Author: Louis Dell'Olio

Sneak Peek #7 is A221792, a brushed cotton “PEA JACKET”. First, there is nothing more American Sportswear than a Pea jacket, and one of my favorite types of jackets. For me, it is as important as a trench, safari, or military type jacket. It’s that wonderful combination of masculine and feminine which I fine very sexy. The fabric is my brushed cotton/span quality, like my blazer with the zipper trims all around it, or the blazer with the gunmetal buttons and zipper pockets [both reorders for 2012]. For my southern ladies and my snow birds, this will be a great outerwear jacket right now. For the ladies in the colder climes this can be worn as a blazer just as the other two blazers are worn. This jacket is fully lined in my beautiful satin lining. The details on this jacket are endless. First, the BUTTONS……..this is my new SIGNATURE button and the quality is superb! They are slightly domed and have four “Ls” pierced through. There are TWELVE buttons on each jacket plus a spare on the inside. LADIES…..please make sure your buttons are sewn on securely!!! and put the extra button in a safe place. This Pea jacket has body seams front and back so it has a lovely shape….not tight, but an easy….follow the lines of the body shape. There are straps on the sleeve that button with the new signature button and there are epaulettes on the shoulders that also have the new button. The pockets are in the seam, but if you look at the green photo in the upper left, you will notice there is also a set in band to accentuate the pocket opening. This is an extra design detail that most would have left off. There is also a back belt, again with the signature buttons! I spared nothing on this Pea Jacket! ! The colors are Green, Ivory and Cobalt. There are so MANY ways to wear this jacket….dress slacks, JEANS, pencil skirts, pleated skirts Capri pants, shorts and it looks incredible with my printed chain print and floral print pencil skirts…..I could keep going on and on but I think you get the idea. I have my WK red turtle neck, the “Kate” shirt in chambray blue and the new navy boat neck sweater from sneak peek #5 in the photos above. Of course, my GOLD CHAIN NECKLACES and BRACELETS were made to go with these jackets. I can’t close without mentioning…..this is one of JAC’S PICKS…..she LOVES this classic all American Pea Jacket…..I hope you will too!…………much Love, Louis

SNEAK PEEK #6 is the poet shirt, A213626. I decided to post this ASAP because many of you have inquired about it. Since there isn’t any video on the QVC site and the picture posted there is less than stellar, I know many of you wanted a “good look”. This a a reorder shirt from last spring that sold out in the two colors avail., white and khaki. Those colors are returning plus the new “PALE AQUA”. The fabric is something I had developed exclusively for the Linea collection and is “made to order” for Linea only!. This is not a quality one can find on an open line. It is a very fine twill which gives it a weight that is not often found in cotton blend shirts today, especially in the “Women’s Market”. This is more like a men’s shirting. As a matter of fact I gave the fabric mill one of my dress shirts so they could reproduce the fabric…..nothing is easy…..not even finding a decent cotton/ span shirting….no polyester…….my choice. Yes, it may need a little more maintenance, but for me, it is worth it. Jac finally doesn’t have to go to mens store to buy her white shirts. I call the style of this shirt the “English Gardener’s Shirt”, or ‘Poet’s Shirt”. It is a tunic length, it has a roll-up sleeve with a tab and button, and a classic shirt collar. It has, stitched down patch pockets and the entry is on the slant so they are very comfortable to use. The front of the shirt has an inset bib like a man’s tuxedo shirt and a placket front that ends in a point just below the bib. The shirt is slightly A-line so it is suitable and comfortable for ALL shapes and sizes. There are also side slits. Let’s talk size and fit, which we all know is subjective and personal. For ME, the shirt fits EXACTLY the way I wanted it to fit. It is roomy, easy and comfortable. I like the relaxed look of the shirt. If you go on vacation to a warm climate, as Jac and I have , it is a great shirt for sight seeing, shopping, lunching, and a terrific beach cover up…..you want it away from your body so it is cool and comfortable….you don’t want anything binding. Then….there is the other camp who thinks it is over sized and you should size down one size……Ladies you know what you like….either way works….it’s up to you whether you want to listen to the designer or them…LOL…. JUST KIDDING!!!!What ever your preference is fine with me! This shirt looks great with leggings, crops, Capri pants, slim pants, my cropped pebble crepe pant from last spring. and even a short pencil skirt [if you don’t like your knees this will not work for you because the skirt must be short or the proportion will be off].  You can wear it layered with a turtle neck right now, or layer it with a tank for a shot of color and Capri pants later on. Notice, I have the pale aqua with my steel gray pant…..she could easily have the steel gray turtle neck too. What ever your preference, however you wish to accessorize it…or not…..it’s a work-horse of a shirt and has lots of pizazz!……enjoy……Louis

