TLDR
Royal-approved swim designer Melissa Odabash just used Miami Swim Week to sketch out a quietly glamorous beach look for 2026, built on Riviera white, crochet, and effortless flats.
Backstage at Paraiso Miami Swim Week, Melissa Odabash is in the rare position of already knowing how her collection will live. Her pieces are not just for runways. They are for yachts in the Mediterranean, resort decks in Mustique, and, very specifically, the private holidays of a future king and queen.
The New Jersey-born designer has spent decades dressing women accustomed to having cameras follow every step. Beyonce, Rihanna, Gwyneth Paltrow, and A-list regulars have all worn her swimwear. Yet it is the loyalty of one customer that has subtly shifted her public image into something almost royal-adjacent.
Catherine, Princess of Wales, still known globally as Kate Middleton, has been photographed in Odabash bikinis while cruising on a yacht with Prince William. She has also chosen Odabash dresses for Wimbledon. Both looks shared one signature: they were crisp, immaculate white.
Odabash does not take that kind of repeat endorsement lightly. “Because there is so much more choice out there, the fact that they still choose my designs to go on their vacations, it is an honor,” she told the Daily Mail from Miami.
Her favorite shade on royals and civilians alike is what she calls Riviera white. “It is the chicest color,” she said, noting that royal women tend to gravitate toward pieces that feel “chic and timeless” rather than trend-chasing.
From there, summer 2026 starts to take shape. She predicts matching sets will be everywhere, especially on European beaches where lunch can mean walking straight from a lounge chair to a seaside restaurant. Coordinated shirts, skirts, and shorts that echo the bikini underneath let women feel pulled together in seconds.
Color may be quiet, but texture is not. Riviera white returns in crochet, paired with rich chocolate browns and deep navy. Her team describes the new dresses as “floor-length, body-skimming silhouettes with elegant transparency” alongside shorter, figure-hugging shapes that balance ease with polish. Bandeau tops are back in the mix, but styled with more coverage elsewhere for a grown-up take.
There is a deliberate softening in the accessories. “It is more about flats, not high heels. Maxi dresses but with a flat,” she explained. Straw tote bags replace logo-heavy beach gear, and cat-eye sunglasses provide just enough vintage glamour to feel cinematic without tipping into costume. The overall effect, she said, should feel “toned down” and “classic, timeless, effortless.”
That word effortless carries extra weight coming from someone who has quietly built a global business since 1999. After modeling and working with houses like Valentino, Prada, and Fendi, Odabash saw a gap in the market for luxurious, durable swimwear and filled it with her own name.
In 2021, her position in British fashion was underscored when she was appointed an honorary Member of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (MBE) by Queen Elizabeth II. She has called it the moment she knew she had truly “made it,” admitting she had to explain the honor to her American family, yet it remained “the biggest honor” of her career.
For younger designers watching from the sidelines, she offers stripped-back guidance that mirrors her aesthetic. “Stick to one thing and get really good, so that people know that when they need that one thing, they go to you,” she advised.
For now, that one thing is a very specific vision of summer: white that photographs beautifully, crochet that skims rather than clings, flats that last all day, and a straw bag hooked over one arm. The royals have already signed off. The rest of the world, Odabash suspects, will follow.
Do you gravitate toward timeless pieces like Riviera white and straw bags, or do you still love a bold beach trend? Share which of Melissa Odabash’s summer 2026 style ideas feel most wearable in your real life, from matching sets to maxi dresses with flats.
