Resort 2013: Swimwear 101

Cara Delevingne for Dsquared2 Resort 2013

When I think of summer the first that really comes to mind is bikini! I love swimming and even though I don't swim a lot when I do, I truly enjoy it. Even runway fashion makes place for swimwear, Resort 2013 and some call it Cruise collection! I'll be featuring the best Resort 2013 collections for you to get inspiration on your summer swimwear. One piece, bikini or tankini it doesn't matter fashion doesn't discriminate!

Resort 2013: 

Chris Benz

Chris Benz stayed true to hisself for the Resort 2013 collection, with him being The Prince of Color of course. I'm not just talking about his swimwear but also about his accessories and beachwear. He went for plain white pumps and multi-colored prints for his bathing suits. For accessories he decided to include orange and blue triangle earrings and bright green and orange cashmere.

To neutralize his prints he went for plain bright, black or the same print jacket. He included a one piece, a tankini, shorts and a bikini. I happen to love prints for a bikini.
The rest of the collection is filled with neon colors and tropical prints. Chris (@cmbenz) admits that his mind set for this collection was on vacation in the Caribbean.

Model Marina Heiden.

Erdem

Erdem only included two bathing suits a bikini and a one piece. He paired them with matching heels. The bikini has a more disco ball effect which looks even more amazing in a photo shoot. His one piece is a blue print with a black background. I like his bikini more because his one piece seems more for the Olympics when his bikini is just for a cool summer day.

 

Bottega Veneta

 Bottega Veneta (@veneta_bottega) did not bother to include any color in their swimwear collection, not even for accessories. Tomas Maier, lead designer for Bottega Veneta, said: "I always start with color, then material, then shape". Even though I'm all for color for summer, I don't dislike these bathing suits. The first one has a lot of amazing details that wouldn't look right with any bright color. They made the background a bit lighter black so that the print detail can easily be seen. The second (right) one piece is practically a bikini because the part under her breast is see through.

Model (left): Josefien Rodermans.

Model (right): Nadja Bender.

Jason Wu

Jason Wu featured only one bathing suit in his Resort 2013 collection. Colorful and simple he kept it this time. My favorite colors orange and yellow were of course included in this bikini. His Resort 2013 collection started very somber with grey than he continued with bright blue and black. Aftet that he leaned over to the sporty side with neon orange and yellow. He finished with black and white prints. @JasonWu did a very good job for his Resort 2013 collection.

Model: Ondria Hardin.

Derek Lam

 Derek Lam (@DerekLamNYC) claimed to be inspired by Eddy Murphy's comedy Coming to America for his Resort 2013 collection. I never thought I would hear that one, but never say never right? This look is the only thing that comes close to swimwear. A navy colored one piece accessorized with white heels and a bag. On top of that he put a striped and plaid coat. If you look at his whole collection, you won't notice where his inspiration came from. His collection is very versatile by design and color. Derek Lam's other collection is 10 Crosby, but this collection doesn't have any swimwear for Resort 2013. 10 Crosby is a lower-priced collection.

Model: Monika Sawicka.

Lanvin

Lanvin's lead designer is Alber Elbaz and he has worked for @LANVINofficial since 2001. Alber said: "Resort is about solutions", and by this he meant that for the Resort collection he didn't focus so much on the Runway version but more on the RTW. A lot of designers have also focused on this strategy. Have you noticed that most of the Resort collections aren't shown on the runway? This look is very classic and I think that they intended on doing that. They added shades and black heels. This look also has a blue bag, Alber claims that he found out recently that bags are more important that he thougt, so he will be focusing on bag more. Lanvin's Resort 2013 collection includes a lot of black and white and nudes and on the side red, blue and yellow.

Model: Montana Cox

Herve Leger by Max Azria

I think it's only right that the King of bandage dresses, Mr Max Azria, includes swimwear in his Herve Leger Resort collection, and he did. I'm really glad that Lubov and Max Azria went with colorblocking for this Herve Leger collection because they're famous for their bandage dresses 

and they should mix it up every now and then.

Like Lubov always says: "they design for the same customer", and you don't want that customer to say, I already have that!

Four out of seven bathing suits are bikini's. They kept it colorful and chic with the black basic. They also did a fantastic job with the detailing.

 With the accessories they they kept it simple, aviator glasses with plain black heels. That was the right way to go since color blocking is already eye-catching.

With the one piece they did cut outs to flatter the waist and up. The @Herve LegerbyMA collection is definitely one of my favorite collections for Resort wear.

Michael Kors

Michael Kors admits that his Resort collection is one of the most fun seasons to work on and we can see why! MK (@MichaelKors) always looks so happy when talking about Fashion, not just about his clothing line. It is truly visible that he enjoys creating! 

