With a background image of clouds passing across the moon, the Zimmerman Spring 2009 collection unveiled so much more than the signature swimwear line the brand is celebrated for. With layered dresses, multi-prints, ruffled hems, cascading tiers, and flirty tucks; the presentation was romantically feminine and delicately dreamy. The Zimmerman sisters unveiled their "Marmalade Skies" collection of 35 looks with a hint of 60’s bohemian flair. Even the show run, printed on an iridescent cornflower blue with an excerpt from The Beatles’ “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds” conjured up a psychedelic Midsummer, that is, Zimmerman Night’s Dream.

Picture yourself in a boat on a river;
With tangerine trees
and marmalade skies.
Somebody calls you,
you answer quite slowly,
A girl with
Kaleidoscope eyes

Cellophane flowers
Of yellow and green,
Towering over your head
Look for the girl
With the sun in her eyes,
And she’s gone…

“One glance, and you know that dress or that bikini is Zimmerman. The dynamic Australian label stays true to its original vision: sophisticated femininity, strong silhouettes, clever color combinations and delicate original prints.” According to the company website, designing sisters Nicky and Simone Zimmerman founded their eponymous label back in 1991. They fast won a loyal following—smart sartorially savvy women with an eye for quality fabrics and clever cutting. The range is elevated yet casual, with a twist of fun. There’s a quintessential energy and lightness to a Zimmerman piece. Internationally, Zimmerman Swimwear is at the forefront of directional fashion swimwear. “If Sydney was personified, she’d be bronzed and almost certainly wearing a Zimmerman bikini, so synonymous has the sunny label become with Australian style,” noted the Sydney Morning Herald.

Often designers draw inspiration from themes in nature. Here the sartorial sisters literally plucked colors from twilight skies. The design descriptions further underscored the collection’s dreamscape with their dusk, dawn, twilight, and sunshine separates. “This season the Zimmerman muse was part 60’s hazy ingénue, part Jodie Foster’s Iris in Taxi Driver. She was innocent, but sexy; feminine, not fussy. This collection incorporated vintage prints, fluid silhouettes, and sophisticated tailoring. The Zimmerman girl journeys through the summer with intricate detailing and carefree styling.”

The coquettishly confident Zimmerman siren was sassy with layered looks, slouchy trousers, and cascading ruffles. My favorite pieces included: a twilight natural paneled bustier dress layered over a dusk paint-print triple fold soiree dress; a dusk floral kaleidoscope one-piece swimsuit; the dusk floral ruffle dress with dusk paint-print lingerie; a sunshine floral ruffle bikini; the twilight asymmetrical coral lace top and sunshine nude pleat skirt; a twilight black lace petal top sunshine black a-line kaleidoscope skirt with sunshine leopard lingerie; the sunshine leopard frill cross back one-piece swimsuit; a twilight coral folded petal bodice atop sunshine nude kaleidoscope skirt with sunshine leopard lingerie; and the sunshine black pleat dress.

The Zimmerman sisters personified an impressionist’s painting with their blended pastel hues and relaxed draped dressing. The hair and make-up were also softened to complement this bohemian rhapsody. Here the hair was voluminous, styled at one-length with a center part, and pulled forward over the shoulders; the eyes were gently smudged with a pale-pink pouty mouth. Like deep-sea diving, this new collection uncovered buried treasures of pearl, turquoise, and coral along the reef with its muted hues and kaleidoscope prints. This season, the Zimmerman girl was undeniably flirty, unabashedly cool, and unapologetically feminine!

For additional information please visit, http://www.zimmermannwear.com/