ITSO. . . It's So in the Style of . . . Isabella Rossilini

NOTE-WORTHY and NICE

Isabella Rossilini, former model and actress, now director and producer, has aged. Really? Don't we all. Twenty-one years ago, Lancome fired her for no longer "having it" - she was "past it" at 44. There's that "it" thing again. Apparently at that time, she told them, women are entering a powerful place, a time of independence and assertion. They didn't buy Rossinlini's "it" in 1996. It is now 2017 and guess who was rehired by the company who told her she was too old two decades ago. Welcome back Isabella! Obviously to a very different way of thinking at Lancome. 

I love what Sally Hughes wrote in The Guardian:

What I’m struggling to understand is how, when Lancôme called her just eight months ago to ask her to return to the fold, Rossellini didn’t suggest they shove their mascara up their derriere and twist it.

You can read more about how she felt here but basically the sentiment I got from the article was the past is the past. It no longer is important what the Company thought then, it is now and the future that is important. Thank you Sally Hughes for a great article on the 64 year old Rossilini.

Isabella Rossilini at the
Rome Film Festival, 2015
Photo Source: Zimbio

No matter where she was or is on the chronological scale, I have always admired Rossilini's use of accessories, particularly shawls and statement necklaces.

The shawl is a beautiful fashion expression and it also keeps you warm in overly conditioned interiors and cool evenings al fresco.

SPhoto Source: BT News

From a jewellery maker's perspective, I respect that Rossilini loves a necklace of a particular style. How do I know she does? Simply by the number of photos that I have seen of her wearing pieces that include black, white pearls and pink. 

Isabella Rossilini, 2010
Photo Source: Pure People

I debated whether to add some photos of her when she was a model and then decided not to. After all, with respect  to Rossilini, the past is the past, we work from the present forward, and that is how we make the difference.  She has said "This is what 65 looks like." She obviously says it with pride and we need to learn from her, not from archaic ideas that when you reach a certain age, you no longer have "it". 

This is a good place to add Carolina Herrera's quote:

Elegance isn't solely defined by what you wear. It's how you carry yourself, how you speak, what you read. 

- Carolina Herrera