“Veneto is full of artisans and is famous for its furniture, textiles and glassware. It’s very much the fashion here to have everything made by someone local,” explains Allegra Marchiorello. “Every little house in this corner of Italy has its own company in the backyard.” It’s one of the reasons Marchiorello co-founded Once Milano with his long-time friend, linen aficionado Valeria Piovesana Thompson. The house’s Italian-made linen is of the highest quality, made from the longest threads, using flax grown near Milan. The weave is the smoothest, strongest and most absorbent money can buy: cooling in the summer months, cocooning in the winter.
When the company was approached to produce a collaboration with Sanlorenzo, it seemed a very natural fit. “Linen is the perfect material on a boat: it’s light, low-maintenance and understated, yet incredibly luxurious,” says Piovesana Thompson. “That’s the beauty of it,” agrees Marchiorello. “It never looks contrived. It’s also all custom-made — we’ve worked with clients to create bespoke finishes and have included their monograms.”
Designing a collection for boats proved an interesting challenge. “It’s quite different to designing for a home,” says Marchiorello. “For starters, the water is such a central element, and the space you’re working with is contained. We wanted to create something that was sophisticated yet highly refined.” The brand’s covetable Piping Collection was born from this collaboration, and Once Milano enjoys a good working relationship with Jonathan Fawcett, one of the UK’s leading luxury supplier to superyachts.
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