Teresa told me this, after a delightful lunch beneath the wisteria with her closest friends. We sing along, like teenagers, to a series of beautiful Italian hits performed live by Renzo Rubino and Chiara Galiazzo—an enchanting surprise that heightens the fairy-tale atmosphere of the setting, leaving guests utterly entranced. Many people say that fashion can boost self-esteem, but Teresa puts that into practice. “I look for the middle ground, that something that suits everyone, to live in day by day,” she adds, and there it is, the magic word I was talking about before. Those clothes for living that you never get bored of, in fact you enjoy them a little more each time.
When I slip into the butterfly caftan in a few years’ time, I’ll remember the day I saw it for the first time – that warm June day amongst butterflies, ponds with water lilies, a lovingly-set long table, the ice cream cart between the trees, the open-air table for painting with watercolours, the laughter, hugs, and gratitude for that oasis of slowness in the midst of a frenetic week. And who knows what other new emotions we will experience together.