013 From the pool to the velvet rope...

I am constantly asked to design something to wear over a swimsuit. Usually I come up with some type of robe: an easy-tie-in-front-easy-to-put-on-easy-to-take-off type of covering. Sometimes I'll make a variant of a wrap-dress. Once I made a towel/halter terry-robe combo. It really is depends on the client.
Recently I had a client (I love LA!) who insisted I design something so she could wear straight from the pool to a night out. This sounds strange, but makes sense in LA. You are at a hotel, by the pool, you run into an old friend/new acquaintance who is casting a new Nancy Drew-esque mini-series, which takes place in LA and stars five women in their early 20s who are smart, sexy, single and excellent crime-fighters... You hit it off and get invited to a party at some other place than the pool by which you are currently lounging. The party invitation is fleeting; there is no time to go home and change. Your career moves at the speed of your wardrobe, so you need some sort of over-dress you can just throw on and go...

Evidently, this type of fashion situation happens every day in LA. After it was explained to me, it all made sense. I immediately thought octopus! Under the octopus dress she has on a strapless bikini top and a low-profile (nothing that would stick out or cause bumps) bikini bottom. The shoes were her choice (yes - I would have done something slightly different... more gold, less tan, but her choice also works...)

You can't see it, but I also designed a mini-clutch with the same fabric, gold octopus clasp, and bright pink/fuchsia silk interior. It's in her left hand, hidden behind her body.

006 Memory Lane

My first bikini design. I was still in school. Notice I hadn't learned yet that fasteners are the reason to get up in the morning. I was so focused on prints. Fabric choices. Also - I hadn't figured out yet how to finish a design. See how everything looks 85% there? It makes me smile, however, that I included a shopping/beach bag and sabrina heels - even at that early stage in my career I knew that fashion is a fiction, and telling a story is as important as choosing a silhouette.

004 Charm

Went boating. Notice my friend's topsiders. The charm? Pure Serg Riva. You can't see it, but she has a bikini top on under a super-cute wind breaker that has a matching charm. I love the rough edges of the anchor. It makes it all the more enjoyable to know that your swimsuit could harm those who don't take care when embracing you. 

003 Fasteners

Swimwear is really jewelry. The fabric is next to nothing. There is a bit of architecture involved with creating the supports, but for the most part, the fasteners steal the show. A bikini is three triangles and five fasteners. I just happen to make the most exquisite fasteners. Each one is like a little jeweled sculpture. I make bespoke swimwear. I never advertise. You cannot find me in any store. If you know how to get a hold of me, and have more money than hours in the day, and beauty is of great importance to you, than I am your man. Swimwear is our only connection back to the idealism of ancient Greek statuary. Swimwear has replaced drawing is our arts education. We needn't study anatomy, we instead study each other's bodies at the beach.