Last week I posted a photo in which I was wearing a long black skirt. Y'all liked it. So here is some info:

1. It comes from Italy.

2. It is handmade.

3. I have a coupon code.

The first thing I ever ordered from Maria Lucia -- whose company is called Larime Loom -- was a pair of cute wool pants. Fine, they were drop-crotch pants. Or as Sarah Blackwood would describe them, "EWWWWWWWW." Because she is JUDGY.

I obviously disagree with that assessment, and continue to find crazy droopy pants delightful. Anyway. They were super-good quality fabric and obviously extremely well-made. (I am that horrible person who inspects seams to make sure they've been correctly serged and stitched. I'm sorry! It's my mother's fault! Don't be mad.)

Maria hasn't had this particular skirt posted on her site in a long time, but I have had it in the back of my mind for years. So when I emailed to ask if she would make me one, and she replied in the affirmative, I was so excited that I hollered, "YAY!" And then I paid her, and she mailed me this beauty.

Oh, wait. First, she asked me for my measurements, so that she could make it EXACTLY to my specifications, NO BIG DEAL. (Bespoke!)

So, the skirt: it's a long black cotton wrap skirt, made of a medium-weight cotton, with pleats. There's no slit in the side like you'd encounter in your standard wrap skirt, so you are kind of on your own as to how to style it. I think that adds to the charm, since you can wrap/fold/finagle it lots of different ways. My favorite part of the whole thing is the fact that the ends are long and substantial, which makes for cute/dramatic tie situations. You can tie it in a knot; you can tie it in a bow. You can throw it o'er your shoulder like a Continental soldier. (You cannot actually do that.)

Sometimes I wear the tie on the side, but most times I wear it in the back. And I always wear it with a fitted/tucked-in top so that you can see the lovely wrap/tie part.

In closing, Maria is awesome and you should order things from her. AND. AND. AND! She has been kind enough to offer y'all a 10% off coupon until Sept 30th! The code is LARIMELOOM10. Yay! Go forth, and order something beautiful.

PS. Speaking of Italians, Luisa -- who just had a baby and wrote a book, whatever, I'm sure she has time to blog -- has posted a recipe for meatballs that is almost exactly like my own Italian grandmother's. My grandmother doesn't fry her meatballs and neither do I! Rebellion! Also, peas don't fry in the kitchen; beans don't burn on the grill. Please make this on Sunday, and then invite me over. And have an amazing holiday weekend.

All photos: Ben Corda