Trawling the halls in one of Europe's most prestigious beachwear shows to find the perfect collection to launch our first beachwear range for next summer I became more disheartened with every step I took. Beautiful exotic prints in glorious colours were plentiful; innovative creative designs abounded; but so too did the ubiquitous polyester, the beachwear fabric of choice at the show. And there's the rub!
I wanted only silk. We sell only luxurious natural fabrics; cashmere, silk, leather, cotton. We always have and, hopefully, we always will. My vision of an exquisite collection of flowing summer kaftans and elegantly draped ponchos was fading fast. I know the benefits of polyester; it's cheap (though not always judging by some of the eye-watering prices we saw in the show) it's durable and it can withstand the wet.
But I wanted silk. I know how much our customers enjoy and appreciate the quality of the fabrics we choose for our accessories and I was not about to settle for less, not for them and not for us. I wanted the soft luxurious feel of silk on the skin, its lightness, its subtle sheen and its breathability. In short I wanted its sheer beauty.
And then I met her: a wonderfully colourful Brazilian lady who has been designing and making beautiful beachwear for more than three decades. She knows her stuff. She loves her work. She too sells polyester (and silk) but she is making a collection of kaftans and ponchos in pure silk exclusively for us. Together we designed the styles and selected the prints. And the gorgeous Miss Cuba pictured here (an intriguing story for another day) modelled styles similar to those we have chosen.
Cuban Bright
Cuban White
Cuban Delight
We are thrilled that our search for silk finally bore fruit. We launch the collection early next spring. We hope you will like it.
