Fashion | Valentina Expressions

What The Iris Tells You | Valentina Cirasola | Designer

12 May 2018 Leave a comment

by Valentina in Friday Fashion Tags: #HairColors, #HairStyle, #HairStylistProfession, #MatchinHairToBodyShape, Fashion

Often, famous people inspire us, we want to be like them, wear the same style of clothes, shape, and color our hair the way they do, or copy other aspects of their personality. That’s what magazines do, portray artificial beauty to sell cosmetics, fashion and plastic surgery. In real life, those famous people, might not be so attractive… Before copying someone else’s style, stop and think, is the style of that famous person good for you? Does it suit your personality or character? Does it improve your look? Our uniqueness distinguishes us from everybody else, knowing how to exalt it and correct some defects in the body is an art.

Usually, a person will match the colors of the clothes to the skin color/texture, to the color of hair/eyes and to the body shape. We do the same when we decide on a new haircut and color, but this is not enough. I think a hairdresser is like a tailor, they both cut according to the body shape and create something custom that only fits that person. However, this is not always true with hairdressers. I met a lot of incompetent people who, if only can hold scissors in their hands and know how to mix colors, can be considered hairdressers, resulting in so many people with a wrong haircut for their head shape.

I think hairdressers should know how to interpret the cranium’s shape of a person and design only for that cranium. Knowing the formation of a skull means knowing when to increase or decrease hair volume, where to cut and where to thin out. A hairdresser should know how to frame with the right haircut an oval-shaped face, a round face or a triangle face just by looking at the bone structure. To me, it is a logical thinking.

How about hair color? I found most of my answers to colors in the iris of the eyes, for any situation, whether I choose colors for clothes, hair, home environment and even gardens. It has been said the eyes are the mirror to the soul and that’s the reason I draw inspiration from them. The nuances of the iris suggest which shade or highlight to give to the hair for a natural look or a nice three-dimensionality.

Kalea Jerielle Unsplash

A dark eye might have an iris with a yellow tint, a copper tone, or red nuances, one of those is the highlight to use on the hair. A light color eye might have an iris with a dark blue ring, a Chartreuse ring, or even a purple ring and grey/brown nuance. One of these will be the nuance of the hair.

In my youth, I knew an Egyptian woman transplanted in Italy, living next door from my family. She had one purple eye with a visible yellow splash in the iris and the other eye was yellow-green with a purple iris, all this rarity set in an olive color skin. Aside from her beautiful eyes, I can never forget how she matched the color of her clothes to show the gift of her rare eye colors.

As I always say, fashion harmonies our body, hair too must balance the rest of us, therefore turn your unique self in your power, harvest it, preserve it and celebrate it, no matter what the age. Ciao,
Valentina
https://valentinadesigns.com/services#fashion-services

Valentina Cirasola is a trained Fashion and Interior Designer, born in Italy in a family of artists. Style surrounded her since the beginning of her life. Her many years of experience led her to offer consultations in both specializations and now she can remodel homes as well as personal images. She is passionate about colors and encourages her clients to express their individual style in their homes and with the clothes they wear. To better help people all over the world, she offers consultations online. She is the author of three books. Get your copy of Valentina’s book on colors: ©RED-A Voyage Into Colors on
Amazon: http://goo.gl/xUZfk0
Barnes&Nobles: http://goo.gl/q7dQ3w

Secrets Of Dressing You First | Valentina Cirasola | Designer

03 Nov 2016 4 Comments

by Valentina in Friday Fashion Tags: #ImageConsulting, #PersonalFashionDesigner, #SecretsOfDressingUp, #ValentinaCirasolaFashionDesigner, #WardrobeAssessment, Fashion

Welcome to a new Friday Fashion episode.
I will be hosting a fashion seminar on Nov. 13, 2016 at 10:30 in Los Gatos, CA. This is the third seminar of this kind this year.

