MBFW Swim 2012 Runway Recap

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RUNWAY RECAPMBFW SWIM 2012

FEATURING DIESELPOKO PANOMARA HOFFMANCIA MARÍTIMAAQUARELLA AND MUCH MORE!

MBFW SWIM RUNWAY RECAP 2011 www.papercutmag.com2

FOREWORDBEACHIN’ IT.

A few years back, I noticed that my friend Ka was always photographed in mismatched bikinis. Sometimes a solid bottom and a contrasting top; sometimes a leopard string with a floral bandeau. But always mismatched. The idea threw me off at first, so used to seeking out the perfect matching set. But I loved the look, and soon adopted it as my own.

Ka is from Brazil, and one can’t help but notice that our South American neighbors are a bit more on top of things when it comes to swim style (just check on where the hot majority of swimwear designers hail from). When beachin’ it is a way of life, it’s the details that matter. And if this year’s Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Swim 2012 shows are any indication, it’s time we start paying attention to things like cuts, silhouettes, prints and accessories.

Miami favorites like A.Z Araujo, Mara Hoffman and Poco Pano left us with so much more to think about than what number SPF we need for summer. So get on it people, and breeze through this special edition of Papercut for inspiration to up your own swim game this season. The eye candy doesn’t hurt, and the cooler months will be upon us soon enough.

xoNora

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IN THIS ISSUE

DAY 106 Diesel

08 Cosmopolitan en Español Summer Splash

DAY 212 White Sands

14 Poko Pano

16 Beach Bunny

18 Crystal Jin

20 L*Space by Monica Wise

DAY 324 Caffé

26 Dolores Cortés

28 Mara Hoffman

30 Aqua Di Lara

32 A.Ché

DAY 436 Cia.Marítima

38 Luli Fama

40 Luxe by Lisa Vogel

42 Lisa Blue

DAY 546 A.Z. Araujo

48 Aguaclara

49 Aquarella

50 Have Faith

52 Kooey

54 Nicolita

56 Sonia Vera

58 Jogo Beach

60 Perfect Tan

62 Tavik

64 Zingara

ALL PHOTOGRAPHY BY GREGORY BROWN AT WWW.GREGORYBROWNPHOTO.COM


DAY 1


DIESEL


COSMOPOLITAN EN ESPAÑOL SUMMER SPLASH

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COSMOPOLITAN EN ESPAÑOL SUMMER SPLASH


DAY 2


WHITE SANDS


POKO PANO

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DESIGNER: Paola Robba. MIAMI VIA: Sao Paolo, Brazil. LAUNCH: 1988; showing at Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Swim since 2008. AESTHETIC AND INSPIRATION: Colorful, fun and young. Pineapples, palm trees, toucans. Brazil. LONG TIME COMING: Paola created swimwear for her dolls as a teenager; as an adult, she gave in to her passion, hiring a seamstress and producing bikinis from her own garage. She initially sold her pieces to close friends; her degree in Business Administration hasn’t hurt in making her label the success it is today. FAVORITES FROM THE SWIM 2012 COLLECTION: The bandeau tops (see her blog, Paola gives each the “jump” test)! The candy-cute prints and bright stripes, worn together. A sophisticated yet uber-sexy twist-top duo, textured and color-blocked in greige and brown. The water-color pretty, sexy-in-the-back finale one-piece. CELEBRITY FOLLOWING: Victoria’s Secret and Sports Illustrated – Swimsuit Edition girls (read: Elle Macpherson, Marisa Miller, Kate Upton, Dominique Piek), Beyonce, Mischa Barton. LOVE: The Poko Pano look—messy, beach-perfect fishtail braids, and mismatched bikini tops and bottoms. The choice of fit—Brazilian Cut bare butts, or the (comparatively) conservative American Cut. IT’S ALL IN THE NAME: Paola’s first label was called Le Garage, after her first “boutique”; Poko Pano translates to “little fabric” in Portuguese. It will all make sense when you try on her Brazilian Cut.


