to bed early than usual, but we stayed awake listening for any noises indicating the Befana was in the house. In the morning, the food we left on the table for her was gone or half eaten and the gifts we found were exactly what we asked in the letter we wrote in December and gave to our parents to send to the Befana. It was so sweet, innocent and gratifying, because the Befana listened.

Until one day, I was eleven years old, I peeped through a keyhole and saw my parents arranging the gifts for us three kids in the usual place in the kitchen. The next day, we opened the gifts and of course we were very happy to receive just what we had asked. Then I told my father that I saw him and mom putting the gifts in place the night before. His answer was: “Oh yes?! Then you are too old to get gifts.” I never received one more gift at Epiphany Day, only some clothes for Christmas, a sweater, perhaps a pair of shoes, a skirt, but not all of them together, only one, until I was eighteen. Nothing else after that. I started working and gave them a gift instead.

Befana – Found on http://solidarietatv.altervista.org/tag/villaggio-solidale

Bell Peppers Medley

Fava Beans and Dandelions

Roasted Vegetables Tart

The night of Jan. 6th was for a fun day for the adult too. They invited a bunch of friends with kids and together we took down all the chocolate decorations on the Christmas tree. It was another occasion to celebrate with food, a lot of love and laughter, or an excuse to organize the first party of the year. Kids plaid with their new toys.

Yesterday, as I do every year, I celebrated Epiphany Day my way, took down my Christmas decorations and cooked all bunch of food to share with a few friends. Reflecting on what really Christmas means these days, I don’t look forward to the holidays stress and spending. We should call the Christmas Season the “Stores’ Season” instead. In this part of the world, everything we do in the last three months of the year is about increasing stores sales, alleviating our bank account of a few thousand of dollars and stir ourselves crazy trying to enjoy the holidays in a frenzy way. People never receive gifts in their wish list, or receive useless gifts with no meaning, thus recycling the gifts received for the next occasions, or the next Christmas is a thing to do, while some other people pay their Christmas debts all year around. This is not the way to enjoy Holy Day, only a backward way of doing things!
During the holidays enjoy spending time with people you love and care about as long as they last, share food and fun with them. That’s the best gift.

I can officially say Au Revoir to the holidays. No resolutions for me, only continuing living life in colors and doing the best I can for others and me. I hope you have a splendid 2014. Ciao,
Valentina
http://www.valentinadesigns.com

Valentina Cirasola has been in business as an interior designer since 1990 improving people’s life by changing their spaces. Often people describe her as “the colorist” for a reason. She lives in a colorful world, wrote a book on colors ©RED-A Voyage Into Colors and loves to color her clients’ environments by creating the unusual. Her deep interest in food led her as an autodidact in the studies of food in history, natural remedies, nutrition and well-being, then finally she wrote two books on Italian regional cuisine. Find Valentina’s three books on
Amazon: http://goo.gl/xUZfk0
Barnes&Nobles: http://goo.gl/q7dQ3w

Things I Miss | Valentina Cirasola | Author and Designer

15 Dec 2013 Leave a comment

by Valentina in The Good Life Tags: #ItalianCafe', #ItalianEatingCustomes, #ItalianFood, #ItalianLifeStyle, #ItalianRestaurants, #RedVoyageIntoColors

This video has circulated in a group of Italian women I belong. The video is all about the best most common Italian food. Many women in the group commented that the video made them cry. I know, we the expatriates, miss our mother land, we get very emotional and like them I miss it too, but Italy is not all about food.
Thanks to the proliferation of food lovers, importers have made possible for us expatriates to find all kinds of Italian food even here in the USA making the distance from home more digestible. Prices for imported real Italian food are outrageous, but they know we bend to their wishes and our tables are always a bounty of food from home that manage to astound our friends and silence our pain.

