After that, we went into full tourist mode and hustled over to the Uffizi for our morning reservation. While the line wasn't as bad as I had imagined, it was still nice to skip the wait and, upon entering, not pay an additional fee for an audioguide. We instead relied upon one of our free downloads and wandered the museum according to its directions. Frustratingly, quite a few rooms were closed and some of the famous works were out for renovation or on loan. Only when we walked through a special exhibit downstairs did we find some of the missing works. The most surprising thing, though, was the scale of the building. Uffizi, which literally means "offices", was the workplace of the Medici family while they controlled the city of Florence. How they got any work done surrounded by gorgeous (and sometimes quite bloody and graphic) art is beyond me, but they managed. They ruled with an iron fist for many years and even got their own flesh and blood elected to the papacy. And they lived well, drawing artists around them (including Michaelangelo) and using their wealth to their advantage.
The Wild Boar, a Roman copy of a 3rd century BC Hellenistic sculpture, which has become one of Florence's talismans.Post-Uffizi, we wandered again, this time spotting a thrift shop. I loved a bag in the window and wandered in to discover that I had identified the only Ferragamo bag in the shop and the worn, loved bag was €190. What a pity that I have such expensive taste.
That, sadly, was a trend that continued. I have searched for years for the perfect leather jacket - heck, it took me two years to find the right rain boots - and I had a feeling that today was the day I finally committed. No, it wouldn't come cheap, but it would last forever. We decided to scope out some of the upscale stores that I had noticed last night, including Matiar (which had a beautiful jacket in the window that had caught my eye) and it neighbor Cavini, run by a long line of leatherworks who had received amazing reviews online. I loved two jackets at Matiar, but wouldn't commit until I had explored the leather market down at San Lorenzo. Online reviews of this market ranged from delighted customers to those who had been jaded and duped. And when you're talking quality leather, you're talking hundreds of euros. Some people had been promised that their item would be shipped to them, others were waiting for full refunds or VAT refunds eight months later. But some had found their favorite jackets here, and gotten great deals. It was Haggle Central, and I felt that after six weeks in Asia I was prepared.
The market was smaller than I had expected, being used to the enormous scale of the Grand Bazaar in Istanbul, the Ladies' Market in Hong Kong, and the packet streets of Thailand and Vietnam. This rather normal-sized piazza had about 150 m of winding path through the main shops, with a bit of spillover down a side alley. And it was a Saturday, so you would expect the merchants to be out in full force. The square was lined with shops, the warehouse storage behind the small tented storefront. Want a mirror? Another color? Another size? Come with me, and your leather jacket dreams will come true. And while you're here, why don't you look at our bags, our shoes, our three-quarter length coats?
The quality was highly variable, as was the temperament of the merchants. Some had the "you know how much?" bluntness of the counterfeit bag merchants, others invited you in with a wink and a "which one you like?", and still others let the merchandise speak for itself. This last group was generally the easiest to deal with, had the highest quality goods (in material, craftsmanship, and style), and were the least pushy. They didn't pressure you to buy immediately, didn't launch into a haggle war or pry open the bag and demand you examine the stitching (often a poor move on the part of lower-quality bag sellers). I liked several bags and one jacket and then... I saw a beautiful coat that was unlike anything I had expected to buy. It was a deep blue, three-quarter length coat that was reversible. Soft suede on one side and buttery leather on the other. I had done my reading the night before and, despite not having any interest in a suede/reversible coat, had been intrigued by the required skill to make one of these coats. The entire piece is made from a single skin, so both sides must be treated perfectly. The coats are thin - just one skin thick - and hang lightly on your shoulders. The buttons for the other direction are sewn just next to the holes to make it reversible. I figured, why not? I followed the man into his warehouse and tried it on.
It fit perfectly, hanging beautifully. The seams lined up with my shoulders, the sleeves were the perfect length, the lines of the coat hung parallel to my torso and opened in a slight A-line at my hips. Gorgeous. Both sides were beautiful. The stitching was perfect. And the suede was so soft. Honestly, it was the first time that I had ever understood why people by anything in suede. I looked over ever inch, willing there to be an imperfection so I didn't fall in love with this coat. Because leather is expensive, reversible is hard to cut, and getting two high-quality coats in one is very, very costly. But it was perfect. I told them I would be back and walked around the rest of the market with Josh, but I had fallen in love. Josh thought it was so perfect he was willing to chip in as an early birthday present. When your jock boyfriend is lobbying hard for you to buy a jacket, you listen. It must be good. So we returned and I haggled down the price to less than a third of what was written on the tag. Or, for a better measure, down over a hundred euros from his lowest offering price. Based on the research that I had done, it was the lowest price I could expect for a well-made, reversible coat like that one. I went for the kind, innocent, really-in-love-with-this-coat strategy rather than the confrontational one. I oohed and ahed, I tried it on again and again, I examined it closely, I never put it down, I looked pained, I feigned upset, I looked longingly at it. And so the games went. As the wisdom goes, they will never sell you something if they are losing money on it.
And thus I won my first jacket. But this was a nice coat, not an everyday leather jacket that Casual Jess could throw on. So, since none of the jackets at the market met my specifications for quality or style, we headed back to Matiar and tried on the others again. And again. And again. We got two Italian women buying shoes to weigh in. They were hilarious, telling the store owner that both looked so good on me that he should give me two for the price of one. I hugged them and laughed. I picked a jacket and we haggled it down. The sales are going on in Italy right now, so a lot of stores have merchandise slashed to half price. That was our starting point. And then we got down another 30 euros or so. Offering cash always works wonders. And, amazingly, you haggle in brick-and-mortar classy stores. Who would have thought? Anyway, since I had already withdrawn so much for the other coat, I agreed to return to pay for and pick up the other one the next day.
Exhausted but elated, Josh and I returned to the apartment. It had been an expensive day, but so much fun. I was glad that I had done my research (I was reading Josh advice on how to pick good leather from interviews, articles, and even a piece on choosing good horse tack) the night before. I knew that the whole lighter trick told you nothing about the material or the quality. I knew about the different animals - and parts of animals - used to make products. I knew approximate price ranges, recommended stores, and how to get there. It was quite fun.
Josh and I celebrated with a walk around the city and relaxed a bit before heading to dinner at another restaurant recommended by our host, and a mere block from our apartment: Gusta Pizza.
We had planned to be more social this evening but were too tired. And so, it was off to bed for the two tired travelers.
Spotted: Knobs in the middle of doors. They don't give you the torque you need, especially given the huge old doors here, so they seem sort of pointless.
1 comment:
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