This past Thursday, I was ever so graciously invited to an event in Beverly Hills put on by RtM Agency and Chalia Breonn. The event was titled as a Swimwear Editorial Launch for 2015’s Creative Direction and Photography from yours truly, Social Lifestyle Magazine along with Runway Magazine.

 

The event was held at the Riviera 31 Lounge within the Sofitel Hotel in Beverly Hills. As you pulled up to the Hotel, there was valet there to attend to your vehicle, which I thought was a very smart move to host an event at a location that provides valet, being that parking is extremely hard to come by in the L.A./Beverly Hills area. After valeting your car, you walk in through the hotel which has an amazing lobby. All black marble flooring and columns decorated with modern and contemporary art and sculptures. I was politely directed to the entrance of the Lounge which was to the left of the Hotel lobby. At the doorway of the Riviera 31 Lounge was where you were greeted by employees of RtM Agency and your name checked off the RSVP list. Upon your entrance to the lounge, you find yourself walking down a mini corridor lined to the left with plush couches, ottomans and low back chairs. As soon as you step foot into the entrance of the venue, you immediately get the vibe of a laid-back, mellow, after 7pm lounge. With dim lighting, red and black walls and décor, the venue has a really soulful, jazz feel to it.

Compliments of the RtM Agency, there was an open tequila bar sponsored by Pura Vida Tequila for the first half of the evening. As guests continue to arrive, there was a slide show projection going of images featuring latest creative direction and styling done by Chalia Breonn that had recently been published within Social Lifestyle Magazine and Runway Magazine. The images followed the event’s theme of swimwear. To also go along with the theme, there was a swimwear presentation showcasing Fancy Swimwear by Liz Luque. One thing that I found extremely different and cool about the presentations were that instead of your traditional runway show or stand still installations, models stood on large square platforms and transitioned between several elaborate poses in which they held for several minutes for prime photo-taking. The swimwear itself was absolutely amazing. The designers did a mixture of sexy, couture and sports inspired silhouettes and created swimwear that would look amazing next to any beach, pool or pool party. The models were styled with very cool, vibrant neon colored make-up and up-do’s to go along with the bright suits and sporty styles.

RtM is an acronym for Reach the Masses and that’s exactly what they did with this event. Something I’m not quite sure they did on purpose was to pick a location that was left open to the public along with event attendees. By doing such a thing, guests to the event included individuals that were staying at the hotel, whether it was for business or just there in town on vacation. The crowd as a whole was a melting pot of fashion industry members, family and friends to Raphel and Chalia Breonn; founders of RtM agency along with businessmen and average fashion enthusiasts. With that being said, the fashion that was seen ranged from slacks and button-up shirts, your traditional business-wear to dark denim jeans, graphic tee shirts and jackets, your traditional elevated streetwear. The female attendees arrived across the board in your traditional cocktail style dresses and two piece attire which I found extremely fitting for the venue. I decided to switch things up a bit and style myself in a plaid kilt, button down skirt and vibrant sneakers. All night I continued to say that you can point out a stylists from across the room, they are always the ones that take your average style to the next level and do something quirky to separate themselves from the crowd.

As a whole, the event itself was a major success. The RtM Agency was able to reach the masses, so to speak and in doing so, be able to debut amazing swimwear designs from local designers. All while doing so, the agency manage to celebrate the amazing skill of their very own, Chalia Breonn.

I would like to thank the RtM agency and said local swimwear designers for inviting me to such a fun and exciting event and also for the gift bag I was given at the end of the night filled with skin care products, t-shirts and accessories!  Men’s gift bags were filled by Azul Denim and Flud Watches while the women’s bags contained Karora Cosmetics, Purlisse and Susan Ciminelli

 

Be sure to check out the RtM’s webpage along with Chalia Breonn webpage for styling and creative directions. To see more of the amazing Fancy Swimwear Collection click here.