 Maybe it's because exciting things are happening for him at the moment, he just opened three stores in Instanbul and he launched a new collection Michael Kors for Bergdrofs. For his Resort wear he launched only three pieces and they are all one piece. First I thought the looks were too simple, but then I noticed the gold little details which compliment the body as well as the colors he chose. It's a good way to not over design it and look like the rest. My favorite peice is the white one, because the gold goes really well with it. Throughout the whole collection he mixed gold, black and white and white with the exception of a couple of colorful looks.

Model (left&right): Bette Franke.

Model: Kelli Lumi.

Marios Schwab

Many can see that Marios Schwab stuck with a couple of ideas he also put in his previous Fall 2012 RTW collection. I'm not complaining because it doesn'y look like the same collection. His inspiration for his present and previous collection was Marlene Dietrich. @MariosSchwab was inspired by her loneliness and he descibes her as: "the woman who you don't know, but fall in love with anyway". Her face was most of the time covered with a hat, so low that you couldn't easily see her eyes.
It is very clear that Marios Schwab had comfort in mind for this Resort collection (the models are not wearing heels). Both of these peices are construced in the same way but they have different prints and colors. I liked both, the neon yellow is more for a stealing-the-show-at-the-beach kind of girl and the grey print is more for the girl who pays a lot of attention to detail.

Chanel

Chanel is known for their classic yet fashion forward looks. Their entire collection included brighter than the sun colored short cut bobs and matching colored shoes. I wasn't totally impressed by these @CHANEL looks, also not by the whole collection. Mostly because I was thinking, "which celeb is going to wear these" and no one came to mind. I like the right one piece more but the gold embroidering reminded me of the cover of Watch the Throne (yes Jay-z and Kanye's colab album!). That cover was designed by Ricardo Tisci of Givenchy.

Model (left): Karmen Pedaru.

Model (right): Melissa Tammerijn.

Christopher Kane

Christopher Kane's Resort collection was actually one of my favs, because he really mixed a lot of prints with great summer colors and pastel colors. It was very versatile, but they fit pretty well together. The reason why I loved his prints so much is because they look like pictures from nature on the clothes. The birds, the sun and everything green which can also be a part of one's summer. I mean not everyone wants to sit on the beach, some spent their summer hiking and falling asleep under the sun. This bikini has a more tomboy feel to it and I luv that!

Emilio Pucci

The Emilio Pucci Resort 2013 collection has a military and safari feel to it. Not only by color but also by structure, at least it started like that. It had a couple of bright yellow pieces and it ended with a couple of black, white and printed dresses. These two looks aren't the best thing about this collection, but they look good and they accessorized very well.

Model: Jourdan Dunn.

Zero + Maria Cornejo

Zero + Maria Cornejo's Resort collection has clothes for the same woman for morning, evening and night. The @zeromcornejo collection has prints, bright and pastel colors, and the classic and modern look on what women want to wear this season. The 1st and 2nd look are both very feminine and modern and not too simple. The third look has a more surf-girl kind of look. It's my fav look I think the combination was a very great idea.

Model: Ali Lagarde.

Tory Burch

This season Tory Burch featured a lot of neutral and soft colors, along with retro prints. Just like these looks, the collection has a lot of details and accessories. @toryburch focused more on the modern yet classy woman for her cruise collection. More than that I think she really showed how to style and wear these pieces. The one piece is my fav look, it looks very feminine and not too simple for summer. It also has a print that isn't too overwhelming to add another print. That can be seen with the tied blouse that also has a retro print.

Model: Ella Verberne.

T by Alexander Wang

T is a lower-prised collection by famous designer, Alexander Wang. This is @AlexanderWangNY's 1st swimwear collection for T. He kept it very simple and sporty and it looks good. Most of the tops from the bikini can also be worn as "crop tops".

His one piece has see through parts which look like they will slim down your romp.
I'm not very fond of a white bikini, to me it looks like a waste of color. It always reminds me of a white wall, which is boring. In another color they look good for summer!

Alexander designs for the Tomboy girl and clearly he has customers, because I like his style! The collection includes colors such as light and dark grey, black and white.

Model: Kasia Struss.









I prefer color for summer, but a couple of designers proved that you can still look great in neutrals or just plain black and white. These designers also proved that Resort is the most relaxed season of them all. This because they design with a vacation state of mind, they find their paradise. A different style doesn't have to be out of fashion, it can still look amazing and be eye catching. We can all appreciate Audrey Hepburn's style, but it wouldn't be fun if we ALL looked like her! You can even be the one who creates a new style because style is personality.
As you can see summer is all about having fun with colors and clothes. It's the perfect time to take a break from all the serious things you have been up to all year! It's really more of a mind-set. The best piece of advise I ever received was: "dress like you mean it". This piece of advise can be taken very seriously, but the way I see it, he or she was telling me to have fun and enjoy every second I get the opportunity to. With that said, I hope that you think of that every time you get ready, even if you're not leaving your house!
Much Love,