Mara Hoffman Swim 2011

Some designers try new things and others go with what works. Such is the case with the Mara Hoffman 2011 swim collection she showed in Miami. Hoffman is a master of color and infuses it with most of her pieces along with her geometric prints. For this season the inspiration in "jungle mystic" and incorporating a psychedelic color scheme to add major pop to the collection. The advantage Mara Hoffman possess is she knows who her customer is and delivers like a royal flush at a poker table! The tote bags she sent on the runway make for the perfect accessory for the beach or bopping around the town. As for the suits they scream attention and will make any woman the focal point of any event she may attend.
Photos: Edward James

True Religion Swim 2011 Collection

The True Religion 2011 Swim Show holds true to its design direction as it has in the past. All the standard pieces such as denim shorts and bikinis are firmly planted for the 2011 season. It seems the CEO & head designer Jeffrey Lewbell is branching out in a new direction with some of his looks aiming for a different customer. This is one of the few if only designers who is taking a chance and going in a new design direction. Some might question his move for a more high end customer but lets not forget that True Religion is a publicly traded company and must answer to its shareholders. Overall its a situation of what will work and what won’t and they fully know this at True Religion but branching out in a new direction must be applauded while most other designers are playing it safe.
Photos: Edward James

Beach Bunny Swimwear 2011

The Beach Bunny Swim 2011 fashion show is a lesson in creative collaborations with celebrities like the Kardashian sisters who attached their name to this venture. The show consisted of 57 looks and hit on many points which left the crowd of fashion editors a tad bewildered. A correction to this would have been a better edit but this is the Kardashian sisters and they do want to give you more than enough options, even if they are not swim wear related. Case in point would be the black lace lingerie pieces towards the end of the show. In the end the line will be priced accordingly and should perform quite well, but let’s remember this is swim wear and the market is fierce all around.
Photos:Edward James

Alexandre Herchcovitch F/W 2010

Alexandre Herchcovitch has been showing in the tents for well over seven years season after season but a few things we have noticed regarding this designer is that his name is not on the lips of fashion editors nor do we see any of his clothing in stores such as Barneys, Saks as well no magazine editorial? So if this is the case why would this designer keep showing season after season? We chalk it up to home town pride and cultural affairs funds via his home country of Brazil. Show in New York and be front page news back home the next day. As for his clothing we have always found his collections very avante guarde and not very wearable, as for this season it seems he is sticking with his own vision whatever that might be. There are a few coats he sent down which seem to have touches of the classic Chanel suiting but done in his own way. Other items have that jewel embellishment which is about two to three seasons old and indicates a "follow the leader" mentality. As for this trend most editors have moved on from this, but we still see it from bags to swimsuits from other designers mainly Prada.

Oumlil S/S 2010

Men's wear is a rough game in the fashion world since most men don't like to shop, don't know what looks good on them and would rather spend their money on anything besides clothing. For Hisham Oumlil the clothing he presented is for men who reflect the opposite. For Spring 2010 his inspiration draws from Wall Street and powerful men but with a flair for style and not $5,000.00 Armani suits. Sticking true to his design his clothing still has major edge in the tailoring department and his fabric choices allow him to create such great pieces. This collection is more in line for modern day and evening dressing and his color range can suit many different tastes. Mr. Oumlil boasts an international private client which has served him well but seeks the attention of retail buyers which we hope comes his way, but like we stated before men's fashion is a rough game.

Douglas Hannant S/S 2010

For Spring 2010 Douglas Hannant opted to show his collection presentation style at the Plaza hotel in conjunction with his new shop which opens at the hotel as well. It was a lovely affair with all his girls out in full force and the champagne flowed like water into the evening. Feeling the true nature of spring the collection has no black and shows more softer colors. It seems the majority of the collection are dresses, gowns and a few Hannant staple items like his skinny pants. With so many dresses and gowns the feeling is the Mr.Hannant has a deep focus for evening but leaves his customer with little or no options for day wear. We are confident that there are more day pieces he just decided not to show them.

Christian Siriano S/S 2010

We won't talk about Project runway since that's old news but what we can say about Christian Siriano is that this young new designer has a future! Mr. Siriano fully demonstrates that he is comfortable working in color and shows a level of consistency in his designs. More so his control in using a restricted color palette makes this collection more pulled together and allows more options for women. The standout pieces we loved were the washed silk linen flounce top with diagonal two toned striped skirt and the leather and chiffon motorcross jacket in blush cotton slim fit trouser in blush. We feel these as well other looks have strong editorial appeal for future photo shoots. At the end of his show he showed two "red carpet" contenders which were a satin-faced organza draped strapless gown with beaded bodice in blush and the second a chiffon and tulle-layered ombre gown in blush and volcanic. Our only knock is we feel the collection could have been better edited, but Christian sat the perfect trip and delivered a worthy collection. The real question with the economy in its current state is will the buyers be placing orders?

Photos: Frasier Harrison

Caffe Swimwear 2010

A new comer to Mercedes~benz fashion week swim was Caffe swimwear which showed a most interesting collection. Using prints and solids for their suits gives women options in regards to having the suit make the statement or incorporating accessories to finish the look. Some pieces where made of multi-fabric construction and a few had O ring gold detail, a trend we noticed through out the week. The floral prints juxtaposed against the solid tops or bottoms makes for a very original collection.

Mara Hoffman Swim 2010

Mara Hoffman a long standing fixture on the New York runway scene shipped down to South Beach to show what we feel is her first swim collection. In short this was a gate to wire win for Hoffman and was no question the best show of the week! For Mara it's all about color and there was a vast selection of colors and prints to make her suits stand out above the rest. These standout designs make a statement and should be a signal for other designers in the swim suit field. The amount of variety will certainly land her loads of editorial coverage where other designers fell short in this department. In our opinion she's one to watch.

CIA.MARITIMA Swim 2010

Designer Benny Rosset for CIA MARITIMA showed one of the best collections to date, we have been following this designer for some time, but for this season his collection demonstrated two key factors. For one it was a collection that had a theme and vision and was fluid in design where most of the looks flowed consistently. The second point was the use of gold accessories such as cuffs and neck pieces which made his suits just pop off the runway. It seems the inspiration for the collection was Greek, with Greek key patterns adorning a good amount of the suits. Another factor which helped tremendously was the use of models who "filled" the suits.

Swimwear like any other market is stiff competition but when you see a designer who has vision and knows his customer it makes viewing this collection a pleasure! One of the best shows we saw all week.

Marysia Swim 2010

The last show for Mercedes-Benz fashion week swim for the first night was Marysia swim and being shown last was a rushed show. This first time started who has never shown in South Beach provided the audience with a strictly retro collection with swim caps  and ruffles for the majority of the looks shown. 

Fashion by tradition is about moving forward, providing something new and fresh for consumers not delving into the past. According to the designer herself it was "Ballerina Punk", for us it was a throw back to the 20's and 30's. For Marysia Swim it was only their second collection so it may be a case of trying to find their customer, but if there was a retro movie being filmed this designer would fit the bill due to the costume nature of the collection. Today's women we feel wants to look good, sophisticated and polished, unfortunately this was not the case here.

Caffe Swim 2010

We had never heard of Caffe swimwear before but it seems there's something for everybody with this offering for 2010. Looks range from boho inspired beaded suits to solid color with gold attachment details. As well there was a selection of bags which had a Mexican/Central American theme but where not needed for the show and added as a detractor to the swimwear. Our opinion is the solid colored suits with the gold details work best, but the gold O and D ring attachments to the suits may look a but uncomfortable and were on the large size.