The phrase “a table for two” has been the inspiration for songs, titles of masterpieces, and memories that are etched into couples’ indelible memories. From quiet settings along the beach or on the deck of a boat, to unique experiences with wildlife and the thunderous roar of majestic waterfalls, we bring you some of the most romantic spots around the globe for those memorable moments for two.

Photo Courtesy of Waldorf Astoria

Rome Cavalieri, Italy

This Waldorf Astoria resort is set in magnificent Rome. Overlooking the city, couples can have a quiet dinner while taking in the night views. Whether pampering in the exclusive spa, relaxing in the Imperial Club, or taking advantage of the private tours of the city, this spot is something even Zeus and Hera would enjoy.

Photo Courtesy of Sofitel Bora Bora

Hotel Sofitel Bora Bora Marara Beach Resort

With crystal waters and softly swaying palm trees in the tropical climes, Hotel Sofitel Bora Bora offers intimate experiences to couples in the Polynesian-style bungalows. White beaches, vibrant sunsets, and a lagoon lookout make for a great place for two overlooking the South Pacific Ocean.

Photo Courtesy of Tryall Club

Tryall Club, Jamaica

The slowly churning waterwheel at the Tryall Club is a splendid spot for a surprise engagement, anniversary dinner, or just a picturesque setting for two in Jamaica. Set on a pristine 2,200 acres, the property is located near Montego Bay, but feels worlds apart. From the beautiful villas to the alluring grounds, this table for two is a Caribbean dream.

Photo Courtesy of Four Seasons Jackson Hole

Four Seasons Jackson Hole, Wyoming

For the couple seeking a mountain escape, Four Seasons Jackson Hole is just the place. Whether sitting down to a picnic by the river, or watching a sunset over the rugged mountains in each other’s arms, the wide-open skies of Wyoming beckon couples to this romantic spot in western US.

Photo Courtesy of SA Tourism/Southern Ocean Lodge

Southern Ocean Lodge Kangaroo Island, South Australia

Kangaroos and Canapés is an experience couples will not likely forget at Southern Ocean Lodge in South Australia. The exclusive lodgings are the epitome of glamping, while unbridled nature is steps from the luxe accommodations. Whether enjoying breakfast or champagne with the bounding roos, a sail around the island, or simply taking in the breathtaking views from the lobby of the astounding resort, a stay at Southern Ocean Lodge will be memory of a lifetime.

Photo Courtesy of Starwood/Sheraton Nassau

Sheraton Nassau, Bahamas

A table for two on the beach is never a poor choice, and Sheraton Nassau aims to please at this resort in the Bahamas. Steps from the heated outdoor pools, couples will feel as though they have the beach to themselves with this table for two, arranged by the resort. Torches and gently-lapping surf will keep couples company into the star-lit night at this special spot.

Photo Courtesy of Etihad Airways

Etihad Airways, First Class

Romantic locales do not necessarily have to be on the ground…in the air is just as wonderful. A table for two can be found in Etihad Airway’s First Class Cabin, where the airline invites couples to dine on Cloud 9. With catered meals prepared by classically trained chefs, everything from wine pairings to organic ingredients for specialty meals are only a bite away in this unique airline experience.

Photo Courtesy of Ritz-Carlton, Cancun

Ritz-Carlton Cancun, Mexico

Azure blue waters await couples at Ritz-Carlton, Cancun—from beach-side cabana service to the Casitas restaurant that transforms from day to night into one of the best places in Cancun for a romance. The fresh menu, friendly service, and beautifully lit casita make for a gorgeous table for two in Mexico. Whether on a holiday away from the kids, celebrating a milestone anniversary, or just taking time for themselves, couples can feel the sand between their toes and love in the air at this resort amenity.

Photo Courtesy of Four Seasons Koh Samui

Four Seasons Resort Koh Samui, Thailand

Another wonderful beach getaway for couples looking for a special place for two is Four Seasons Resort Koh Samui. This Thai retreat is striking, with lanterns and lounge space created just for couples. Lake-side retreats are also found within the resort, with illuminated lanterns hovering over couples as they relax in their private oasis.

