Tell us a little bit about your background, and why you got into designing swimwear?
I accidentally fell into designing swimwear. I graduated from Parsons with a degree in women’s fashion design and worked in a few different jobs before I found my niche in swimwear. While working for Nike designing tennis apparel and I was offered an opportunity to help Abercrombie & Fitch launch their intimates and sleep business as well as design their swim collection. Several madras plaid and ethnic paisley bikinis later and I was hooked! I love the challenge of balancing of function and fashion that designing swimwear requires. I can also be quite obsessive about details, I love detailing every last elastic trim that gives the right amount of support and gold cord end that adds the perfect bit of novelty. Swim was also a product that came very natural to me- I grew up on Cape Cod and spent all of my summers in a swimsuit. I even lifeguarded at the YMCA’s in the city while I was at Parsons.

What’s missing from the swim industry that you think KCSaddresses?
I wanted to focus on fitting realistic body types while still offering a beautiful designer aesthetic in the best quality fabrics and trims. Most designer swim collections are cut to more of a sexy Californian or Brazilian fit. My collection is designed with a decidedly “American” fit on the bottoms for just the right amount of coverage in the rear. The one-pieces inspire a sexy confidence with feminine keyhole and cutouts yet still allow the customer to feel covered. The Azur one piece has been a favorite for my girlfriends who have recently had babies. I also wanted to create a collection that reflects more of an east coast sophistication, fresh clean American design with a touch of whimsy.

What kind of a woman do you design for?
I design for a woman in her 30’s. She’s an intelligent professional with a strong sense of self. She loves fashion but also has a dynamic life with family, friends, hobbies and travel. She likes buying quality investment pieces and looks for unique styling and prints that define her personal style. My ultimate goal is that she’ll fall in love with one of my suits and will wear it as her favorite for years.

Where do you draw inspiration from?
The inspiration for my collection comes from so many different sources. The 2009 collection started from an amazing photo of Brigitte Bardot in a chic brown bikini with a straw sun hat. That image really evoked the sophisticated, sexy confidence that I wanted the collection to represent. From there I developed the color palette of brown, bronze, cream and gold. Then I found the poppy floral print and some amazing trims and the collection evolved into it’s finished state. I get very inspired by the materials I find- from a mill’s fabric color card, a print or the perfect piece of hardware. The 2010 collection I am working on now is inspired by arts & crafts- there’s a beautiful painterly print and lots of hand embellishment techniques.

Tell us about the amazing prints you source.
My good friend Missi (a past colleague from Abercrombie) has a vintage swatch company that she runs with her husband Brian. She’s constantly combing estate sales and vintage markets and has a wonderful eye- she was a designer for 12 years before launching her company. All of the prints in my 2009 collection were developed off of vintage swatches from their collection.

You’re a Fort Greene resident, what are your favorite FG haunts? How do you spend your saturdays in FG?
There are so many! I like to visit the sculptures on the Pratt campus, go to Choice for coffee and pastries, Rope for beers and hanging out on the back patio in the summer months, the Grand Dakar for music and the fiery jerk chicken wings, Stonehome for flights of wine, movies at BAM followed by dinner at Thomas Beisl and shows at the Masonic Temple. I love going to the Brooklyn Flea to look for vintage inspiration for my collection. I found some great earrings that I will use as a bead trim for 2010. On Saturdays I’ll usually go on a long bike ride and then shop at the farmers market or one of the smaller food markets, pick up a bottle of wine and cook dinner with my fiance. What I love most about the neighborhood is that all of the businesses are independently owned, there’s a real sense of community when you know the owner of a shop or restaurant.