One of the designer swimwear labels to grace the catwalks of Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week in Miami was Colombian label Agua Bendita. The brand, designed by Catalina Alvarez and Mariana Hinestroza, known for its colorful prints and use of embroidered details, did not disappoint!

INSPIRATION
The theme for Agua Bendita's 2013 Cruise collection was "Lovely Heroes" and the designers were inspired by elements from the military, cowboy and nautical worlds to create looks that mixed soft femininity (pin-up influenced silhouettes, satiny materials, bows and ruffle details) with masculine edginess (army medal details, square shoulder jackets, camouflage prints). With this collection, Agua Bendita also paid homage to the 700+ workers who manufacture their line, the unsung heroes who personify the label's "lovely heroes", or in their words, "the engine that keep us working hard".

COLORS & PRINTS
The Army inspired groups played with camouflage colors and prints, olive greens, soft pastels and black transparencies. From the nautical inspired themes, the Marinero included whimsical pin-up prints and styles, heavily featuring reds, pinks and ruffled trims. The Sailor and Navy themed swimsuits naturally included many blue tones, continuing the pin-up illustration on the patterns, along with anchors, ropes, stripes and similar nautical motifs. The Cowboy group included earthy, desert-like tones, as well as more colorful patterns, as in the feather and serape inspired prints. The Glowing Stars group featured neon colors in yellow, green and pink, either mixed in the print or in embroidered details.

Our favorite looks came from the military and maritime groups - we loved how Agua Bendita amped the sexiness of the suits by combining the soft and hard elements, creating feminine looks with a tough edginess on the military group (looks on first image below). We also really enjoyed the mix of fabrics on the nautical groups (second image below, first and second looks):







Images: Plush Swimwear / Zimbio