What I miss about Italy is not the food. What I miss is a life of subtle emotions.
A. I don’t see the swallow birds and their sweet chirping announcing the coming of Spring. Instead, I see black, scary and ominous crows. Their sound reminds me of Sir Alfred Hitchcock’s film “The Birds”.
B. I don’t hear the church bells ringing at midday marking Italian lunch time break. How sweet to go home and eat with the family.
C. I miss my neighbor knocking on my door to ask for a cup of sugar, a lemon or a hand full of parsley, which often is an excuse to get a cup of coffee together.
D. I miss my girlfriends calling at 11:00 at night just to shoot the breeze and tell me about the happenings of their day. In the US nobody calls anymore but everybody text. Texting takes more time to write word by word than to say the same thing verbally. Voice travels faster than typing and the voice doesn’t betray emotions. Through voice we can detect if a person is sick, sad, happy or lying. Texting is cold, calculate and abbreviated.
E. I miss the salty water smell of my Adriatic Sea and the transparent waters of Gargano and Salento. Just taking a simple walk around the Lungomare (along the sea) in the downtown area of Bari my hometown is invigorating, healthy and relaxing.
F. The grocer in my hometown, when he received a new product, a new wine or something he knew I would appreciate, always put it aside for me, or called me to tell me about it and if I didn’t show up in the store for 3-4 days, he would send someone at my home to check that everything was fine and didn’t need any help. In the American grocery shops I am one of the millions shoppers without a face or name.
G. I miss taking long walk with friends, talking, laughing and watching shops’ windows without buying anything.
H. I miss going to restaurants and café for fun, leisure, pleasure, not for conducting business as people do in the States. It gives me indigestion to sit in front of food at all hours of the day and talk business with people I might not see again. I eat breakfast in the early morning, lunch under the sun rays and dinner under the moon rays. I don’t miss any meal because of work and I don’t eat and drink at all hours of the day either. Having a glass of wine at 3:00 in the afternoon, just to share some business ideas, doesn’t cut it for me and end up either changing the appointment to a more convenient time for me or turn it down all together. In Italy we have apéritif after 6:00 pm, when the day is over and we can enjoy friends, colleagues, or business associates as people.
I. I miss my neighbors sticking their nose in my business. There was time I thought they were such a nuisance, but if I got sick, they always came around with soups and cooked food. Now in the States, I live in a very private neighborhood, it’s so private that if I leave for month, no one knows I was gone and if I am sick nobody brings me anything, because nobody knows I am even sick.

Perhaps some of my northern friends in my Italian group will disagree with me. Perhaps the North of Italy is very much like the US, but I come from the South of Italy, where each one of us has a weight in somebody else’s life, friendship is real, family ties are strong, promises are promises and contracts are still done with a handshake. “I see you later”, really means later in the same day, or “I call you later”, really means that person will call again in a few hours. You have no idea how many times I waited for someone to call or to come, when I first arrived in the States and didn’t know any better.

One of the comments of my group of women said we must be in peace with ourself and accept the new place as it is. There is no one living in a foreign country more in peace as I am. I made a great living in a foreign land without anyone’s support and without a family. I am very thankful to have experienced a new life and new customs, but the things I miss, I will always miss and if I think harder the list could be longer. Pardon my lament, it’s so uncharacteristic of me to write a post like this one, it must be the corny Christmas time. Wishing you all great holiday seasons. Ciao,
Valentina
http://www.valentinadesigns.com

Valentina Cirasola, is the principal designer and owner of Valentina Interiors & Designs. She is a trained designer and has been in business since 1990. She works all over the world via Skype line and in the traditional in home consultations producing concepts for remodeling, restoration of historical dwelling, upgrading, décor restyling and home fashion. Vogue magazine and many prominent publications in California featured Valentina’s work. She has made four appearances on T.V. Comcast Channel 15 and interviewed on various Blog Talk Radios. Author of three books all-available on
Amazon: http://goo.gl/xUZfk0
Barnes&Nobles: http://goo.gl/q7dQ3w

Say It With A Kiss | Valentina Cirasola | Author and Designer

12 Dec 2013 Leave a comment

by Valentina in The Good Life Tags: #BaciPerugina, #ChristmasGifts, #CulinaryItems, #FoodGifts, #ItalianChocolate, #PeruginaBlueBox, #RedVoyageIntoColors

You have many clients, you want to treat them with a nice gesture for spending money at your business during the year. You can’t give anything personal, you can’t give expensive gifts to all of them, but it’s Christmas after all, something sweet and stylish is ideal and it’s the thought that counts any way.

