Ah, Bellissimo!

We have long counted on the ever-stylish Italians to bring us new and exciting elements of design, whether in fashion, automobiles or home decor.

They have a long tradition of leading the world in the arts, from the Sistine Chapel to the palazzos of Venice, and of applying a designerly aesthetic to objects of everyday life. What is it about the Italians that makes them so good at design?

Interior designer Kelly Wearstler, best known for the Avalon Hotel in Beverly Hills, said, “They are the masters of mixing the past--mining their rich history--with the present and the future.”

D’Ilaria

Making the most of the past is D’Ilaria, a West Hollywood boutique specializing in hand-painted Italian ceramics. Owner Hilary Stern imports her exclusive line of Majolica, hand-painted, glazed terra cotta made by a dozen artisans in Italy, some using historically accurate designs originally created between the 14th and 19th centuries.

The small store overflows with everything from espresso sets to dinnerware to large decorative pieces, including planters and tables.

“What intrigued me about Italian ceramic design, above and beyond its rich and long history,” Stern said, “is that I was able to take an artistic tradition that has remained virtually unchanged for hundreds of years and adapt historically accurate designs to modern forms for the home and kitchen.” (8313 W. 3rd St., 1/8323 3/8 655-2074)

Chiasso

Not all design coming out of Italy these days is serious--there’s plenty of whimsy as well. Chiasso, a Chicago based-company that sells innovative designs by mail order, over the Internet and through brick-and-mortar stores, including one in Newport Beach’s Fashion Island, features many home and office products designed and manufactured in Italy . . . including the Anna corkscrew.

The device, which resembles a female robot and is named after designer Alessandro Mendini’s fiancee, is made of chrome, steel and polyamide plastic. Stefano Giovannoni designed the Magic Bunny toothpick holder. Pull the bunny out of its hat and presto! Toothpicks appear.

“These items are things that really embody our company’s whole philosophy in terms of merchandise,” said Tony Ciavola, Chiasso’s director of e-commerce. “We take the modern design credo of ‘form follows function’ and have added fun to that.” (https://www.chiasso.com, 1/8800 3/8 654-3570)

FrancisFrancis

Francesco Illy is the son of Dr. Ernesto Illy, who runs Illy Caffe, the best known importer of espresso from Italy. The son set out on his own and is responsible for some striking products for the home.

His FrancisFrancis espresso machines are fantastical devices, with futuristic retro styling that recalls the dashboard of Buck Rogers’ spaceship or a great ‘50s cruiser.

The X1 model is sold through Williams-Sonoma. The larger X2 and more compact X3 should be available next year.

Also from Francesco Illy comes a new tableware collection, Poi ti spiego . . . (“I’ll explain later . . .”). This is everyday porcelain tableware for people with a sense of fun.

It’s the result of a collaboration of several Italian artists: Milan-based graphic artist and designer Paolo Rossetti worked with Illy to design the elegantly curved shape of the dishes and cups. Marco Lodola designed the playful Floating and Dances lines. Dances dishes feature miniature dancers in different styles and themes, from the flamenco to the waltz. Each set, packaged in a metal canister, contains plates in three sizes, two soup or pasta plates, espresso cups and cappuccino cups, and is a limited edition, signed by the artist and numbered. Several Poi ti spiego . . . designs will soon be available at the Newport Beach Bloomingdale’s. (https://www.williamssonoma.com, https://www.francisfrancis.com)