(Graphic Source: Fashion cliparts.co)

In my 26 years of designing career I have built home style and comfortable spaces.
I have built stylish wardrobe, personalized line of clothing for each person and built closets to host those beautiful clothes I design for them.
I have built flavorful food through my books.
The list goes on and on. With my fashion studies and an Italian degree in fashion, I made a business for several years before I became an interior designer. Today, I am bringing forward this knowledge and help women finding their best look and style in which they can feel comfortable, beautiful and powerful regardless of age. If you are:

Newly divorced and want to be seen again;
You lost or gained weight;
You are tired of the same look
You often say: “I have nothing to wear” ;
You want powerful work clothes;
You want to gain self-esteem;
You want to look good anytime, anywhere

This Workshop Is For YOU.

Find the event on Eventbrite. Click on the link to register:

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/become-friend-with-your-closet-and-your-body-tickets-28674216353

Lunch is included. If any of you is closer to Los Gatos, CA, I hope to see you there.

Ciao,
Valentina
https://valentinadesigns.com/services#fashion-services

I am Valentina, a trained Fashion and Interior Designer, born in Italy in a family of artists. Style has surrounded me since the very beginning of my life. My many years of experience in design business led me to offer consultations in both fashion and interiors, so much so that I can remodel homes as well as personal images. I am passionate about colors and I encourage my clients to express their individual style in their homes and with the clothes they wear. I am the author of three books, one of which is a book on color theory:
©RED-A Voyage Into Colors available on
Amazon and Barnes & Nobles.
Amazon: http://goo.gl/qNxXrB

Become Friend With Your Closet | Valentina Cirasola | Designer

25 Sep 2016 Leave a comment

by Valentina in Friday Fashion Tags: #DressingUpMistakes, #RulesOfDressingUp, #SecretsOfDressingUp, #ValentinaCirasolaDesigner, #ValentinaCirasolaImageConsultant, #ValentinaCirasolaSeminars, Fashion

….and I will add become friend with your body as well. I want to bring some novelties in the way women dress, show them rhythm and how to sculpt with accessories, how to create color combinations they never thought possible, I want to show them how to highlight their body’s beautiful features and how to hide those parts less attractive. For this and juiciest designer’s secrets, I have organized a special fashion seminar directed to women who want to look good at any age, anytime of the day, in any situation even when they go to bed.

(Graphic Source: Fashion cliparts.co)

My attitude towards fashion has been always one of respect, first because fashion is an art, an expression of one’s body through clothing. Second because it makes us feel good when we are dressed up and look ourselves in the mirror, or when we receive compliments from a total stranger. It boosts our confidence. There will be people who don’t care about fashion and don’t care to dress up ever, I don’t want to change a country, that’s not my goal. As a designer, I only want to show women who are willing to listen that transforming their look is fun and improving a personal image is easy and painless.

The knowledge women acquire at my seminars will empower them to shop confidently for the rest of their life in a way they will finally buy only the best clothes for their body and not the entire store just because something is on sale, or the offer buy one get two is too good to pass up, or because fashion dictates.

On Sept. 29, 2016, I will host a seminar in Los Gatos, CA – Dinner is included in the price.
If any of you out there lives close to Los Gatos, CA and is interesting in sharing an evening of fashion with friends, please register here through Eventbrite:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/become-friend-with-your-closet-and-your-body-tickets-27764193450
I hope to see you there Sept.29, 2016 at 4:00 pm.

“Beauty begins the moment you become yourself” ~ Coco Chanel

Ciao,
Valentina
https://valentinadesigns.com/services#fashion-services

Valentina Cirasola is a trained Fashion and Interior Designer, born in Italy in a family of artists. Style surrounded her since the beginning of her life. Her many years of experience led her to offer consultations in both specializations and now she can remodel homes as well as personal images. She is passionate about colors and encourages her clients to express their individual style in their homes and with the clothes they wear. To better help people all over the world she offers consultations online. She is the author of three books. Get your copy of Valentina’s book on colors: ©RED-A Voyage Into Colors.
Amazon: http://goo.gl/qNxXrB
Barnes&Nobles: http://goo.gl/q7dQ3w

House As A Reflected Image Of Yourself | Valentina Cirasola | Interior Designer

17 May 2010 Leave a comment

by Valentina in Home Designs Master Tags: #FurnitureDesign, #Interior, Avaliving, Fashion, Home Fashion, Style

Have you ever asked yourself why some homes designed by architect or designers look so much like showrooms, instead of reflecting the personality of the people living in the home? And why after having spent a boatload of money in the remodeling, the inhabitants of the house might not feel totally comfortable?

