#BellaBabes Go To Italy ~ Part Two ~ Florence

Today’s post is Part Two of three blog posts I’m sharing from my FAB trip to Italy that recently took with SheShe and Shauna. If you didn’t read Part One of our trip, which was all about Rome, then just click here. 

So let me please just pick up where I left off because after we left Rome, we took a private car to Florence where we spent the next 4 days.  After much discussion and price/time considerations, we determined that hiring a driver worked better from us than to take a taxi to the train station, schlep all our luggage on a train, be on the trains schedule to get us to Florence, then yet again schlep our luggage off the train and take a taxi to our hotel in Florence. We hired Deluxe Limo Italy and 2 1/2 comfortable hours later we arrived at the beautiful Boutique Hotel in Piazza della Signoria. 

Behind the door on the left lives a charming historical building that was built at the end of the 14th century. When the new owners began the process of restoration work, they discovered frescoes from the 15th and 18th centuries!! Each room was special in itself (this was my room) and depending upon which window you looked out of you had wonderful views of Piazza della Signoria, Palazzo Vecchio, Loggia dei Lanzi, Dome of the Cathedral, Giotto’s Bell Tower, Florentine Badia and  Bargello Museum. OH — and literally next door is the Gucci Museum, which is also part the original Gucci store, part gift shop & part garden restaurant.

Before we unpacked though, we wanted to properly capture images of our American Tourister luggage (while enjoying some famous Italian chocolate) that A.T. kindly gifted us with for this trip.  I can tell you that for my entire life, the only luggage my Father would ever use or purchase for our families travels were purchased from American Tourister.  I was super thankful to have it and it safely got our belongings to and from Italy.

We then unpacked, got settled in (with complimentary wine and snacks from our hotel) and started to venture out.  Now I’ve been to Florence before so I knew that one of the first stops was to go to the Ponte Vecchio, or Old Bridge. 

This picture is actually taken while standing on Ponte Vecchio looking at the Arno River, but click here to see the iconic images and all the wonderful shops on and around it.  EVERYONE who goes to Florence comes here to stroll and shop. 

It was, of course, then time for gelato!  Ours came from here. #CrazyGood  It was the perfect way to end our day. 

Breakfast is included at the Boutique Hotel in Piazza della Signoria so we decided to properly full up before venturing even deeper into Florence. BTW, the three of us start our day …

… and end our days with SeroVital ADVANCED.  Learn all about SeroVital ADVANCED here and how it really helped us with our energy and so much more.

THEN off we went to to take in the most spectacular and panoramic view of Florence, the Piazzale Michelangelo … and the way to get there is to walk UP … and up and up. 

You’ll be glad that you did, though. 

We then returned to clean up and shoot a few collaborations.  THIS one was super fun with the Italian luxury leather shop, Reptiles House. 

And then this one with Soma, one of our favorite brands to work with.  …Totally wish I could share what was making us giggle here. #IllNeverTell

Oops, and how could I forget this one with Cecelia New York?!!  CNY shoes are really the cutest and a blogger FAVE.

When the 3 of us travel together, part of our time is work and the other part is sight seeing and taking in local culture. I wanted to share with the girls Santa Maria Novella, the World’s Oldest Pharmacy, one THE BEST place to pick up Italian fragrances, soaps, lotions etc.  I LOVE shopping there!  You must stop by if you find yourself in Florence, although they do have a smaller store in Venice. 

We strolled through charming little side streets …

as well as major shopping districts where we discovered the most FAB luxury glam rock designer, Ermanno Scervino, whose swoon-worthy clothing had us working up an appetite. 

Back to the Gucci Garden to eat before changing to shoot a look from Chico’s.  We took a spin on the famous Central Carousel in Piazza della Republica which is painted in reds and blues and went perfectly with the Chico’s no-iron linen collection! ( You all watched us LIVE on IG from Florence where we shared all our tips & tricks about our Chico’s capsule wardrobe, right?)

And before we wrapped up our day, we decided to cause a bit of a stir by wearing our #LadyBoss tees right smack in the middle of a very popular street.  Let’s just say we received quite a few high-fives from many an Italian woman because … seriously … aren’t we ALL Lady Bosses??!

And lastly, before we officially said adiós to Florence and head to our last Italian destination (also known as the REAL reason why we traveled to Italy and I  totally can NOT wait to share this!)  I had to take one last view from our hotel of the famous Piazza della Signoria.  THIS hotel, friends, is definitely one that I recommend and one that I will return to. 

So stay tuned!  The last post of our trip is forthcoming and is truly one for the memory banks.  In the meantime ~ Shop Our Looks.  XO  Ciao Bellas!