They don’t make them any more like Emilio Pucci – born in 1914 to one of Florence’s most illustrious families, the Marquis Emilio Pucci di Barsento naturally embodied the jet set glamour of post-war Italy.
Multilingual, well-travelled, American-educated, air force pilot, Olympic skier and aristocrat – he was a Renaissance man in every sense of the term. Recovering in Switzerland after the war, and with the Italian economy in ruins, Pucci made ends meet by teaching Italian and giving ski lessons in Zermatt.
It was there that in 1947 a streamlined ski outfit he designed, initially for himself and then for his enthusiastic socialite friends was photographed by a fashion photographer and published in Harper’s Bazaar USA, giving rise to a fashion phenomenon that continues to reverberate to this day.
However, as an ex trolley dolly, I would like to thank Emilio for his fabulous contribution to the airline industry. In 1965, Pucci put an end to ‘The Plain Plane’ with his avant garde uniform and livery designs for Braniff International Airways:
I really think there is room in the market for a re-launch of the ‘bubble helmet’, especially if you live through the monsoons of Northern England. Genius!
Invest in an antique of the future. A signed Pucci scarf. And if you know where I can find a bubble helmet – do let me know!
Click on the scarf to be taken to my shop.
www.PoshPedlar.com 