BEACH BUNNY


CRYSTAL JIN


L*SPACE


DAY 3


CAFFÉ


DOLORES CORTÉS


MARA HOFFMAN

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DESIGNER: Mara Hoffman. MIAMI VIA: Buffalo, NY. LAUNCH: 2000; Swim launched as part of the S/S 2009 collection. AESTHETIC AND INSPIRATION: Aztec-inspired prints and desert-brights. Boho-goddess. Excellent cuts, shapes and silhouettes. LONG TIME COMING: From upstate NY and Central St. Martens in London, to South Beach and Miami. We’ve already heard the Patricia Field story; Swim became it’s own collection for Mara’s Resort 2009. “Many of the concepts and prints from the RTW flow over to swim and vice versa. It’s all usually coming from the [same] inspiration source.” FAVORITES FROM THE SWIM 2012 COLLECTION: The colorful, beach-to-boardwalk flower-child coverups. A brightly-striped/leopard bandeau bikini. The crop and the structured bustier tops. The gorgeous, black your-tan’s-gonna-be-a-freakfest-but-damnnnn-you-look-good suit. Definitely the King Tut one-piece and dress. CELEBRITY FOLLOWING: Whitney Port. Kim Kardashian. Halle Berry. Other bathing beauties who look great in swimsuits. LOVE: Mara’s worldly inspiration, and cultured consistency. Swim 2012 was a fashion collection, unfettered by any of the tawdry sex appeal that tends to make its way into some of the Miami Swim shows. A BIT OBSESSED: This is Mara’s second feature in Papercut’s Runway Recap (see NYC F/W 2011), and I think it’s safe to say that she’s going to be a mainstay with us. Her entire swim collection was a thing of beauty, and fantastically wearable for the free spirit in all of us. Fans of Free People, Urban Outfitters, Anthropologie, Matthew Williamson, etc. will adore every piece.


AQUA DI LARA


A.CHÉ


DAY 4


CIA.MARÍTIMA

DESIGNER: Benny Rosset. MIAMI VIA: Brazil. LAUNCH: 1990. AESTHETIC AND INSPIRATION: “Vintage beach chic,” and the markets of Marrakech in 1960’s Morrocco. LONG TIME COMING: Benny’s grandfather, Henrique Rosset, transformed his small shirt factory into Brazil’s largest textile manufacturer in the 1930s; Benny heads the beachwear segment of Gruppo Rosset. FAVORITES FROM THE SWIM 2012 COLLECTION: The hot pink tie-dyed string bottoms. All of the fringe. Paisley-print maxis. Soft florals and leopard print, together. CELEBRITY FOLLOWING: Gisele Bundchen, Naomi Campbell, Karolina Kurkova, Frankie Rayder—sadly, the model contingent might be the only group that can pull off Benny’s madly unforgiving pieces. LOVE: Brazil has a definite hold on the swim market, and CIA.Marítima is no exception. Love how the look exudes pure, bold confidence, bordering on the line of raw ferality (but just far enough on the side of sophistication). BEACH IT LIKE A BRAZILIAN: “You have to understand the way women loves those two little pieces. And you have to understand, the way they wear. And, they change every year, every year they change. Bikinis for Brazilians, it’s high fashion. They don’t go to the beach this summer with bikinis from last summer.” (Benny Rosset, in an interview with FutureClaw.com).


LULI FAMA


LUXE BY LISA VOGEL


LISA BLUE


DAY 5


A.Z. ARAUJO


AGUACLARA

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HAVE FAITH


AQUARELLA

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DESIGNER: Véronique de la Cruz. MIAMI VIA: Guadeloupe (French Caribbean). LAUNCH: The brand itself was founded in 2000, although the Resort 2011 collection is Véronique’s debut as newly appointed head designer. AESTHETIC AND INSPIRATION: Fabulous with a French flair. Véronique’s beauty queen background, made richly accessible for all. LONG TIME COMING: Growing up in the island “bathing suit culture” that inspired the calling in many a swimsuit designer, Véronique and her cousin went to great creative lengths (exchanging, mixing and matching, etc.) to never wear the same suit twice. Never completely satisfied with what her hard-saved money could buy, Véronique traveled to France in 1993, in search of “the perfect suit.” Her soul searching led her to the Miss France competition, where she was the first woman of color to win the crown. Véronique’s goal became to bring something new to the fashion world with her swimwear, and she moved to Costa Rica in 2006 to start her first company, V del Sol. FAVORITES FROM THE SWIM 2012 COLLECTION: The very French and oh-so-Brigitte Bardot floral high-waisted, halter-topped bikini. The Parisian stripes. The cutouts, ruching and ties that make each suit worthy of a yacht day on the French Riviera. CELEBRITY FOLLOWING: Who cares. Véronique’s target woman is anyone “sexy, poised, sophisticated and [living] for the moment,” much like herself. LOVE: When asked by FORMzine.com what interview question she wished they would ask, Véronique’s reply was “What do I believe most in?” Her answer: “I believe in helping people and would love to do some charity work with my designs; helping children or people in need is one of the things [I] try for.” Spoken like a true pageant queen, the designer backs up her word with her work for Talamenca, a Costa Rican charity for kids. A LIFE WELL-LIVED: While in France, Véronique studied law at Assas in Paris, assisted the Mayor of the small town of Bagneaux and modeled for designers such as Pierre Cardin, Paco Rabanne and Azarro. Talk about well-rounded.


KOOEY


NICOLITA


SONIA VERA


JOGO BEACH


PERFECT TAN


TAVIK


ZINGARA


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MBFW Swim 2012 Runway Recap

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