While on lockdown in Holland, Lisi Herrebrugh and Rushemy Botter found the time to set a longstanding dream project in motion. After speaking with government authorities in France and Curaçao, and with a little help from friends, family, and a diving company they were able to expand the Botter world by setting up an underwater coral nursery.
In their fall collection, “Romancing the Coral Reef,” a dark suit sewn with wooden fishing tackle, hand-carved by a Japanese specialist, drives the point home. As do a witty mermaid necklace and buoy bag. Tailored pieces and knits likewise take a cue from diving gear; a blazer with a
cutaway front has an acid green lining, while a single-breasted jacket sports off-center wetsuit fasteners and, at the back of the collar, a vertical slit that opens to reveal a hood. Knit weaves echo such details, though some are finished with polo collars and lace-up details that nod to Botter’s collaboration with Nike. A four-pocket windbreaker with a changeant finish is made of ocean plastic; a percentage of its sales are earmarked for coral preservation. In a witty aside, the designers contacted the family-run umbrella maker Piganiol, whose leftover rain-washed, sun-faded material became ponchos that riffed on 17th century ruffs.
Tablecloths sourced from Rushemy’s grandmother and fabric warehouses on the outskirts of Paris were also fair game: Those became quilted suits that are inherently one-of-a-kind. Rushemy noted that, in island cultures, the harder things get, the more people dress up. In exploring the upside of that equation, they offered one of their strongest outings to date.
