Art | Valentina Expressions

Baroque High Drama

13 Aug 2026 2 Comments

by Valentina in Friday Fashion Tags: Art, Baroque Fashion, Baroque Jewellery, Baroque Style, Italian Fashion, Style, TittiBi Accessories

Being called a Baroque person is not a great compliment, but in the 1600s, creating a Baroque style was the opposite. The most revered artists, musicians, writers, architects, and painters created the most beautiful art of that century, which the world still admires. The term “Barocco” was coined in the Italian language. Soon, the Catholic Church promoted it for its grandeur, deep emotional intensity, and powerful, rich details. For the first time, the adoption of “chiaroscuro” finally gave art a profound dimension, making everything appear more real rather than just a collection of brushstrokes.

Baroque style swept across Europe, down to South America, in a storm. Paradoxically, it embodied sensuality and spirituality; opulence and power. Both monarchs and the influential middle class adopted it to show off their buying power.

Another theory says that the word Baroque originated from the Spanish word ‘Barrueco” to describe an imperfectly shaped pearl, or something irregular, bizarre, and outside rules and proportions.

In modern times, many renowned fashion designers, such as Dolce & Gabbana are still designing in the Baroque style, as its opulence and elegance are very versatile. It is a style that can be highly formal or dressed down for everyday life. Needless to say, I am a lover of anything Baroque. I found a designer in my native region of Puglia in Italy who designs beautiful and original Baroque jewellery,

The cherub with an imperfect pearl, the chiaroscuro of the glass beads and the shape of each piece make the style of this jewellery a rich memory of the past. The box with LED light inside is an exquisite touch. Her name is TittiBi.

In the photo above, I am posing with her two necklaces and a casual brown outfit. I chose golden-toned accessories to finish the outfit. Day or night, this jewellery doesn’t need permission to be worn. I hope to have inspired you. Ciao,
Valentina

Valentina Cirasola is a certified interior-fashion consultant, certified color analyst/therapist, author of 6 published books, a storyteller, and a longtime blogger. Her books offer non-fictional, practical ideas. These ideas can be applied in the home, fashion, cooking, and travel.
Get a copy of her books here: Amazon and Barnes&Noble

What Season Are You?

09 Sep 2025 8 Comments

by Valentina in Friday Fashion Tags: #2026Colors, #ChromaticHarmony, #ColorAnalysis, #ColorCombinations, #PersonalizedColors, Art

Have you ever thought that when you have all the answers, life changes all the questions? It happened to me a couple of years ago. I thought I knew all about the subject of colors. Then, I saw an advertisement from a school in London teaching color therapy courses. It sparked my curiosity enough that I enrolled, and a few months later, I became a colour therapist. I was on a roll to learn more about this fascinating and infinite topic. I found a Brazilian woman who teaches color analysis. She often comes to the US to teach in person. I waited until she came to San Francisco to take her course, and ultimately, I became a color analyst.

Colour analysis is concerned with achieving color harmony and balance. Magic happens after a session of color analysis. Sometimes, one makes a discovery. Other times, it is surprising to learn the best color for one’s complexion is the color never imagined. When this happens, old beliefs about one’s color are challenged. as it happened to me with the Teal color. I never considered it to be my best, I found it dull and uninteresting.

Color analysis plays an important role. It transforms people. The choices made after a session, day after day, are also crucial. A thorough self-awareness is essential. With this awareness, one can make informed decisions. These decisions will help in buying the right clothes in the right colors. The guidance lasts for many years to come, resulting in looking radiant on all occasions and saving money.

2026 Colors: Warm Mahogany, Transformative Teal, Cerulean Blue, Key Lime Green, Silver.

I discovered that in my Soft Summer palette, Teal is a very good color for me. It makes sparkles when paired with brown. It is a perfect discovery, as these are the colors of 2026 as well. New color energy is entering my wardrobe.

Colors are not merely suggestions. One must like them first to consider using them. Above all, they must suit our essence to achieve a great color harmony. Ciao,
Valentina
https://valentinadesigns.com

Copyright © 2025 Valentina Cirasola, All Rights Reserved

Valentina Cirasola is an interior-fashion consultant. She is also a color therapist, color analyst and author of 6 published books. Additionally, she is a longtime blogger and a storyteller. Her books offer non-fictional, practical ideas. These ideas can be applied in the home, fashion, cooking, and travel.
Get a copy of her books here: Amazon and Barnes&Noble.

100 Years of Fashion

01 Jul 2024 4 Comments

by Valentina in Friday Fashion Tags: #100YearsOfFashion, #Fashion, #FashionCollection, #Style, Art, culture, museum, museums

Ah, Summer, the only season that allows us to be lazy! I used to travel in the warm months from June to September, as most people do, but the heat has become unbearable to me and now I take short local trips during weekends. I take the longest trips during the off months when it’s cooler, there are not many tourists around and prices are down.
Some of my Summer entertainments now are street fairs and visits to Museums.
As a member of many museums, I have access to all exhibitions before opening to the public and it is quite a treat. Lately, I have seen the “100 Years of Fashion” exhibit.

The collections belongs to the most known European and some American designers who produced astounding creations in the last 100 years.
However, I know the museum didn’t get the best of the best of this period, thus we must be content with their offering. The exhibition could have been better, so much more notable fashion was produced in this time period and was not on display.

I noticed that the visitors showed a little more attention to their own appearance, they dressed either in a funky, extravagant way or in a better than the usual casual, rundown way. I guess visiting a fashion exhibition encouraged them to play the part and leave the rag clothes at home. As an observer of social behaviors as I am, it was interesting to see the small effort people made not to be in their usual pajamas and flip-flops, as it is customary in these parts. Enjoy the short reel I made on my Istagram account.

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As the last treat, the museum offered the opportunity to be photographed in one of the attires in the collection and this is what I was wearing.

“Don’t be into trends. Don’t make fashion own you, but decide what you are.” – Gianni Versace
Ciao.
Valentina

Valentina Cirasola is an interior-fashion consultant, author of 6 published books, a storyteller, and a blogger of many years. Her books are non-fictional practical ideas to apply in the home, fashion, cooking and travel.
Get a copy of her books here: Amazon and Barnes&Noble