Glamour Defined: Letizia Buitoni

One of the most truly glamorous women I have ever met was my husband's great aunt, Letizia Buitoni. 

I first met her when she was in her 80s and she was quite the glamorous coquette, beautifully dressed.  She even flashed me a bit of thigh with her garter belt and stockings which thoroughly impressed and charmed me.  

Letizia always wore the most fabulous jewelry.  She loved jewelry and jewelry loved her.  She wore all of it well.  

Once we were having lunch in Lugano and all of the waiters fluttered and cooed about Letizia as if Myrna Loy herself was there.  (And how Myna Loy in The Thin Man is Letizia in the photo with her wire haired terrier?!)

She studied opera with her father when she was an enfant prodige starting at 6 years old.  Her father, the handsome Nino Cairone, Chorus Master at La Scala and the Opéra de Paris:

She later became friends with Maria Callas and Luciano Pavariotti.  Letizia's photo of Callas and Giuletta Simionato: 

A career on the stage was not meant to be as she met Giovanni Buitoni (from Buitoni pasta) who fell madly in love with her.

The stylish and elegant Letizia Buitoni:

Here is a photo of Letizia with the designer Emilio Schuberth of whom I have been lucky enough to have had a few beautiful dresses from for RARE vintage which you can see here and here and Reese Witherspoon in a Schuberth from RARE here.

I adore seeing these photos of Letizia Buitoni because they are photos of an elegance that is almost all but lost now...