Villa Machiavelli

I had a real vision of what kind of place I wanted to shoot the new Missoma campaign. Given the new jewellery was inspired by Italy (Rome to be precise), I wanted it be old school and decadent without being flashy or OTT. I was imagining warm terracotta walls, slightly faded, fraying furniture, marble busts and bathrooms, and amazing terraces and gilded mirrors. It got to the point where I kind of felt like what I imagined was never really going to come to fruition so I couldn’t have been more pleased when I discovered Villa Machiavelli through villa rentals company Edge Retreats.

Given how amazing the location was, we pretty much shot non-stop from breakfast to dinner, falling head first into bowls of pasta and wines in the evening to reward our hard work. Villa Machiavelli really was the other star of the new Lucy Williams X Missoma campaign so it felt fitting it got it’s own blog post and some decent airtime. 

Sitting about 20 minutes outside of Florence, the villa was designed by Michelangelo, once owned by the infamous Machiavelli family (hence it’s name), and is now a privately-owned home that is rented throughout the summer as both an entire venue or by the room. It really was the absolute dream to shoot in and around and made the new collection really come to life. Being a clinical perfectionist (I’m coining that one), normally the things I picture never really live up to reality but this shoot really did and the location made it what it was. From the beautiful, ridiculously huge bedrooms (three of us could have easily lived in one for the rest of our days!) to the stunning open terraces and their faded murals, the ideal spot for coffee or better yet, an appertivo, it was so special. You can even the see the dome of the Duomo in Florence perfectly set between the tree-lined pathway in front of the house. Touches like the faded pink and white wicker chairs in the restaurant and the well-thumbed coffee table books in the drawing rooms made this place feel very much like your own home which is exactly what we were after.  If we were all lucky enough to own an insanely beautiful historical villa in Italy that is. I always love places with soul when I travel and this definitely had stories to tell if the walls could talk I’m sure…

 

Stripe shirt dress | Rouje
String bag | Staud 
Open back stripe dress | Faithfull the Brand 
Blue floral silk dress | Tephi 
Jeans | Citizens of Humanity
T-shirt | The Great 
Suede Mules | Mari Giudicelli 
Leather slides | St. Agni
Button down brown dress | Reformation 
Cat eye sunnies | Le Specs
Gingham skirt | Reformation 
White strappy top | Brandy Melville 
Yellow/black floral mini dress | Mango 
Pointe sling backs | Mango 
Button-down pink floral dress | Rouje

All jewellery from the new Lucy Williams X Missoma collection.
Thanks to Edge Retreats to helping us with our stay.