Designing a home is the same as having a custom dress designed for our body. A fashion designer or tailor will take in consideration the physical structure of the client, his/her beauty, the color of hair, eyes, and skin; will consider the personality of the client, his/her body language, texture, and proportions. It is just the same when designing a home. A designer should take into consideration all the characteristics of the client’s body. Therefore, that affirmation designers often know how to satisfy their client’s needs, it will never be true, unless a careful study of the client’s body has been made.

(Anne-Marie Gräfin Stadion by anonymous (18th c.)

Let’s see why a house should be the reflected image of yourself?
A man with a rectangular shape, tall and slim, will feel comfortable in a house with high ceilings, doors, and windows proportionally tall and rectangular furnishing with little or no curves.
A woman with a curvilinear body and a small waist will gravitate her choice of lamps and accessories around diagonal lines or A-Lines and her choice of furniture, door handles and architectural details most likely will have a few curves.
A person with an extroverted personality who makes easy friendship will feel comfortable among vivacious colors.
A person with an authoritative job will prefer the “shaded” colors, colors non-better defined, one of them being the “greige” which is the combination of gray with beige. The shaded colors are also described as calming colors.

Any space of the house designed on the occupant’s personal need should take in consideration the height of chairs, counters, dimensions of bathtubs and relate them to the person’s height to assure an easier usage and functionality. I would never decorate a home with oversized furniture if a petite, small person lives there and vice versa.

If we want to take the concept of personalizing a home a step further, walls, upholstered furniture, flooring should also be selected in relation of the color of eyes, hair and skin texture of the persons living in the house.

In a personalized home, a “private corner” for each person should be planned. It is not true that open spaces are always that good. At times we want to be alone with ourselves and it doesn’t mean we love the people in the house any less. The private moment once a day is necessary and the “appointment with ourselves” cannot be happening where there are open space and a lot of activities going on.

(Photo below: Henri Matisse – Woman seated in an armchair)

Gentry Design magazine, a prominent publication in California for designers and creative people featured me again this month.
The kitchen in the picture below is the reflection of my client’s personality and an example of how successfully I have interpreted their body’s proportions in relation to their space. The house they bought was built in the late ‘70s, but the client is a young couple. I had to modernize the house with many contemporary amenities, appliances, and electronics. They are minimalist, love neutral colors and love to meditate. They are tall and slender, the reason why I decided to leave the space open and free of kitchen top cabinets. Their height, the tall ceilings, and tall top cabinets would have looked like a bunch of soldiers lined up. It explains why the kitchen and surrounding areas are all painted in a light golden cream, furniture has been lightly antiqued and there aren’t many dust collectors lying around, only the necessary accessories. Lighting fixtures are also slender and rectangular, placed all in strategic locations to help them in their activities. Simplicity has been the key to this décor, as the couple loves to wear designer clothes with simple, but elegant lines, no frills.

I would like to conclude that we should strive to produce a personalized home, where each space and décor reflects who we are and not exclusively the fashion and trends of the moment. Houses photographed in design magazines are beautiful, well made, some are very intelligent, but they are not ”our homes”. If we copy them, or worse, if we take bits and pieces and transfer those ideas into our spaces, they might not fit the dimension of our body and might not agree with our soul, as all the dresses parading on a fashion runway don’t always end up covering our bodies.

