THE HONOR ROLL OF SWIMWEAR SUMMER 2006
Written By Yvette N. Coleman

ANK

With the creation of ANK, Mirla Sabino continues to focus on fit and natural beauty.  Inspired by Middle Eastern influences ANK’s name comes from the deep roots of Egypt.  ANK means “the first breathe of life.”
ANK has an earthy feel that portrays the Moroccan craftsmanship and gold detailing to capture the essence of fashion from the Middle Eastern woman. The ANK collection even boasts a “Princess” line designed with light and soft fabrics that sculpt the shape of a woman’s curves, and invites her to feel glamorous and elegant. 

ANK price points: starting at $105
www.mirlasabino.com

Birdie Jo

First cousins Rebecca Fink and Kate Richter founded Birdie Jo in the fall of
2003.  Although Birdie Jo is not a Brazilian bikini line, it was during a trip to Brazil that inspiration for the line was found. 

" We took note of the ‘swimwear lifestyle’ that exists there. Women go about their routine – all day long – in their bikinis.  We decided to bring this swimwear ‘lifestyle’ to the states.  The collection was named after the person that inspired us to do so – Brazilian friend Roberta, or ‘Bertie’ for short. 
Our love of fashion led us to make the leap into the swimwear world.  Our goal was to create a line that was not already out in the market – one that perfectly mixes functionality, glamour and luxury.”

For Spring 2006, Birdie Jo adheres to the concepts of Pop Art and iconography, while also incorporating the definitive lines of mid-century design.  The cleanliness of line and the emphasis of ‘what is beautiful’, a concept that dominated the Pop Art movement, is a noticeable influence in this collection. 

Highest quality fabrics offered in a palette of deep, rich colors are combined with predominately seamless silhouettes.  Birdie Jo is known for its superior fit and its ability to look fabulous on any body.

Retail from $120 - $230
www.birdiejo.com

CYN & LUCA

Cynthia Hoey Ricciardi, a Parson's graduate in Fashion Design, formed CYN & LUCA in 2000 after working under the Design House of Adrienne Vittadini for 10 years, designing sports wear and swimwear.
“My image is of a woman who is confident and sexy and whose inner strength is expressed through her sense of style.  She is inspired by travel, exotic beaches and faraway places.” –says Cynthia

CYN & LUCA is a sleek designer collection of swimwear and cover-ups for the modern woman.  It features the most advanced European fabrics and is manufactured in Italy and Argentina with their specialized knowledge of sophisticated swimwear production techniques.   Their prints have a depth of color and richness of texture that European fabric makers specialize.  The silhouettes are clean and modern, with an American Sportswear sensibility.  Most innovative is their exclusive tubular micro fiber knit fabric that gives an incredible lift and hold without heavy internal construction.  It is perfect for the active woman of any age.  Boutiques and Resorts praise the fresh and unusual cover-ups that are perfect for their sophisticated customers who want to look just as chic going to and from the pool.  The inspiration for this year was the beautiful southern coast and cliffs of Apulia-, which is the "heel" of the boot in Italy.

“Our philosophy for our beachwear is that we are a designer swimwear brand.
We are not a company that purchases other overseas brands and puts our label inside.  We also choose to use the highest quality of micro-fiber printed and solid fabrics exclusively from Italy.  We believe our customer knows quality and that is very important.”

CYN & LUCA Retail from:  $ 90.00-  $ 150.00
www.cynandluca.com

Fascino Diva

For the last two years, two Vancouverites have been designing some of the hottest suits to hit the beach. Michelle and Britt have breathed new life into the classic swimsuit.
Britt has over ten years experience designing costumes for theatre and stage.

Michelle has a background in graphic designs, and now teaches Fashion Design and Fashion Illustration at the Helen Lefeaux Fashion Design School in Vancouver. They met while studying fashion in Vancouver, BC - - this is where the idea for Fascino Diva was born. Francino Diva suits are smart and sexy, fun and flirty - - these are suits that will catch your attention!

“Our target market is confident, daring and fun women. We fall into this category ourselves, which makes it easy to know what they want. We incorporate fresh new design elements into a daring silhouette, while still keeping in mind comfort and an active lifestyle. “

www.fascinodiva.com

Pompei Beach

Elena Pompei launched Pompei beach in Summer 2005 to satisfy her desire to create feminine yet functional bathing suits. Living in Maui and being extremely active in the ocean with such sports as surfing, windsurfing and tow surfing big waves, Elena needed something special to represent her swimwear.

With her family deeply rooted in the fashion industry in Rome (her father Carlo Pompei is number one shoe designer for movies, theater and stars in Hollywood) and her extreme water sport lifestyle, it wasn’t a far jump for Elena to create swimwear that was hot and happening.  Pompei Beach derives its fun, chic and glamorous personality from Elena's active beach lifestyle.

The 2006 Pompei collection takes its inspiration from the world of colors. Each individual print, most of which are exclusive to Pompei, brings completely different stories from sexy girl to sophisticated ethnic to casual fun.  This year new body styles were added to Pompei’s most traditional best sellers and the line has achieved an exceptional fit.

