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They do recession so much more glamorously in Milan. In the boutiques of Via Montenapoleone, the new chastened economic mood is represented by a potted orchid. Whereas in Britain, the symbol of 2009's financial chill is our sudden obsession with two-for-one restaurant vouchers (have you noticed how these have trounced property prices and the weather as the conversational topic de nos jours?), the Italian version of make-do-and-mend involves substituting long-lasting orchids for the armfuls of freshly cut flowers that once graced every designer store.