The Fashion Spot

To cap of the second full day of Miami Fashion Week Swim shows, L*Space by Monica Wise showed her collection at 10 pm at the Cabana Grande at the Raleigh Hotel. Among the celebrities (mostly of the reality TV show kind), that came out to lend their support were Gilles Marini (Sex and the City), Kelly Killoren Bensimon (Real Housewives of New York City), Adam Gregory (90210), Whitney Port (The City), Jason Kennedy (E!), Catt Sadler (E!), Jeff Donovan (Burn Notice), George French (Bravo’s Miami Social), and Nicole Trunfio (Make Me a Supermodel).

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Leaders in eccentric, vintage 70's style, True Religion is best known for making covetable jeans. Showing that the brand can add their zest for bohemian chic to swimwear, they showed their 2010 collection on the runway in the Raleigh Hotel’s Cabana Grande.

The first thing to note about this runway show is that the models came out smiling, which was a wonderful touch. Miami Fashion Week Swim is all about fun in the sun, after all. Smile in tow, a number of the models walked out with headbands tied around their forehead, long chain charm necklaces, stacked bracelets, over-sized earrings, and sun-kissed, easy-breezy tousled hair styles that helped get the label’s casual but styled aesthetic across.

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Showing their collection at the Beachway in the Raleigh Hotel, Red Carter described their inspiration for their collection this year as a little bit animal, a little bit Rock and Roll, and a whole lot of Space-age glamour. True to their inspiration, a number of the models walked the runway wearing dark heart-shaped shades with bright rims, wide brimmed hats, staked bracelets in various colors, bold necklaces, and their hair was pinned up in glamorous up-dos.

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Canadian fashion-forward swimwear brand, Aqua Di Lara, showed their latest collection for the first time at Miami Fashion Week Swim in the Oasis venue at the Raleigh Hotel. Designed by Reyhan Sofraci, the showing this season was very much about shapes, cut outs, and solid colors. Most of the suits were done in color blocked styles, with no more than two colors letting the viewer focus on the cut-out and unexpectedly shaped pieces.  Many of these featured nicely executed ruching.

The collection’s most daring look was a one piece with a white chest piece wrapped around the model’s neck, a black bandage top with a white edge and four large black cut-outs in the stomach region. The suit was cut very high on the leg, and was paired with gold jewelry. I’m not sure how well this piece would work anywhere else, but it seemed right at home in Miami Beach.

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Mirla Sabino launched the cruise 2010 collection of her ANK swim and resort wear line at Fashion Week Swim Miami at the Beachway in the Raleigh Hotel showing a collection full of interesting shapes and a nice mix of both vibrant and more muted colors and prints.

Inspired by the Caribbean Islands, the collection featured a number of color blocked looks in coral, fuchsia, burgundy, sea blue, beige, and green, as well as monochromatic ones accented with gold and silver hardware detailing. The designer’s shades of gray and orange were particularly eye-catching.

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Crystal Jin Eley showed her collection of monokinis, bikinis, and cover-ups at the Raleigh Hotel in Miami Beach on the afternoon of Friday July 17th. The show was done presentation-style in the hotel’s designated Penthouse space, and with it the designer officially kicked off the second full day of Miami Fashion Week Swim shows.

Eley is still a relatively up and coming swimwear designer. She attended Parson’s New School for Design and chose to launch a swimwear line soon after for one reason:  the designer says that she could never find styles, colors, and fabrics which meshed with her personal taste. With that remark, I can only imagine that Eley is very comfortable showing of her figure given how much skin was revealed in her show.

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It is little surprise that Tibi, a line that regularly shows their ready-to-wear collection during New York Fashion Week at the Bryant Park Tents, attracted plenty of stars to their swimwear show.  Well, at least plenty of reality TV stars. Among those who came out the night of the 16th to the Cabaña Grande at the historic hotel The Raleigh in Miami Beach were Nicole Trunfio (Make Me a Supermodel), Ana Christina (Latin Recording Artist), Jessica Rivera (Former Miss Latina Central Florida), Kelly Killoren Bensimon (Real Housewives of NYC), and Olivia Palermo (MTV’s The City).  

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The last of the three shows that took place on the first full day of Miami Fashion Week Swim was Marysia Swim’s collection shown at the Oasis venue in Miami Beach’s The Raleigh at 9pm. Perrey Reeves from one of my favorite shows, ‘Entourage’, was on hand to welcome the brand’s 2009 cruise collection to Miami. 

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Caffe Swimwear launched their 2010 “Making a Change” Collection, one of the company’s first introductions to the United States, at Miami Fashion Swim week Thursday, July 16th at the Beachway at The Raleigh in Miami Beach. The collection drew its inspiration from “an age of reflection - a new period marked by an increase in creativity, and a more humanistic approach to all we do, think and create.” 

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What a better way to start of Fashion Week Swim 2010 than with the Boheme Boutiques show? The collection was presented just as the sun was beginning to set at 6 pm poolside at the historic hotel The Raleigh in Miami Beach. Boheme Boutiques is an influential mini-chain of stores that carries an array of designer swimwear, cover-ups, and accessories. They are the only Key Biscayne boutique to carry perennial favorites Emilio Pucci, Catherine Malandrino, and Missoni Sport.

Olympic Swimmer and Medalist Gary Hall attended the show and watched as a number of looks made their way in and around the pool. Owned by Edit Meurrens who worked in the fashion industry as buyer and designer muse before becoming a boutique owner, the stores (there are five locations in Miami), reflect Meurrens' exotic travels.

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