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Sibilla Milani has a family name that matches her city, Milan. An odd coincidence, as if she could never be parted from this city, as if it were an actual part of her identity. Every day, Sibilla Milani is the city’s ambassador via Milano Secrets. Thanks to this website which she co-founded, Italy’s second city is revealed in an unusual way, both online and offline. Understanding this city both through brief calibrated articles on the web – brought together in a guide since 2015 – and during themed walks designed to reveal the singularity of this place that is experiencing a new golden age. Boosted by EXPO 2015, the universal exposition, Milan is more than ever the centre of international attention. A spectacular change that reassures Sibilla Milani in her choice of life. This Milanese woman has insatiable curiosity and undertook the construction of a family home, her red line being the big names of Italian design. Assisted by her husband who has a definite visual appetite, their apartment integrates aestheticism and strong colours con brio. Bold choices – total-look stainless steel kitchen and a touch of vintage in the bedroom – that enhance the sometimes basic lines, like an echo of Milan’s legendary classicism.
Sibilla, tell us who you are.
I’m the founder and a partner in Milano Secrets as well as Potluck. I am a bonne vivante, a sophisticated connoisseur of Milanese life, and satisfy my curiosity on a daily basis in my role as marketing and communications director of both entities. I am passionate about the cinema and even more so about reading – in another life, I’d have loved to be a publisher, perhaps with a secret life as a writer. What I like best are places that generate shared experiences and a meeting of minds! Bars and restaurants are my favourites by a long way! Finally (and most importantly) I am the proud mother of three children. I love the city. I am definitely a girl about town.
How would you define the concept behind Milano Secrets?
Above all, Milano Secrets is a creative agency for web content, web v2.0 projects, viral marketing, and communications. The Milano Secrets website has been online since May 2011 in both English and Italian and we even published our own guide in 2015, published by Baldini & Castoldi. We mainly promote lifestyle venues (fashion, cuisine, design) to discover the city from a new and unique perspective. You can also find artistic and cultural itineraries and themed events. It’s an offline solution provided online. With this format, Milano Secrets organises walks and themed evenings for a highly varied audience (plenty of foreigners) to put the spotlight on what Milan is really like, and how unique it is. If I had to sum up what Milano Secrets is all about, I’d say that it’s a way – for those who are not Milanese – to get to know the city from the inside, by experiencing it in a way that only the Milanese has been able to.
What is your connection with Milan, and how have you seen it change?
I love Milan. It’s the city I’d choose to live in if I didn’t already live there. I love everything about the way that the city is going. With the Universal Expedition, it gained an international heart and soul, making it even more special than it was before. As if it had unleashed a new, vibrant energy.
With the Universal Expedition, Milan gained an international heart and soul, making it even more special than it was before. As if it had unleashed a new, vibrant energy.
What’s your favourite destination in this city, which is so special for you?
The Riva plant nursery. It’s located in the heart of the city, which is a privilege for Milan. It’s located right by the San Lorenzo Columns, from where different scents and colours flow. It covers an area of over 30,000 square metres with an 80-metre building where you can admire and select azaleas, jasmines, primroses, violets, and even lemons. Everything that the nursery sells makes our terraces and homes delightfully pleasant.
How did you come up with the concept for decorating your own home?
It’s all done very simply and naturally. No particular research went into the décor of our apartment. My husband, Luca, has a great sense of colour and great instincts for what looks good. He managed to bring everything together in a very sophisticated way.
Where did your furniture come from?
The majority of our furniture came from our respective families. We wanted to combine them appropriately with some more modern pieces, which we chose jointly with Luca. Some of them were made to measure.
Do you have a favourite piece that has always been there for you?
Probably an enfilade by Osvaldo Borsani, made from parchment paper and decorated with gold leaf. It’s a sublime piece that remains relatively subtle.
Where do you spend most of your time?
In the centre of the apartment, around the large marble worktop in the kitchen. It truly is the heart of our family. We wanted it to be spacious enough to enable us to hold a conversation with our children and with our friends.
In your view, what’s the best restaurant in Milan?
It’s always a difficult question because I find you need to distinguish between the more recent, fashionable ones and my real favourite. So, I’ll answer very subjectively: La Latteria di San Marco. I don’t manage to go there very often but, for me, it’s the place where you can find the best home cooking in Milan. My favourite, certainly. You can ask anyone from Milan about it – they’ll know where it is.
Photography: Constance Gennari – Text: Caroline Balvay – Translation: TextMaster @thesocialitefamily
I love the open kitchen shelves with the exposed plates. I live in America where everything seems to be shut away behind cupboards, so much beauty hidden.