Baci Perugina Bue Box

The blue box with lovers kissing under the stars carries the phrase:
“Say I love you the Italian way” with twenty-one bonbons of dark chocolate and hazelnuts to ensure a luscious pleasure. This is a chocolate with many meanings and many emotions. Silver foil wraps each bonbons with a different message of love written in four languages and printed on light transparent vellum paper. Those messages are highly collectible.

Hard to believe this Italian sweet little thing called Bacio (Kiss) was first named Cazzotto (Hand Punch). Knowing that a woman invented the harsh name it puzzles me even more. Luisa Spagnoli the owner of a chocolate factory in Perugia, Italy in the early 1920s and later fashion designer, while trying to contain the production cost, invented the little morsel by simply collecting the crumbs of all the nuts from the workers’ table, molded them together, stuck one whole hazelnut on top and covered it with liquid chocolate ganache. To her eyes what came out seemed like a fist with a knuckle, thus she called it the Punch.

Buying Baci (plural for bacio) at an Italian café is almost a mischievous thing, as Baci since the ‘40s have become a symbol of love, desire and romantic dreams. The cafe’ attendant will always have that curious look on and wondering who the Baci will be for.

The blue box with lovers kissing under the stars is recognizable among the sea of chocolate on the store’s shelves. The idea for box cover’s design came from a painting called “The Kiss” by Francesco Hayez and Federico Seneca marketed it as a the box of dreams that never end. It was only later around the late ‘40s that the name changed to Bacio (Kiss) to became the symbol of love and Valentine’s day. The advertisement of the era said that “wherever there is love, there is a Bacio Perugina”.

Don’t worry, if you give the sweet blue box to clients, you will not run into that particular situation of misunderstood intentions. You will only show a high appreciation to have had them during the year as your clients and supporters. Just so you know, the small bonbons will capture their heart. Ciao,
Valentina
http://www.valentinadesigns.com

Valentina Cirasola has been in business as an interior designer since 1990 improving people’s life by changing their spaces. Most often she designs kitchens and wine grottos; outdoor kitchens and outdoor rooms; great rooms and entertainment rooms. Her deep interest in food led her as an autodidact in the studies of food in history, natural remedies, nutrition and well-being. Finally she wrote two books on Italian regional cuisine and one book on color theory. Get your copy of Valentina’s books on
Amazon: http://goo.gl/xUZfk0
Barnes&Nobles: http://goo.gl/q7dQ3w

Italian Christmas Market | Valentina Cirasola | Author and Designer

04 Dec 2013 Leave a comment

by Valentina in The Good Life Tags: #ItalianChristmasMarket, #ItalianFashion, #ItalianFood, #ItalianMarketSanFrancisco, #SFMuseoItaloAmericano, #ValentinaExpressions, #ValentinaExpressionsEtsy

Italian Christmas Market

Fashion Items by ©ValentinaCirasola

©RED – A Voyage Into Colors- Author Valentina Cirasola

The first of its kind, inspired by markets all over Italy and Europe, this Italian Christmas Market makes its first début on Dec. 7 and 8, 2013.
A group of Italian women called D.I.V.E., expatriate from Italy living abroad organized the market.

The expositors all expatriate Italian women as well, gifted with unusual talents will present their custom-made creations for the first time. The market is a showcase of “Made In Italy By The Bay”, all items strictly made by artisans to promote Italian creativity. We can enumerate a variety of:

• artisanal Italian gourmet foods
• handmade jewelry
• Italian fashion accessories, luxury bags
• Italian language books
• several unique craft items all made by Italian Artisans
• travel (villa rentals, customized travel and weddings)

• I am one of the D.I.V.E. and will be there showcasing my three books, custom-made crocheted fashion items and personalized trips to the southern region of Puglia, Italy.

The Italian Christmas Market will take place at the Italo-Americano Museum, Fort Mason in San Francisco, CA. Dec. 7-8, 2013. Time: 10:00 am – 6:00 pm.