Photo Courtesy of The Leela Palace Udaipur

The Leela Palace Udaipur, India

Set on the banks of Lake Pichola, this Preferred Hotel Group resort is fit for kings and queens. Surrounded by views of the Lake and Aravalli Mountain Range, couples should be sure to request the circular private nooks at the Sheesh Mahal outdoor restaurant for an exotic table for two.

Photo Courtesy of Bhaya Cruises

Halong Bay Bhaya Cruises, Vietnam

From the cozy cabins aboard the Bhaya cruise ships to unforgettable romantic spots in Halong Bay, couples can hide out in a plethora of secluded settings throughout Vietnam. Whether savoring a meal together after a day of biking and kayaking, or taking in the stunning sunsets over the megalithic rock structures, this table for two can find itself throughout the bay, for a custom experience of your desire.

By Chad Chisholm

Chanel presents its 2013/14 Cruise Collection

French house Chanel presented their 2013/14 Cruise Collection for the very first time in Singapore on 9th of May.

Held at the Loewen Cluster, legendary fashion designer Karl Lagerfeld graced the event, along with some other famous faces, including Hollywood star Dakota Fanning, Rinko Kikuchi, Choi Siwon of K-pop band Super Junior, Carine Roitfeld (former editor-in-chief of Vogue Paris), Andre Leon Talley (former editor-at-large of Vogue US and present editor-in-chief of Numero Russia), and Caroline de Maigret, Lagerfeld’s “muse”.

According to Chanel, Singapore was chosen for the event as it “is the ultimate cruise destination”. “It is summer all year round. The original idea of “going on a cruise” stems from the desire to escape cold winters for a warmer climate and to enjoy an exotic place in the sun,” it added in a statement.

Mr. Simons, would you consider yourself someone that lives and breathes fashion?

How can I put this without being too critical? I don’t have so many things in the fashion world that interest me. It’s probably because I am so deeply into it. Often when you go very deep into something, you also discover what it’s about and you understand it better. With the art world I still have a lot of curiosity. There are a lot of things that I feel attracted to and I don’t necessarily understand them and that’s what fascinates me. In the fashion world I know a lot of the brands and the designers and you start to be more critical and you start to have a very specific point of view.

But isn’t fashion such a significant part of your life?

The fashion thing is something I do, and yes it is definitely also becoming a part of myself and my personality. It also doesn’t really feel like a job either: it’s a dream or a passion or something. I think there are things that I relate to more than fashion though, personal, private things. Like my environment, my family, my friends, you know.

I’ve read that the first fashion show you ever went to was Maison Martin Margiela. You said it was so beautiful that half the audience cried and it had a huge influence on you. Why?

Because that was the day that I understood that fashion could also be conceptual and intellectual, that it could be linked to a certain kind of social, psychological thing. That Martin Margiela show was in a really trashy area in Paris and it wasn’t in a building, it was in a playground from a black neighborhood. The parents had agreed to do the show for the Margiela company only if their children could come and see it. Everybody was expecting the children to just stay on the side and sit with the audience, but they didn’t.

What happened?

They started to play with the girls and it was a very, very different thing. Before my perception of fashion was a high-staged Americano, you know like sun tans, boys, healthy. Martin was turning it completely around; it was like they came out of a grave or something. They looked really different. I don’t have that background; my parents are very working-class and I come from a village where there is no culture.

How did you find your creativity in such a place?

One of the first things I picked up when I was very, very young out of a record store was work from Peter Saville, the early things he used to do for Factory Records. I come from a village of 6,000 people, so forget about Berlin, London, New York – what are you talking about? – I didn’t know anything. So I picked up things because of the imagery. We have to think back in time – no computers, no mobiles, no nothing – it was pure isolation in a way.

You never traveled when you were younger?

No traveling, never went on a holiday. My life was literally my street. And I picked up records because when you’re young, you’re into the bands. And what were the bands back in the day? The Cure, Anne Clarke, and all the new wave things. And then suddenly there were these things from New Order, Power, Corruption, and Lies with the flowers and the wreath. I was like, “What is that?”

Is that how you became interested in fashion?