Retail from $115 to $130
Handmade Italian crochet suits retail $160.
www.pompeibeach.com

Ritchie Swimwear

Founded by Richard (Ritchie) Berger, the family owned business will be celebrating its 26th year anniversary this year.  Ritchie started out manufacturing fashion sportswear, selling to resort shops and outdoors markets in Miami. Just as the fitness craze arrived in the 80’s he opened his first retail shop, with a collection that offered a range of swimwear for the consumer that wanted to showcase more of their bodies.

With the introduction of Pan Dulce in 1990, a Latin inspired collection that exclusively fabricated from 4-way stretch matte tricot, with clean lines and minimum detail. It was easy to fit, easy to wear, with a wide variety of styles available in every color and print. " For the 2006 season, we have introduced our most exciting selection ever of textured and unusual swimwear fabrics from around the world.  Crocheted, metallic, layered and embossed fabrics are glamorously accented with buckles, toggles, belts, rings, gold chains and crystal brackets." The color palette is warm and rich, with an emphasis on earth tones and naturals. With 15 different groups and 26 different color choices offered in the 2006 Ritchie Collection, there is something to fit anyone's designer tastes.

“We draw our inspiration from all the chic swimwear destinations around the world, as well as our feeling of what people would wear at these resorts, moshed with all the great couture runway designers.“

www.ritchieswimwear.com

Salinas

Salinas started in Brazil 18 years ago as a private label and had its own stores.  The line did so well the company moved forward with launching one of the largest bikini lines in Brazil!  Since it was brought to the U.S. in 1997, Salinas has established itself as the most sought after fashion bikini in the market.  Distributed exclusively by Marpessa Inc., Salinas can be found in the best department stores, boutiques and surf shops nationwide.

The Carmen Miranda Collection: "Carmen Miranda was a strong fashion icon of the 40’s and 50’s I Brazil and the US.  This year was the 50th anniversary of her death so we felt it was right to pay her a tribute.  She was the inspiration for all the colors and the elaborate materials and mixtures. Jacqueline (owner and designer) was a model between the ages of 15 and 18 [at the time].  During that time she noticed that the selection of bikinis for young girls was very limited.  Since she was looking for herself too, she saw an enormous opportunity to cater to that group.

Salinas is recognized worldwide for setting the trends and standards for the highest quality lycra in the bikini market. The Salinas collection offers a wide range of vibrant styles and unique prints.

Retails from $130
www.salinaswimwear.com

Vicky Moreinis

Vicky Moreinis Swimwear is a very unique and trendy line of swimwear. She has been in the US market for over 4 years as an independent designer and has appeared in numerous publications, such as Sports Illustrated, Lucky Magazine, Women’s Wear Daily among others.  She is based between Bogotá Colombia and Miami, Florida.

Vicky Moreinis started out in this business by helping design swimwear for other people. Today she develops, in conjunction with other talented designers, eight separate swimwear lines.  “My spring 2006 collection is inspired by happy colors! After the summer tragedies of so many destructive hurricanes, I wanted to a very happy collection with a touch of excess.

The collection has very bright contrasting colors such as Pink and Orange, green and Fuchsia and Aqua and Lime all with touches of sequence Bling.  My collection is very unique in that we make suits that are easy to fít and easy to wear. Furthermore, what I am best known for is combining the finest European fabrics with Latin American handicrafts. Many of my suits are hand made by artisans and each one of my suits is one of a kind!”

www.vickymoreinis.com

Heidi Fish started her business in 1998 with inspirations from her grandmother, Henrietta Stavings-Brauman. She learned at an early age the skills involved in conceptualizing garments and carrying that vision over to the finished product. The Heidi Fish collection is bright and feminine, reminiscent of the 40’s and 50’s glamour styles, which means curve conscious and sexy.

Heidi Fish features couture bikinis that are hand made with seashells and silver embellishments that make her swimwear collection fashion forward. Fish takes her visions from current street fashion and accessory trends and makes them her own.

"The fun part for me is creating design concepts then interpreting them as more than just a swimsuit. My suits are outfits. They're a fashion statement that can be worn on or off the beach...a little exotic, a lot cutting edge,” says Heidi.

Retail from 98.00 to 1500.00
www.heidifish.com

Belabumbum, the company that specializes in lingerie, maternity apparel, and swimwear for fun-loving women, is proud to debut their new collection for Spring/Summer 2006. Belabumbum is known for its comfortable colorful collections that mix timeless style with a little bit of whimsy. Belabumbum’s confections are essential, fashion forward pieces that run the gamut from sexy to sweet, and range from vibrant printed separates to pretty lace tops and bottoms.

Belabumbum is ecstatic about its Maternity Swim line that features a Halter tank top and boy cut in polka dots, stripes, ethnic prints and solids. And new for the season is a bikini cut with a removable piece that can be worn to cover the belly, or as a sarong. Belabumbum’s colorful silhouettes will transport mommy and baby safely to the shores of tranquility and great taste.

Retail from $75 to $105.
www.BELABUMBUM.com