My Trip to Italy
Recently I went on a trip to Northern Italy with my husband.
The idea came from our daughter, who was traveling there with her high school chorus—the Minnesingers—on one of their every-other-year performance tours. Since we hadn’t taken a kid-free trip in 16 years (the current age of said kid), we thought… this is our moment. A full week on our own. Total freedom.
So naturally, we booked a trip to the exact same place she was going.
My husband had never been, and I hadn’t been in over 30 years. And honestly—how could we not go watch these kids sing in a nearly 1,000-year-old Italian cathedral?
The trip was incredible.
We visited a lakeside town called Limone, known for its lemons, spent a day in the Tuscan hills visiting vineyards, wandered through Florence and kept stumbling upon masterpieces, rode the vaporetto in Venice, and ate more gelato than I can reasonably admit.
The highlight, without question, was watching our daughter perform—once in a cathedral in Venice and again in Florence. One of those moments you just sit in and take in.
Along the way, I ended up paying attention to two things more than I expected—what I wore (and re-wore), and the leather I discovered in Florence.
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We only saw the group a couple of times… the rest was wandering, eating, and trying to look cute and stylish while staying comfortable and not looking too American.
I didn’t bring a ton. A few easy outfits I already loved– all fit in carry on luggage only.
And then a small handful of jewelry that I ended up wearing on repeat… just in slightly different ways.
Lake Garda was one of those perfect travel days—a ferry ride across the water and a wander through Limone. White cropped wide-leg pants and a floral top. I wore a rainbow aquamarine necklace with a sideways baroque pearl and my mother-of-pearl starfish earrings.
I also carried our Italian leather convertible backpack tote—and ended up using it every day after that.
In Florence, we spent a full day walking, eating, and stopping at a wine window for a negroni. Pink cotton capri pants and a blue and white striped collared t-shirt.
I wore a baroque pearl necklace with the clasp in the front and added a carved scallop shell in dark mother-of-pearl.
Another day took us to San Gimignano and then into the Tuscan hills for a wine tour.
Hot pink patterned collared t-shirt. I paired it with a baroque pearl strand and gold hoops with the carved Martha’s Vineyard island charms.
We did a full day in Venice—canals, wandering, St. Mark’s Square-- and took in the kids' performance at a VERY OLD breathtaking cathedral.
Black and rust block print dress. I wore a baroque pearl strand with a shell pendant (clasp in front) and my MV hoop earrings. Later that day… same outfit, post-concert Aperol spritz.
And then there were all the in-between moments—coffee stops, travel days, last morning in Venice. Black and white striped sweater for a quick layer.
Looking back, I kept reaching for the same few pieces—pearls (in a few different versions), shells, and a little bit of color.
The clothes were simple and repeated easily.
The jewelry is what shifted things—sometimes just enough to make it feel different, even when it wasn’t.
Looking back at the photos I notice the same few pieces, over and over again, just worn a little differently each time.
Next up, I’ll share the leather I found in Florence… and what I couldn’t leave behind.
