Miami Fashion Week kicked off Wednesday, May 29th at the Kimpton EPIC Miami hotel, which served as the show’s base camp, leading up to an also-epic closing party Sunday, June 2nd at Ice Palace Studios, which housed the runway shows. A former ice factory built in 1920, this stunning white-walled fortress offered a dramatic backdrop for showcasing resort and cruise collections by both established names in the fashion industry, and emerging designers you’ll certainly be seeing more of.
Miami Fashion Week: The best designers
Hosted for the fourth year in a row by Antonio Banderas (¡hola!), featured designers included Spain’s Ágatha Ruiz de la Prada, Colombia’s Glory Ang, and Miami’s own Rene Ruiz. Other standouts included Fernando Alberto Atelier, Daniella Batlle, Vero Diaz, and Herminas Reea. Overall, the five-day event treated the Magic City to over a dozen runway shows, several panel discussions, and of course, glittering after-parties.
With special guest: The Dominican Republic
In addition to collections from some of the best designers around the world, Miami Fashion Week also trained a special spotlight on designers from the Dominican Republic, including Giannina Azar, Jenny Polanco, Arcadio Diaz, Jacqueline Then and Monica Varela.
If this sounds like some major fashion cred, it is. Fans of Giannina Azar’s designs reads like a list of the Who’s Who of Latin superstars, including Jennifer Lopez, Natti Natasha and Karol G. Remember that gorgeously tiered and billowy purple gown from singer Thalia’s Que Ironia video? Azar’s very own. Gwen Stefani has even graced the set of The Voice in Azar’s pieces.
Arcadio Diaz, known in the fashion world as the King of the Guayabera for his haute reinvention of Guayabera shirts infused with Caribbean influences, has dressed stars like Emilio Estefan, Jr. and Sammy Sosa. A repeat guest at Miami Fashion Week, his designs joined Jenny Polanco’s for a strut down the runway.
Sustainability in vogue
In addition to giving the city a healthy dose of luxurious looks, Miami Fashion Week also featured talks and panel discussions highlighting the importance of sustainability and ethical practices in the fashion world. Top designers from around the world shared their experiences, and marginalized voices got a platform to tell their stories. Committed to holding the luxury world to a higher standard, Miami Fashion Week’s ongoing mission is to help shed light on some of the less-than-pretty practices in fashion while also showcasing the latest talent and trends.
Now it’s your turn
Feeling fashionably inspired? With the summer season right around the corner, why not jumpstart your own collection of resort wear? Borrow some inspo from Miami Fashion Week’s best designers through Italist’s curated shop of beach dresses and caftans by some of luxury’s boldest designers. Or, turn the poolside into your own runway in impossibly chic bathing suits and statement-making swim trunks. And, after an exhausting day of lounging in the sun, Italist completes your hit-the-juice bar look with unique totes and covetable scarves and wraps.
Miami just turned up the heat – now you can, too!
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By: Jenny Muller
Jenny has been embracing beauty and fashion trends since her first visit to the Nordstrom makeup counter at age 12, after discovering the transformative power of a good lipstick. Since then, she’s turned that passion into a career, creating content and covering trends for Sephora, Marc Jacobs, Estee Lauder, Victoria’s Secret, and more. Her editorial expertise includes covering New York Fashion Week and the launch of Sephora’s makeup artist academy.