If you are closer to San Francisco, please join us for two days of fun. There will be a storyteller to entertain the kids, while parents shop. If nothing else, being among an Italian community of highly spirited women will put you in a cheerful state of mind. Ciao,
Valentina

http://www.valentinadesigns.com

Valentina Cirasola is a trained Fashion and Interior Designer, working in USA and Europe. Born in Italy and in a family of artists, style surrounded her since the beginning of her life. Her decades of experience led her to offer consultations in both fashion and interior. “Vogue” magazine and many prominent publications in California featured Valentina’s work. She also has made four appearances on T.V. Comcast Channel 15. She is the author of three books, all available on
Amazon: http://goo.gl/xUZfk0
Barnes&Nobles: http://goo.gl/q7dQ3w

My Bohemian Thanksgiving Table | Valentina Cirasola | Author and Designer

30 Nov 2013 Leave a comment

by Valentina in The Good Life Tags: #HolidayEntertainment, #PumpkinPieFairy, #TableCenterpieceDesign, #ThanksgivingTable, #TheArtOfDining, Tablescape

Yesterday, sitting with friends at my Thanksgiving table, I was remembering the same day four years ago, when I turned on my computer early in the morning before starting the festivity cooking and found a message from my publisher congratulating me for publishing my first book. The feeling of being on 7th heaven was indescribable!!!

(Click on each photo to view it larger). (Click on each photo to view it larger)

We talked about this event while enjoying the mixture of typical Thanksgiving American food and food from Puglia, Italy, in fact some recipes even came from my book. I think my friends were more surprised to see how the simplicity of my food can hold a high flavors and taste than the huge production I made.

It seemed to me that the mixture of food from two different cultures, called for an eclectic tablescape. I wanted to have a Bohemian style table with colors and things not matching to perfection and that is what I did. The colors of my house lean towards warm tones, they are perfect for an autumn festivity.

I chose a white tablecloth as the base for layering all the colors. Two different colors tea tablecloth covered opposite corners of the table, one black with motif of nature and birds and the other one in golden tones with classical motif.

Playing with geometry and mixing round with square plates from various dish sets was fun. The square plates designed with fruit come from Italy, I carried them with me on the plane.

I made the napkins from leftover material of other projects and closed them in brass napkin rings. Tea light holders made of rusted metal go well with brushed bronze flatware.

Glasses don’t match but the greenish tone is their common denominator that marries well with other greens on the table.

Prosecco bottle has an interesting Venetian embellishment. She is the autumn leaves lady that sometimes is on a wine bottle and sometimes is on a mirror somewhere else in the house. Her purpose is to embellish.

My Pumpkin Pie Fairy by Mark Roberts is a highly collectible character hiding between the tablescape.

Dinner was great. Menu was long, but we paced ourselves through many hours of eating, conversing, drinking and music listening. I was so grateful to have had some friends eating at my table on this day of gratitude. Thanksgiving is one day, thanks-living is a life-style.

Is there one Thanksgiving you remember more than any other? Ciao,
Valentina
http://www.valentinadesigns.com

Valentina Cirasola is an Italian Interior Designer with a passion for kitchens and cooking. She especially loves to design all those rooms with a “make me feel good” tag attached, such as kitchens and wine grottos, outdoor kitchens and outdoor rooms, great rooms and entertainment rooms. She is a public speaker and a mentor. She is also the author of two Italian regional cuisine books and a book on colors, all available here in this site on the Books page and on
Barnes&Nobles: http://goo.gl/q7dQ3w
Amazon: http://goo.gl/xUZfk0

Plug me up, I will light up | Valentina Cirasola | Author and Designer

31 Oct 2013 2 Comments

by Valentina in The Good Life Tags: #HalloweenCostumes, #HalloweenFashion, #PlugSocketSetCostume, #RedVoyageIntoColors, #ValentinaExpressions, #ValentinaInteriorsDesigns

We entered the room as the Plug and Socket set and sure enough we turned the heads of all the guests already at the party. The costume party’s requirement was only one, to come dressed in something original.
Everyone chose a recognizable costume from 1700s style to British Bobby, from pop rock stars look-alike to the animal world and ridiculous costumes portraying political people. Everyone was beautiful in their expensive costumes. My friend and I were 18 years of age, we didn’t have a way to buy an expensive costume and one week of notice was not enough to sew something extravagant either. My friend was knowledgeable in electricity and electronics, I was the mind and I came up with the Socket and Plug set idea.