“Sneak Peek #5,  is a new Whisper Knit essential, A221796! It has a beautiful ballet neckline and 3/4  length sleeves. It is SLIGHTLY shaped to avoid being boxy. The XS is 24 inches long. What I love about this sweater and what makes it distinctive from other classic sweaters of this type, [if you could find them], is the width of the tubular bands that trim the neckline and hems of the sleeve and bottom of the sweater. Instead of doing very narrow bands or the usual 1 inch bands I have chosen to do aprox. 1 and 3/4 inch bands that really frame the sweater and give it importance……a subtle designer detail but an important one. Again, this is a sweater you can wear all year and it never has to be store away. This is the perfect sweater for layering or wearing on its own, and it is the perfect sweater for accessorizing  as you can see from the photos. Wear it dressed up or casual with jeans, Capri pants, Boho skirts, shorts etc.. The colors are Ivory, a true RED and my signature Navy which is deep and dark. Three essential colors in one essential shape. I know you will get years of pleasure wearing this sweater………………………………………………………………………………………………………………much Love, Louis

Sneak Peek #4 is the A221802, “Cotton PEPLUM Shirt”. I’m calling it the “Lily” shirt. The cotton/span is the exact same fabric as the Kate, Robyn and Poet shirts. This shirt has a wing collar and a classic  button cuffed sleeve….. and that’s where it departs from your classic shirt. It has a zip front, always a gold zipper. The body of the blouse, front and back, is seamed for shape. The peplum at the bottom of the shirt creates a gentle ruffle [not too much], which gives the silhouette of the shirt a feminine flare effect.The seam where the peplum is attached dips slightly in the back to follow the natural curve of the body. The colors are white and my “signature navy”. With each group of clothes I try to balance out the dressy portion with a more casual selection. Sometimes, the line between dressy and casual gets blurred. This shirt is a prime example of this. As you can see from the photos I have the shirt paired with a Linea navy pencil skirt and ropes of pearls…..perfect for a board meeting, charity function, or a dinner out. In another photo I have it paired with jeans and Capri pants. Whatever your lifestyle, this is one item that will work for most of you. You can even leave it totally unzipped, worn over a “NEW NAVY TANK”. as an up dated shirt jacket….perfect for the hot summer months and air conditioned rooms. This is a SHAPED shirt, so for my “Apples”, take note of the “click here measurements”…….again it always looks good worn open as a shirt jacket. This is one “Lily” I think many of you are going to fall in love with…………..much Love, Louis

“Sneak Peek # 3” is the A221793, cotton/ rayon sweater. It is aprox. 23 inches long for the XS size. The sleeves are aprox. 11 1/4 inches long. The sleeve hem and the bottom of the sweater is started with a fine rib. It is a true cardigan and totally unbuttons. Of course, it is a fully fashioned garment. The exciting feature of this sweater is a trompe l’oeil lace…..which means, in French, “trick of the eye”. It isn’t lace at all!….it’s emb. to look like lace. Why did I do emb. instead of using real lace? ….because I would never have been able to have lace appliques in the pattern and shape that I wanted to achieve the design I wanted…….so, I designed the pattern I wanted and had it emb. I think it came out sensational and is PURE DESIGNER! That’s what a designer garment is all about. From a distance it looks like real lace, and only when you get very close you realize it is emb….tromp l’oeil. Even up close someone may not even realize it isn’t lace. The colors are Black with sand color emb. which gives it an antique and vintage look…… Blush, which is a very peachy pink and does NOT match or blend with the perfectly pink!!!!It’s a new color and is very beautiful and very  flattering…..again a vintage color. The last color is Aqua which is pale, soft and has more than a little mint in it….again, a new and fresh color. Both the Blush and Aqua have black “lace” emb., so they coordinate very easily with any black pieces you may own…i.e. black Boho etc. The new sand tank and pant looks perfect with the black sweater as does the black paisley skirt. I know the question will come up so I will answer it before it does…..no, the blush sweater does not look good with the paisley skirt. This sweater looks wonderful layered under jackets such as the black crepe [sneak peek #1], unbuttoned and layered with tanks for summer dressing, or buttoned up on it’s own. This is a year round piece….dressy or casual [black cotton capris in the spring/summer, black velvet in the winter]. About the colors….they are fragile, soft colors, and they are very sophisticated pastels that can be pumped up with black, black, black. For my non pastel ladies…….give one a try….you may be pleasantly surprised, and again, when the weather starts to heat up they will not only be cool to wear, they will look cool………………hope you enjoy sneak peek #3…………..much love, Louis