Life Aquatic

I often rant on about the importance of the state of the body underneath the clothing.  That is, the meat that you intend to season with peppered tweeds and salted challis.  And I've often proclaimed that the more prime a cut you keep yourself the better launchpad you have for a bevy of wonderfully woven flavors and zests.  Now it stands to be said that while one may not be in a physical state of 'grade A' at all times, a skillful chef knows how to sauté and season to help a 'not so restaurant-quality' cut create an experience that conjures up salivation.

In walks Victoria Bartlett.  The 'inner-outerwear' designer and ready to wear ingenue has worked around the female form enough to know what strap placed where seasons and what enhancement placed where flavors.  But that's not all she knows.  In telling a story built around the body, Ms. Bartlett understands the beauty in its simplicity.  Her Spring 2012 VPL show seemed to be inspired by seaside pixies freshly kissed with ocean mist. Real world translation?  Clean slicked back textured hair on models with glowingly natural skin donning clothes that was inspired by aquatic references like shells, ripples, scuba diving and taking a quick dip.

The show was chock full of examples that merge inner and outer wear to a point of sweet yet sensual equilibrium.  Appropriately titled 'And Then There Was Us', Ms. Bartlett called upon Eve-like natural themes of beauty and nature.  The models were appropriately dolled up to appear as though they'd just emerged from the shower with hair done by Recine and Phyto haircare, slick coated nails and manicures by Butter London, clean make-up headed by Lucia Pieroni for Cle de Peau Beaute atop perfect skin treated by Intraceuticals and Clarisonic. Then Ms. Bartlett applied her knowledge of form and fit to neoprenes, printed knits, languid jersies, eclectic costume jewelry and vibrant footwear.  The collection that had all the 'vertebraed' influence of spiny sea-creatures but the aesthetic appeal of innovative clothing chosen for the spring/summer needs of confident, sexy women seeking harmony with fashion and certain aspects of an aquatic nature.