Mercedes Benz Fashion Week Swim 2014
Cabana Grande, Raleigh Hotel, Miami Beach, FL
Interview with Nicole Di Rocco (Nicolita)
Interviewer, Photographer: Semant Jain, Ph.D.
Content Editor: Marisa Lyon
Copy Editors: Alexandra Scheck and Kim Pham
Fashion Writer: Michelle O. Dente
On the third day of Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Swim 2014, designer Nicole Di Rocco of Nicolita introduced her Swim 2014 collection, In Search of the Perfect Booty. Lisa Pilner, who helped design the collection, was also seen on the runway in two sexy one-piece suits. Polka dot bikinis with matching hair wraps and reminiscent pompadour hairstyles gave the models a retro inspired charm, while Smashbox Cosmetics provided a subtle yet dramatic look with winged, black eyeliner and pink lips. The color palette consisted of pastels in powder pink, light turquoise, peach, canary yellow, mint green, and classic black and white.
In a pre-show backstage interview with Semant Jain, Di Rocco said, “I’m still infusing a little bit of Cuba with that vintage flavor, but I am also including more modern day silhouettes, so that’s kind of my little secret sauce behind every year.” Di Rocco managed to keep her designs looking fresh and unique, incorporating three different types of bottoms: a minimal, a moderate, and a full coverage.
Di Rocco’s Cuban heritage has greatly influenced the designs for the curvaceous Latina body with modern day silhouettes and presenting at MBFW Swim 2014 has enabled Di Rocco “to showcase what it means to be Hispanic and American.”
Di Rocco’s main focus this year was creating styles to complement any figure, including high-waist styles to flatter hips, string bottoms for girls who dare to bare more, and back side cut-outs that added a sexy touch, with cute “peek-a-bow” bottoms being her favorite. She said, “Everybody has different types of curves, so there are three different types of bottoms. It helps each girl be able to pick and choose the style that she wants.”
The blend of polka-dot lace, ruffled trim, and attached bow accessories brought a retro- glam look with a conservatively sexy appeal to Di Rocco’s designs. A bikini in a tropical pastel print with a minimal, string bottom and ruffled trim top was accented with a peach bow. Another lovely design was a pink and black polka- dot halter and a high-waist bottom with a black bow belt.
Di Rocco’s swimsuits exhibited a lot of character, as did the models blowing kisses and giving playful winks on the runway. The models were picked through a “Search For The Perfect Booty” contest wherein Di Rocco used “personality and a strong walk” to select her models. Di Rocco stated, “Some of these girls don’t have a lot of experience coming into Mercedes Benz Fashion Week, but they had an amazing walk and they wanted it so bad. I want to give that dream away and let them have the opportunity to make something like this come to life for them.”
As for her own dream and future, Di Rocco exclaimed, “I just like to take one year at a time, because I would not think I would have been here five years ago. Take it one year at a time and keep moving forward with what I’m doing.”
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