We started to work frantically, we only had one week to perfect our creation. It was nothing more than painted card boxes and a mechanism of electrical wires that turned on and off the light bulb sitting on my head. I sewed the cap with insulating material to protect myself from possible circuit shortage and my friend wired me up. The set was white and underneath we choose to dress in all white to keep distraction away from our creation. I imagine by now you understood I was the socket and my male friend was the plug. We danced all night to the tunes of rock and roll music of the era.

Often during the dance we got closer to each other to show off our light bulb flipping on and off when my friend plugged his “large male prong” into my socket. What? That’s exactly what the purpose of the costume was, to push laughs and some funny comments on how many times my friend plugged me up in one evening. At times I saw a few of the guests rolled on the floor for so much laughter. We had no idea a draw at the end of the night would appoint us as the best costume.

We had no camera at that time to immortalize the moment, we were young and didn’t think we would need the memories. Luckily, I found my drawing and the fun continues. I hope you have a great costume and a place to go celebrate. Happy Halloween. Ciao,
Valentina
http://www.valentinadesigns.com

As an Italian designer and true to my origins, I am well-known to bring originality to people’s homes, but that’s not where I stop and any situation is a perfect opportunity to design something out of the ordinary. If you are up to it, I will design something unforgettable for any of your occasions. Check out my three books on
Amazon: http://goo.gl/xUZfk0
Barnes&Nobles: http://goo.gl/q7dQ3w

Infinite | Valentina Cirasola | Author and Designer

14 Oct 2013 Leave a comment

by Valentina in The Good Life Tags: #ColumbusDay, #ItalianFood, #ValentinaInteriorsDesigns, #VenetianCostumes, #VenetianDécor, #VenetianFashion, http://dailypost.wordpress.com/2013/10/11/photo-challenge-infinite

This week photo challenge on WordPress is Infinite. http://dailypost.wordpress.com/2013/10/11/photo-challenge-infinite/

At Columbus Day celebration in the city of San Francisco, I had plenty infinite inspiration. Coming in the city, an infinite number of Art Deco buildings and modern skyscrapers line the horizon. An infinite number of palm trees, street lights and street sculptures filled The Embarcadero, a long promenade stretching for a few miles overlooking the water.

Trolley buses revamped to their original charm come by with antique coquetry and their infinite electric wires share the air space with street lights, palm trees and buildings. Weekends in the city are devoted to street markets. Infinite number of white-tented kiosks occupy empty plazas on the Embarcadero, where San Franciscans and tourists shop for arts and crafts, novelties, custom-made pieces and organic food. Music colors the air making a pleasant city to walk in. San Francisco is definitively one of the best cities in America.

Entering San Francisco

Embarcadero

Remodeled Trolley bus

Ship building

(All photos by: ©Valentina Cirasola)

Following the Embarcadero, I reached the parade for Columbus Day celebration. The parade was nice, happy people, infinite candies thrown from moving vehicles making kids really happy.
I was more interested in seeing signs of Italian heritage, it was Columbus Day after all.
Other than a few stereotypes, tarantella, Perry Como and Dean Martin songs, things modern Italians don’t relate to, I found my infinite interest in a group of people dressed in colorful Venetians costumes.
The flag didn’t belong with the costumes, Tuscan people made an art of throwing flags, but not Venetians. OK, I understand, this is a make-believe Italy of the past, the Italy tourists like.

(All photos by: ©Valentina Cirasola)

Among infinite marching bands from different cultures, Italian products and socialites in their convertible cars, I chose this group of people as they seemed the most authentic, true to the colors and opulence of historic Venice. Their gestures conveyed well the flirting mannerism of La Serenissima (ancient name of Venice) and the frivolity of the era.

I heard on the news today that someone is thinking of changing Columbus Day to Indigenous Day. Really? Did this person fall off the bed? Should we change the entire history of United States as well to suit every ethnicity? Ciao,
Valentina
http://www.valentinadesigns.com

Valentina Cirasola is a trained Italian Interior Designer in business since 1990. Being Italian born and raised, Classicism, stylish and timeless designs have influenced Valentina’s design work. She will create your everyday living with a certain luxury without taking away your comfort. She loves to restore old homes, historic dwellings and she focuses on remodeling. Author of three books all available on
Amazon: http://goo.gl/xUZfk0
Barnes&Nobles: http://goo.gl/q7dQ3w