Please forward this article to anyone you think might be interested in reading it and let me know what you think by leaving a comment below. Thank you. Ciao,
Valentina
Interior Designer since 1990
www.Valentinadesigns.com

Valentina Cirasola is an Italian Interior & Fashion Designer, working in the USA and Europe. She marries well fashion and interior in any of her design work. She loves to remodel homes and loves to turn unattractive spaces into castles. Get your copy of one of her books on
Amazon: http://goo.gl/xUZfk0
Barnes&Nobles: http://goo.gl/q7dQ3w

Ciao Mamma | Valentina Cirasola | Designer

09 May 2010 Leave a comment

by Valentina in Friday Fashion Tags: #1940VogueMagazine, #EuropeanFashion, #InteriorDesign, #ItalianLifeStyle, #ItalianStyle, Fashion

The Mother – a Queen of every household. My mom sure was The Queen and a lot more! She was our friend and confidant, the angel of our home. Today, I think she was named Angela not by mistake, I think there is a correlation between her name and who she was in her life. Her blond hair was like a golden aura around her face, her blue eyes were so transparent, one could see inside of her soul. Some of her friends thought her eyes reflected the bluish-green water of Adriatic sea in Italy, where we lived.

She was a simple person with a big heart and strong believes. She had empathy and was always ready to help others.
In her early life as a young lady, she was forced into learning to sew, but she would have preferred to go to school to become a psychologist. She was into people, could understand their problems and always gave her helping hand to resolve some rough situations people could not resolve on their own.

“Put a passion in everything you do and make the best of what you have” she kept telling us. This is what she did when she was forced in that trade, but after a while, she became such an expert in the field of sewing that she turned it into a lifetime business. And boy she was good! Her dress designs were in a high demand. She produced only exclusive, one of kind garment for the élite clientele.

(Above Simplicity magazine)

She found her inspiration in magazines like Mademoiselle and Simplicity and made those patterns much better. “Simplicity is the key of elegance” she kept saying. I learned that so well, that I made it the motto of my life. Actually, to that, I added mine: “When life is simple and easy, God answers”.

WWII was a time of scarcity, but for my mom was a time of increased creativity.
She made original dresses out of scrap fabrics. I remember her telling me stories of improvisation and studying better ways to get the most of everything, food, clothing and all the necessary elements of living.

During the war-time, she was photographed many times in one blue-white polka dots dress, which was turned over many times around. One time she had added white-collar and white cuffs, the next time she took off the white details and added red buttons and a red belt. “Make the best of what’s available to you”.

My mom was good at creating fashionable hats also with scraps of materials. Hats of the ’40s were so elegant and feminine.

She faced a lot of adversities in life that made her a tough human being, but she never complained. She thought that out of every adversity there is always something good to learn and found the way to turn any negative experience into a positive one. I am so grateful for this precious teaching.
Her love for life was exceptional.

In the early part of my career, I became a fashion designer, even though she kept repeating: “The needle is very small but very heavy. Go to school and learn a profession instead”. I could not help being attracted by her amazing creations. With a few elegant movements and a few folding and draping of fabrics onto mannequins, she would make any piece of cloth come alive into a beautiful dress. I must thank her for my love of colors, fabrics, and fashion, all the things I took from her and made a successful career for myself. I must thank her for the well-decorated home we lived in, simple and functional, but full of people who brought us much love. Simplicity is the rule I live by. I must thank her for showing me what really matters the most in life and for teaching how any hardship can be turned into a positive experience.

Today, in my career of interior designer, I do well just because my mom taught me how to be into people, how to listen to their problems and how to resolve them. After 20 years of serving a variegated group of people, I am still having a load of fun.
Long live mamma in our hearts and in the hearts of all the people you touched.
Valentina
Interior Designer
in business since 1990 and loving it!

Fashion Services
https://valentinadesigns.com/services#fashion-services

Valentina Cirasola is a trained Fashion and Interior Designer, born in Italy in a family of artists. Style surrounded her since the beginning of her life. Her many years of experience led her to offer consultations in both specializations and now she can remodel homes as well as personal images. She is passionate about colors and encourages her clients to express their individual style in their homes and with the clothes they wear. To better help people all over the world, she offers consultations online. She is the author of three books. Get your copy of Valentina’s book on colors: ©RED-A Voyage Into Colors on

Amazon: http://goo.gl/qNxXrB

Barnes&Nobles: http://goo.gl/q7dQ3w