Pitti Uomo is held in Florence, Italy, twice a year at the Fortezza da Basso. With 30,000 dandies, including 20,000 buyers, gathering from around the world, Pitti was quite a site. Upon approaching the entrance to Fortezza da Basso, you are immediately struck by the number of well-dressed men. Ranging from the ultra-fashion forward to the super-sartorical, there was plenty of people to keep the photographers busy.

The scope of the Pitti show is gigantic -- everything from sports and casual wear to the highest-end of classic men's tailoring. Pitti groups all of the exhibitors together by segment, so everyone we wanted to see was basically in just a few of the many buildings. It took me a full day and a half just to wrap our minds around the vendors and who we wanted to speak with.

The primary purpose of the trip was product research for a yet-to-be-revealed concept for 2012. Yes, that's right. Something really exciting that, if all goes well, will include some of the most incredible products from around the world into one place. Of course, Made-in-Italy represents the essence of classic style, elegance, and quality, so no better place to start than there. Most all of the vendors we met with were direct descendents of their respective company's founder. It was quite interesting to see how strong a role family identities played with these artisan companies.

Below is a picture of me with Francesco Maglia, the grandson of the founder of Maglia Francesco, the great-grandson of the founder of Maglia Umbrella Company, the premier manufacture of hand-made umbrellas in the world. Founded in 1854, this company is still run by the Maglia family and produces the most beautiful, well-crafted umbrellas you've ever seen in your life. Francesco was incredibly kind to show me his collection of fine handmade umbrellas.

The full splendor of Italian's leather artisans was also on display at Pitti. From small accessory items to briefcases and shoes, the Italians are some of the best leather workers in the world. A big fan of travel bags and briefcases, I greatly enjoyed inspecting the products of the many different artisans at the show. Below is a picture of me with two of the family members of this one Italian briefcase and belt company. Mother and daughter, they look more like sisters!

The scope and number of beautiful products one can find at Pitti is by no question overwhelming. The trip was incredibly inspirational, and I hope to soon have the privilege of offering some of these masterpieces on The Hanger Project. Bianca and I definitely are planning to return to Pitti in January of 2012. On our next trip, we hope to have the opportunity after the show to actually go and visit some of the factories where these incredible artisans produce their beautiful products.

For the first time, my wife Bianca and I traveled to Italy to attend the semi-annual Italian menswear event, Pitti Uomo -- the pinnacle of Made-in-Italy atrisanship. Unless you are in the menswear industry, you have probably never heard of this show. However, for the sartorically-inclined, this is a pilgrimage worth making, as do about 30,000 people from around the world. In January and June of ever year, some of the most fashionable dandies converge on Florence to see what the best Italian artisans have developed for the following season.

Many of my friends in the business had been telling me the importance of attending this event for quite some time. However, as many of you may understand, a trip to Italy is not cheap, especially with the state of the dollar. Originally scheduled for January 2012, I decided better sooner than later while hearing Ed Shaikh from Hadleigh's Bespoke and William Kissel from Robb Report romance their past trips.

As I am beginning to research some new "special projects" (more to come later) and feeling the need to get out of Texas for a little inspiration, why not. My wife quickly volunteered (or insisted) that she accompany me as an assistant. Of course, I obliged. With that, we were off to Milan, Florence, and Rome with side-trips to Como and Tuscany.

The purpose of the trip was to research new product for The Hanger Project and for some new "special projects" in the works for the balance of 2011 and 2012. If you are already a customer, you will be hearing more about these projects in the near future.

A picture of some of G. Lorenzi's handmade accessories for men through their shop window on via Montenapoleone.

Milan, the fashion capital of Italy and one of its largest cities, seemed like a great place to begin our Italian journey. We knew in advanced that the weather would not be good, so I used this as an excuse to order a pair of ultra-comfortable and water-resistant chukka boots from my good friend Ron at the Rider Boots Company (similar to these, but different color). Armed with these incredible boots and an umbrella, we hit the via Montenapoleone in search for some of Milan's incredible boutiques (despite the rain).

Or first stop was G. Lorenzi. What began in 1929 as a cutlery shop, it eventually evolved, at the demands of clients, to include shave and smoking accessories. Now, one can find a collection of literally thousands of accessories for men handcrafted by the firm. The second floor houses one of the most extensive collection of shaving tools and accessories probably ever compiled, spanning almost two hundred years. The collection counts almost 4,000 safety razors, alone! You must ask to view this collection.

Gianni Agnelli and Bianca Brandolini, two huge Italian socialites, joined us for lunch one table behind us.

Another Milan landmark that was on our list was 10 Corso Como. Founded in 1990 by the former editor of Vogue Italy, 10 Corso Como's store and cafe has become an institution frequented by Milan's fashion elite. If you take a close look at this picture of me and Bianca, you'll see that socialites Lapo Elkann, grandson of Fiat founder Gianni Agnelli, and his girlfriend Bianca Brandolini. They declined to join us for lunch.

Milan is a beautiful city and, honestly, was our favorite. We enjoyed that the city was big enough to not be dominated by tourists yet still retained a distinctly Italian feel. The people watching was incredible and the piazzas always filled more with local Milanese than tourists with cameras.

Piazza Duomo at night.	The friendly bar hands at the Gia Como restaurant overlooking the Duomo.

One of the many beauties of Milan is the fact that Lake Como is a short 45 minute train ride from the city (provided that you are able to find the train schedule -- I highly recommend printing out a schedule before arriving at the train station; the lines are terrible). We were able to stay at a charming hotel right next door to Villa d'Este, one of the premier properties on the lake and host to the annual Concorso d'Eleganza classic car show. Although we abstained from the $1,000-a-night rooms, we did certainly enjoy their bar during the evening. To the right is a picture of us with a guest's Ferrari. He declined my offer to take his photography but instead kindly offered to take a picture of us; sadly, his offer did not include the keys, but we nonetheless graciously accepted.