Good Morning | Valentina Cirasola | Author and Designer

09 Oct 2013 2 Comments

by Valentina in The Good Life Tags: #BreakfastTableSetting, #MorningBreakfast, #RedVoyageIntoColors, #TableCustoms, http://dailypost.wordpress.com/2013/10/04/photo-challenge-morning

This week photo challenge is about how we interpret our Morning. http://dailypost.wordpress.com/2013/10/04/photo-challenge-morning/
My day starts very early with a good morning ritual. My first thought as soon as I wake up goes to the Sun. I salute the Sun for its powerful energy that will energize me all day.
To have an advantage on my morning, I set my breakfast place the night before. As seasons change, my place settings change as well, I like to get in the mood of each new season.
Basically, on a place matt, I set out the book I am reading in that moment, a coffee or tea-cup, a glass for juice, a plate and silverware, fruit and a scented candle. Perishable food will come out in the morning.

Breakfast1

My breakfast setting is simple and cheerful. I enter my day with ease and I allow myself to be with my thoughts in the quietness of morning silence. I don’t listen to the news and I don’t read the paper, these are activities I don’t do when I am eating. At breakfast I read only a pleasant book and I listen to pleasant classical music. I treat myself as the preferred guest of my life.
My private life is not disjointed from the business. Long time ago, I realized that to run a successful business one needs clarity of mind and eliminate all the negatives. That’s what I did.

I also realize that our lives are not the same. Families with kids have hectic schedules and may not have the same luxury to easy into their days. However, running a family is very much like running a business. It’s all matter of organization and planning the right activities for the right time. Those breakfast food that can be prepared the night before and warmed up for breakfast will cut the stress of the morning and the clothes to wear can be made ready to go the night before as well.
“Il buongiorno si vede dal mattino” ~ says an Italian proverb. Translation: A good day stems from a good morning. Ciao,
Valentina
http://www.valentinadesigns.com

Valentina Cirasola transforms and creates spaces realizing people’s dreams in homes, offices, interiors and exteriors. She infuses your everyday living with a certain luxury without taking away a comfortable living.  She offers design consultations on-line through Skype and the traditional in-house consultations, helping people with their design challenge any where in the world. She is the author of three books, all-available on
Amazon: http://goo.gl/xUZfk0
Barnes&Nobles: http://goo.gl/q7dQ3w

Fashion And Food | Valentina Cirasola | Author and Designer

05 Oct 2013 Leave a comment

by Valentina in The Good Life Tags: #2014SpringSummerColors, #ArtOfDressing, #Fashion2014, #ItalianFashion, #MulticoloredPasta, #PastaMarella, #PugliaFood, #RedVoyageIntoColors

One of my friends in my homeland Italy sent me a piece of news with a comment:
“Valentina decorates her home projects with colors of food and the fashion industry is putting food on clothes”.
Are fashion designers tired of seeing model as stick figures or finally they have realized that good food emanate good energy and vibrate positivism?

There is nothing more perfect than nature. Getting into the habits of cultivating own food, which is possible even on small patches of dirt, balconies, small patios or terraces and then cooking the homegrown food is the quintessential of health, fun and alignment with the Universe. Colors of natural food are vibrant, dynamic and alive. If we put natural food in the mouth why wouldn’t we want to wear their colors? The natural and positive vibrations will double for sure.

You might want to click on this link to see a roundup of fashion collections and the food that have inspired different designers in various years of this decade. In this site there is fashion by season, by recipes, by colors and designers.
http://www.tasteofrunway.com/

Bottega-veneta-fw-11-12-pasta-con-mollica6

Burberry-Prorsum-fw12-pollo-allaceto-balsamico11

“Who said there are only colors? There are also the nuances.” ~ said Diana Vreeland, editor of American Vogue in 1969.
That’s right. Have you ever looked at the peel of red onion? Outside is red-purple and inside is almost pinkish. The colors of fried onions in a tempura batter with sage leaves range from beige, golden beige, pale yellow, gold, silver sage and white. This poor specialty was Armani’s inspiration in designing the perfect 2014 shimmering collection inspired by fried tempura onions. Onion is such a poor ingredient with a not so high reputation that often disgusts a few people, but when cooked can give an aura of elegant sophistication.

