Skin deep

Sick of Ed Hardy? Well, don't go anywhere near Miami Beach, where the brand will dominate Fashion Week Swim

By Joanie Cox

City Link Metromix

Ask a die-hard style disciple and she'll tell you Fashion Week doesn't exist south of Bryant Park in New York. But the last time I checked, the same company that sponsors New York's Fashion Week is behind South Florida's. In fact, Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Swim is the closest we get to proving we have an internationally relevant fashion scene down here. And besides, I'll take a mojito in a tent at the Raleigh Hotel in Miami Beach over a cosmopolitan in a tent at Bryant Park in a New York minute. Today through Sunday, the 2010 swimwear collections of Red Carter, Ank by Mirla Sabino, Poko Pano, Luli Fama and many others will grace the runway at the Raleigh.

With most of the shows being invite-only, the event has become yet another avenue for local socialites and scenesters to show off to their minions on Facebook that—OMG!—they're so on the list. My favorite observation about this behavior is that people who truly love fashion and want to get into the shows can't, yet many of the people who do have access are too busy texting on their BlackBerries and iPhones to notice next season's looks passing them by on the runway. However, I'll be updating Glamazon Style Files, my blog on Southflorida.metromix.com, throughout this week, so you can still see all the fabulous beachwear for next summer without getting snubbed, sweaty or trampled on—I'll take the abuse for you.

The most anticipated shows this year are Ed Hardy Swimwear and True Religion Swimwear. Perhaps it's because the brands constantly appear on the asses of Madonna, Britney Spears, Paris Hilton and—hilariously bizarre—"Jon and Kate Plus 8" daddy Jon Gosselin. Or maybe it's because Christian Audigier, the main man behind Ed Hardy, has his perfectly manicured finger on the pulse of pop culture. He's already working on a Michael Jackson clothing line. Regardless, celebrities always show up to Ed Hardy fashion shows, especially for the legendary gift bags, which are known to include wads of gratis Hardy merch.

DJ Irie, who is the official DJ for the Miami Heat and Jamie Foxx's current tour, will spin the music at Ed Hardy and True Religion's shows—another clue the crowd will include some A-listers. With its electric colors and ornate dragon, skull and tiger designs, Ed Hardy has become a symbol of the Miami party life itself—decadent, flashy and very expensive to keep up with. The line, which was inspired by tattoo artist Don Ed Hardy, emerged with blinged-out trucker hats and T-shirts in 2004. Now, it includes everything from bottled water and cigarette lighters to shower curtains and car air fresheners.

But if you were wishing that someone would stab a fork through the Ed Hardy tattoo trend, dream on. I have to admit, I was not a fan of the line when it first came out. I made fun of everyone who wore it and predicted it would have the same short shelf-life that cursed Audigier's previous brand, Von Dutch. However, I'm now guilty of owning three Ed Hardy trucker hats, two handbags, bar glasses, coasters and a cell-phone case all emblazoned with my favorite Hardy slogan, "Love kills slowly."

You may say this makes me a shameless label whore. I say that, when I wear my Ed Hardy gear, I feel like one of the cool kids who wasn't picked last for dodgeball on the P.E. field.

Just take a walk around the pool area of the W Fort Lauderdale, Pangaea in Hollywood or Mansion in Miami Beach, and you'll see the Ed Hardy brand is still going stronger than a café Cubano in Hialeah.

"Regardless of what anybody has to say about Ed Hardy, it has been a major trendsetter in fashion," insists Fawn Arthur, creative director for Sea and Sun Swimwear, which manufactures swimsuits for Ed Hardy and True Religion Brand Jeans. "Now, when I go shopping, all I see is knockoffs of our ideas—the combination of rhinestoning with the tattoo art. Our art is the original art. But I'm glad we're turning our stuff in a fresher, little bit different direction."

To compete with swimwear lines by Hurley and Roxy, Ed Hardy Swimwear is skewing younger for 2010.

"We obviously kept our tattoos, but we're finding different ways to use the tattoo art because it's getting old and played out. Seeing everybody else's stuff—I can't do it again. Plus, our customers want something else," Arthur reports. "We're doing some cool all-over prints with little windows of print coming through. Style-wise, we have some amazing one-pieces. It's more personal this season, so a girl can mix and match. You can wear a solid bottom with a funky colored top."

Arthur adds that Ed Hardy Swimwear, which also features $174 bikinis for women and $80 board shorts for men, will offer more variety next year. "We're doing a lot of screen-printing, textures, foils, graffiti and adding some dimension to the line so it's not just flat rhinestones. Some stuff is not even stoned this year—it's just down to the details," Arthur says.

In True Religion Swimwear's 2010 collection, expect to see bathing suits boasting that thick stitching for which the brand's jeans are famous. Founded by Jeffrey Lubell in 2002, True Religion Brand Jeans, which retail for $172 to $350 a pair, have always exuded a bohemian, rock-star vibe. The swimsuits are geared toward a more-subtle, sexy and sophisticated customer than the Ed Hardy fanatic.

"We take our inspiration from the mother lines and make it our own. Swimwear is such a niche market," Arthur says. "True Religion is a little more washed-out, but you can't do washed-out bikinis—they won't sell. With True Religion Swimwear, we really wanted to embrace the denim this year."

At 11 a.m. Saturday, the ultimate Ed Hardy accessory will be unveiled at SushiSamba Dromo on Lincoln Road in Miami Beach. Pastry chef Sergio Navarro whipped up a two-piece edible replica of the 2010 "Trellis" suit. Made from beets, blueberries and banana leaves, the bitable bikini reveals that Ed Hardy is a trend we're still willing to swallow.

Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Swim will take place at the Raleigh, 1775 Collins Ave., in Miami Beach. Call 305-534-6300 or visit Mbfashionweek.com. Contact Joanie Cox at Jcox@citylinkmagazine.com