joanna della valle; Newly wed in Milan, she navigates the corsi to uncover local treasures, from prosciutto to perfume.(Interview)

Byline: William Norwich

In a departure for industrial, gray Milan, the weather is dazzlingly bright and the Milanese, as if blessed, are strolling in the midday sun. It is a beautiful day in Joanna Della Valle's neighborhood. Since her wedding in September to creative advertising executive Emanuele Della Valle at the Vatican-yes, the Vatican, but more about that and what the bride wore later-home has been Emanuele's modern duplex apartment in Milan's hip La Brera district. (Her father-in-law, Diego Della Valle, the owner of Tod's, Hogan, and Roger Vivier, has a place on Capri to which she and Emanuele can retreat anytime, and do.)

As for how and where she shops, Joanna has a rule: Always and only shop locally. "This began as a way to budget my spending when I was younger but traveling so much and always tempted to shop," says Joanna, the fashion editor for Interview magazine. "I would only buy clothing where it was from: Marni and Prada in Italy, Chanel in France, Marc and Oscar in New York. How you mix it together depends on where you are."

As it happens, 10 Corso Como, the trendy, anti-department store department store, is just minutes from the Della Valles' apartment. Displayed among the clothes are packages of prosciutto, bottles of olive oil, chic dustpans and brooms-if that is not an oxymoron-and Dyson vacuum cleaners as if enshrined by Jeff Koons. In the beauty department Joanna finds the best puffy-eye elixir in the free world (from Nickel, the Paris gentleman's spa) and scents from Carthusia I Profumi di Capri. Joanna alternates between wearing Fracas and Carthusia's perfume made of Capri flowers.

Generally speaking, Corso Como is mostly trendy stuff. To a fashion editor, sure, trendy is great for photo shoots, but when she's a consumer, no, trendy is really not Joanna's thing. Joanna's closet is an homage to Oscar de la Renta: She collects his shifts the way chatelaines elsewhere collect porcelain. She also likes Chanel, including a new houndstooth coat for spring, and Marni for dresses and skirts. Joanna today is wearing a white men's-style cotton shirt by Marc Jacobs, black Martin Margiela trousers, and black suede high-heel, rubber-sole ankle boots by Tod's.

"Fashion certainly has gotten into the home category in a big way," Joanna says, admiring a bottle of Tuscan vinegar. "When I first started in fashion, the stove was a place to keep your sweaters!"

Joanna got her start in the industry at 21, just graduated from Columbia University, where she majored in Greek and Latin ("Comes in handy when I do the crossword puzzle," she says). After being a roving intern for Conde Nast, she got a job at Vogue assisting in the fashion department, and then came Interview. Over the years, attending both the men's and the women's collections twice a year in Italy and France, she has certainly perfected her ability to build a wardrobe.