No. I was in a college, you know, with priests teaching. We were not informed about what was possible. Until I was eighteen I did not know that you could study fashion design or art. I really didn’t know. I already had my nose in the art world, I was already looking at things, but I didn’t really get it that you could study that because my school was a very different environment. It was the kind of school where they want you to become a doctor or a lawyer and that’s not at all what my personality is.

How did you manage to get out of that?

I got this book from these people who would come to the class once or twice a year to show you what the possibilities to go and study are. In the back of the book there was a half page on architecture and a half page on industrial design. I looked at the address of the industrial design school and it wasn’t too far from my parents’ house – I could get there with a bus – so I thought I’d go and have a look. I walked through the door and I thought, “This is what I’m going to do.” I saw all these kids sitting there, with cigarettes, it looked like such a different world.

But that was industrial design, how did you end up in fashion?

Within the first months at that school I realized everything that was possible – going to an art school, going to a fashion school – and it was in that period that the Belgian designers started to shape up and I was very attracted to that. There was a Belgian fashion designer named Walter Van Beirendonck and I saw that the way he was handling fashion was not just by making clothes, he was also doing presentations and masks and furniture. I was so modest to think that I wouldn’t be welcomed in fashion because I was in design school, but I thought maybe I should just write a letter to see if he had an interest in letting me work for them and that worked out. He’s actually the one who took me to Paris to that Martin Margiela show we were talking about earlier.

It’s interesting because it feels like this combination of different but related art fields was always very present in your career and in your interests.

Yeah.

How do you deal with your star status in the fashion industry?

It’s not that much in my interest. It’s actually something that I’ve found quite complicated for a while. I’ve always kind of tried to split it up, but that is becoming more and more difficult because I’m attracted to do things that have this constant dialogue with an audience and it seems to keep growing. Which is a good feeling because that means that people want to have that dialogue with me or the things I do. So it is kind of fascinating, but the idea of fame just for fame’s sake is something that I actually hate.

How important is the Internet in that dialogue with your audience?

That’s the question that is in my head a lot lately. I don’t really know about the long run. It’s clearly quite important right now – it’s so much a tool from this moment and from this generation – but what were the tools when I was young? The tools were television and magazines or a normal telephone in the house and now twenty years later those are all gone. So I’m just trying to imagine if this computer thing and the Internet thing might be gone in twenty years. It’s an important tool in this moment, but I’m still somebody who believes that a real-life experience makes a difference. I know a lot of young kids whose world is literally their sixteen square meter room and their computer. With all respect, and yes I embrace the young generation’s approach, but you miss a lot that way.

An actual encounter with an art piece or a fashion show is significantly different than seeing it on a screen.

Exactly. The dimensions, the light, everything is different. Looking at and experiencing a movie in a theater or a performance on stage and being there and feeling the vibe and also feeling the other people’s vibes – it’s a very different thing. It’s one hundred percent the opposite of what we embrace so much as the new communication. But it’s important because it’s what the young kids embrace very, very much. Still, I think if it was only that, it could mean that it will disappear really fast. At the end of the day we are animals; it’s very animalistic in a way. We like to have contact.

Talking about the new generation, you used to teach fashion in Vienna. Do you think it’s possible to teach someone to do what you do?

That’s a good question. I think it partly can’t be taught, because I think teaching is not just learning to make a pattern or learning to sew a skirt or whatever. Teaching is also having a dialogue with somebody in order to teach the person to create a thought process. I do find a lot of people who have an interesting, individual, unique, meaningful thought process, but then comes the moment that the thought process, which is very abstract, has to be translated or brought to an actual thing, to a materialization. That’s where a lot of them have difficulties.

What is your thought process like? Let’s imagine you’re stuck with an idea and you don’t know where to go with your designs for a new collection…

Then I stop fashion, that’s not possible. That’s the day that I die!

But I’m sure you get stuck every now and then.

No, for me it’s the opposite. I have to find ways to stop the thought process because the thought process is constant; it’s constantly everywhere. And that’s not to make me sound pretentious, because it sometimes makes me unhappy. It can keep you awake or you have it in the middle of a meeting.

