As a Floridian, I appreciate Miami and Miami Beach quite a lot. From rural coastal Florida, it's as enchanting to me as our pine and palm-laden coasts. It captivates with its blend of leisure, beauty, and a rich history of indulgence that you can't ignore. I'm not one who says they love Florida but don't like Miami. What's not to love?
Our latest BECASA collection features a very Miami, sunny palette of pale blue, true white, flax, and leaf green in hues reminiscent of light skies and sun-drenched shorelines. These colors evoke tranquility, which is a brand value of ours. Tranquil is not a word that describes our local North Florida beaches in the dead of winter (gale force winds typically) when the fashion calendar dictates a Spring product photo shoot occur. We've tried that, but the images didn't read Spring; we've even asked some of our favorite model muses -- and well, it's just too damn cold to shoot in a thin cotton dress. So, we searched for the sun and found much of it just further south in Miami Beach. After all, BECASA doesn't play by zip codes - we make ourselves at home wherever we go.
It's a short flight, and we're dropped into a mecca of color, beach kitsch, poolside fashion, sunshine, and mouthwatering cuisine—like that Cuban sandwich and coffee pairing from La Carreta before leaving the airport. (A spot first founded in Little Havana in 1976 and has since become a Miami landmark, even in the airport.) Sure, Miami is known as a bougie, party cesspool, but don't let that fool you. It's one of the most authentic places in Florida; it doesn't look like anywhere else in the United States, and the soul of the place overflows. Its decades-long vibe has become an icon of our time -- even more so after the seismic shift in the 80s and 90s after two long decades of drugs, corruption, and violence riddled the city. There is only one Miami and one Miami Beach.
Today, it has the power to take the thought of the word "beach" to the loudest decibel, drawing people to it like bugs to a light—direct flights daily from the Netherlands, Barcelona, and beyond. It's a full-on immersion into warm-weather culture. The sun rises, and music notes drift in the air; the sun sets, and the same happens again. The atmosphere is undeniable. People want to be in Miami.
When scoping out location options for our shoot, we couldn't miss the iconic lifeguard stands. Thirty-one vibrant structures provide beach safety, ocean rescue, and iconic scenes that harken to "Barbie Beach." After Hurricane Andrew devastated Miami-Dade, Architect William Lane reimagined the lifeguard stands from the bygone eras; all were in poor condition. His aim was not only to rebuild but also to transform them into iconic symbols that could aid Miami Beach's recovery and redefine its image and brand, if you will. The initial five stands found home at Lummus Park (central South Beach), and today, after extensive renovations, all 31 stations reflect Lane's original designs, seamlessly blending the city's art deco and nouveau aesthetics.
There's a saying: "People go to old places to see new things, or they go to new places to see old things." The lifeguard stations embody both—and it's magic. Spying every lifeguard station along the beach is an achievement for locals and visitors alike - most are easily accessible by Miami Beach's famous beachfront walking path, checking them off and happily spending time under the sun.