NYLON - August 2008 - (Page 86) NEW WAVE Quiksilver has always had one foot in the water. Born in the summer of 1969 in the Australian surf town of Torquay, the board-sport behemoth has been a lifestyle must for those with bushy blonde hairdos in the ’70s, lovers of neon JAMS in the ’80s, and Roxy’s beach babes in the ’90s. Their logo was inspired by Japanese artist Katsushika Hokusai’s iconic print The Great Wave off Kanagawa, and an early slogan avowed, “REAL SURFERS, REAL BOARDSHORTS.” But this fall, the tide has turned. “Surf culture is definitely in her bloodstream, but she’s looking for more fashion in her life,” says Summer Rapp— vice president of design, who helms the brand’s first-ever women’s line—of the Quiksilver girl. “We see her as being sort of tomboy-chic, pretty and feminine, but not afraid to spice things up.” Likeminded girls will find a collection tailored more towards hanging out than hanging 10— romantic bib-front shift dresses and knit tops with pointelle and polka-dot prints are juxtaposed against grungy, shrunken flannel button-ups, pinstriped vests, and enzyme-washed anoraks. Rapp covered all the essentials, from organic T-shirts (“It’s in our carbon footprint to really protect the environment”) to jeans (which come in no less then five fits and seven washes). “We really wanted denim to be the grounding point for the collection, and everything else kind of falls into place around it,” she says. “It isn’t beachy like our other lines; it’s more street.” Indeed, there isn’t a swimsuit in sight. Nor is there a blonde. The face of the new line is C.C. Sheffield, whose cherry-bitten pout and chestnut, banged locks are overshadowed only by her stirring voice as one-half of Los Angeles-based psychedelic rock outfit Le Rev. “She’s more than just a model,” explains Rapp. “She’s got a cutting edge look, a pretty, cultured side and then this tough, musicinspired side. She’s really in sync with what we want to do.” WITH ITS FIRST WOMEN’S LINE IN 40 YEARS, QUIKSILVER IS SAYING GOODBYE TO THE SEA. BY SAMANTHA GILEWICZ. PHOTOGRAPHED BY ELIZABETH WEINBERG stylist: erin m. fischer. hair: haruo noro at rita hazan salon. makeup: jordy poon using la prairie. model: annie at trump. all clothing by quiksilver, sneakers by converse.
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