Does that affect the people around you?

It sometimes makes people nervous. I’m doing things and at the same time thinking about something else and they are responsible for working things out from the thing that I said before and I’m already saying something else. They would say, “Calm down! First this.” It’s a flow. I’m not somebody who has to sit at a desk and think over what I have to do. I know for myself that the day I’m stuck for an idea is the day that it has to stop; that’s the day that I know it’s not going to work anymore. So for me it’s the opposite: I have to find ways to stop my creative thought process.

What are some of those ways?

I go to the art world and I look at all the people’s work and I’m so fascinated with the work because it takes me away from my fashion thing. That’s also probably why I keep doing several things all the time – because the thought process never stops.

Name: Raf Simons
DOB: 12 January 1968
Place of Birth: Neerpelt, Limburg, Belgium
Occupation: Fashion Designer

By The Talks

The weather’s warming up, and if you haven’t thought about what you’re going to wear next to the water this summer, you’re already a step behind. When it comes to lounging at the pool or relaxing on the beach, your swimwear from high school just won’t cut it. Luckily, Aguaclara Swimwear has you covered.

Founded in 1989 by siblings Jorge and Liliana Villabolos in Lima, Peru, Aguaclara has had the last two and a half decades to establish its style and solidify its place in the luxury market. Rooted in Amazon and Andean influences, Aguaclara swimsuits have an ethnic taste that represents the founders’ love for travel and culture. Liliana, the company’s creative director, incorporates elaborate embroidery, exclusively developed prints and hand-made accessories to stay on top of — and create — new trends.

If you have any hesitation about buying a new swim suit, remember that purchasing quality swimwear is like making an investment that you’ll get to relish in for the next few seasons. And don’t forget that swimwear is one more way to show off your personality! Aguaclara’s new collection for Summer 2013 provides a number of unique styles, fits and patterns that will practically turn you into a walking (or sunbathing) piece of art.

With both classic black and white options as well as exotic animal print, Liliana’s cuts and styles are meant to drape the body in a way that will enhance the feminine shape and capture the beauty of the female silhouette. Accessories like faux ivory silver medallions, fine golden occhielli, and tortoishell chain-effect only add more glamour to the swimsuits.

By Nicolle Keogh

The quintessential bootmaker and ready-to-wear brand has chosen British actor Jeremy Irons and third in line to the throne of Monaco Pierre Casiraghi to front the campaign shot by Jean-Baptiste Mondino.

This year Berluti will also be expanding its network of stores including its first fashion houses in Paris, New York, Shanghai and Tokyo.

Vera Wang has turned what began as a single bridal boutique into a fashion and lifestyle empire with an overall retail value of over $1 billion. BoF speaks to the powerhouse entrepreneur about her remarkable professional journey.

NEW YORK, United States — “People have done far better than me in far shorter periods of time, but that wasn’t my story,” Vera Wang tells BoF. “It was brick by brick, client by client, store by store. It’s been a trip of passion, but it has not been a quick trip. Nor has it been easy. And that is the truth.”

The designer is the gold standard in high-end bridalwear, worn by everyone from Jennifer Lopez to Chelsea Clinton. She’s also a powerhouse entrepreneur who has grown a single bridal boutique into a fashion and lifestyle empire that spans a wide range of product segments — from engagement rings and ready-to-wear to dinner plates and cosmetics — at pricepoints that stretch from luxury to mass market.

“I wear many hats,” she says. “I have to be a promoter, a designer, a costumer of movie stars and celebrities, and a businesswoman,” says Wang, who heads both the business and creative sides of the company. “When you throw all of that into one bag, it’s a rough day. I love it, though.”

The results speak for themselves. According to market sources, the retail value of goods bearing Vera Wang’s name is estimated to be upwards of $1 billion per year.

Wang was born in New York City to wealthy immigrants from Shanghai, China. Her father was an entrepreneur who made his fortune in the pharmaceutical industry. “I think, in a way, watching him grow his company influenced me subliminally,” says Wang. Her mother, who worked as a translator at the United Nations, introduced her to fashion. “My mother and I went to a couture show when [Yves Saint Laurent] was on Rue Spontini,” she recalls. “That was his first couture house. It was a little atelier — 33 Rue Spontini, I still remember the address. So I really have been educated in fashion. I grew up with it, exposed to the greatest.”