The colored pasta Marelli – http://pastamarella.it/ – produced in Puglia, the southern Italian region where I come from, inspired Missoni soft colors for 2014 Spring, while Marc Jacobs for his 2011-12 collection chose stronger and more vibrant colors from the multicolored pasta that marries well with four types of cheeses pasta dish. This multicolored pasta inspired him to combine bold colors, just like the pasta dish combines the strong flavor gorgonzola with three other cheeses.

One of my favorites is Balmain 2013 black and yellow ensemble with similar colors in the tasty dish of Linguine with lemon and cuttlefish ink. This is a dish for fine palates and food connoisseurs.

The friend who sent me the flavorful articles made another question:
“In which location would you enjoy eating the plate of Linguine with lemon and cuttlefish ink and which wine would you choose? He suggested Amalfi Coast as a location where to taste Asprino d’Aversa; on the beach of Ragusa, Sicily, drinking a Grillo; in Salento on the cliff of Otranto, Puglia tasting a Verdeca wine.

Well, with these good suggestions from my Italian friend, I will go look for cuttlefish (ink is so very easy to extract from it) and will hand-made the linguine.
It’s more difficult to talk about hand-made pasta then actually make it.
Create a great weekend. Ciao,
Valentina
http://www.valentinadesigns.com

Valentina Cirasola has been in business as an interior designer since 1990 improving people’s life by changing their spaces. Often people describe her as “the colorist” for a reason. She lives in a colorful world, wrote a book on colors ©RED-A Voyage Into Colors and loves to color her clients’ environments by creating the unusual. Her deep interest in food led her as an autodidact in the studies of food in history, natural remedies, nutrition and well-being, then finally she wrote two books on Italian regional cuisine. Find Valentina’s three books on Amazon: http://goo.gl/xUZfk0
Barnes&Nobles: http://goo.gl/q7dQ3w

Saturated | Valentina Cirasola | Interior Designer

29 Sep 2013 6 Comments

by Valentina in The Good Life Tags: #LandscapePhotography, #ManipulatingPhotography, #PaintingWithPhotography, #RedVoyageIntoColors, #SaturatedColorPhotography, http://dailypost.wordpress.com/2013/09/27/photo-challenge-saturated, Photography

This week new photo challenge at WordPress is about anything Saturated – http://dailypost.wordpress.com/2013/09/27/photo-challenge-saturated/
I should be ever so happy to talk about my world in colors.

Grass in the wind

Captured at night

Park In purple

Dead Branch

Grass plant

Trunk

Grass

Tree in color

This is a park I often go to for long walks two miles or more. The park is very green, luscious and full of flowers. Can I leave well enough alone, YES, nature is beautiful just as it is and needs no correction. I don’t ever see this park in an orange sunset or a silver moonlight, I see it in the morning light only. During my walks, I enjoy imagining how it would look in different times of day and in a totally different texture. The question is always: What if?

What if I see nature in different colors? What if the park was an abstract painting, I am sure nobody would question purple leaves or purple ground. The eyes of an artist see things in his/her perspective and manage to convey new emotions not yet felt.
Well, I know my passions and limitations and even though I can take great photos, I know I will never become the greatest photographer on earth. I don’t get up at 2:00 am to go catch the right light at sunrise, because often I go to bed at 2:00 am and I don’t stand on the top of 100th floor building to get the right depth of field, because I fear height. With these limitations, just to name a few, I can only be the greatest manipulator of colors. I can do that very well and Photoshop is my friend.
These are my attempts to change nature according to my eyes. Now, I have found a new thing to do and I will turn these photos into prints.

This takes me to another thought. The ability to see things in a different light is also the ability to make and welcome changes. What do you see differently in your life that other people don’t? I am curious. Post it here, we will make a party. Ciao,
Valentina
http://www.valentinadesigns.com

Valentina Cirasola is an Italian Interior Designer working in the USA and Europe since 1990. Often people describe her as “the colorist” as she loves to color her clients’ world and loves to create the unusual. “Vogue” magazine and many prominent publications in California featured Valentina’s work. She also has made four appearances on T.V. Comcast Channel 15. Author of three published books, the latest ©RED – A Voyage Into Colors is on the subject of colors.
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