At an early age, Wang began figure skating and, after years of intensive competition, tried, but failed to make, the 1968 US Olympic team. “When you fall down — which you have to [do] if you want to learn to be a skater — you pick yourself right up and start again. You don’t let anything deter you,” she notes. “Oddly enough, it’s strangely like fashion — you have a limited amount of time in which to get a point of view across.”

With her skating days behind her, Wang turned to fashion. “I thought maybe I could go to design school and my father said ‘Nope, go get a job.’” The summer after her junior year of college, she worked at the Yves Saint Laurent boutique on New York’s Madison Avenue. “It was just fate that I met — well, waited on — Frances Patiky Stein, who was one of the two fashion directors of [American] Vogue at the time. She said, ‘Call me when you’re finished with college.’ For some reason I believed her, and for some reason I did it. I called her two years later and she totally remembered me and got me an interview!”

Wang was hired at Vogue as a rover, or temporary assistant, and quickly worked her way up the ladder, becoming one of the magazine’s youngest ever fashion editors. “I got to work with Irving Penn and Richard Avedon — it’s kind of insane really when I think back on it,” she says of the 15 years she spent at Vogue. “It gives you an education that is parallel to none. There is nothing that isn’t available to you if you believe in it and want it and defend it to your boss. You had the best hairstylists, the best makeup artists, the best new photographers, the best established photographers.”

After being turned down for the editor-in-chief position, Wang left Vogue and, in 1987, joined Ralph Lauren. “I became a design director there,” Wang says. “It was incredible to work there. The budgets and the staff… as many ideas as you could come up with, that’s what they could execute. Very few companies can do that, myself included. So it was like a candy box.”

Two years later, while planning her wedding to Arthur Becker (from whom she is now separated), Wang had an epiphany. “I was a late bride and that experience of metamorphosis, going from being a fashion nun to being a bride, was kind of extreme for me,” she says. “There wasn’t anything, either a retail situation or a couture [designer] that really satisfied the needs of modern women, in my opinion. I was using common sense and thinking, ‘Well, everybody doesn’t want to wear the 4-inch cap-sleeve where you can’t lift your arms and a bodice of sequined lace with a big pouf skirt and stuff around your hair dangling down. I just thought there was another vision.”

In 1990, Wang opened her own bridal boutique, Bridal House Ltd., on Madison Avenue. “Because I didn’t come from a bridal background, I think I brought fashion to [the bridal industry],” she says. “I was fearless because I really didn’t know any better.”

Wang has since pushed the boundaries of bridalwear. “[I] try to bring an edginess to a traditional business,” she says. Her most recent collection, for example, blends a black and white palette, while, a year ago, her bridal gowns came in shades of red. “[I] take a lot of stylistic and visual and intellectual liberties with the concept of a wedding gown. Every season, I try to change it — and that demand I put on myself is enormous. It’s painful.”

A subversive sensibility is even more apparent in Wang’s ready-to-wear collection, first introduced in 2000 and inspired by the urban daywear she wears herself. “Ready-to-wear is far more experimental and a chance for me to express my own aesthetic. But it’s frustrating because I can’t make that into a business,” she says.

“My father had no idea about the garment business; what he did know was common sense business: that all businesses have to make money to survive and to attract the proper talent and the right support systems,” she continues. “I don’t mean you should sacrifice everything [creatively to make money] but there is a lot of fine-line walking there along the tightrope.”

Not only has Wang allied herself with two of the biggest bridalwear retailers in North America (Men’s Warehouse carries Vera Wang tuxedos and David’s Bridal host a line of Vera Wang wedding dresses), she has also teamed up with ubiquitous mall retailer Zales on a collection of engagement and wedding rings.

But calling Wang a bridal designer fails to capture the full range of businesses that live under the Vera Wang brand umbrella. “I follow the Calvin Klein model and the Ralph Lauren model, which is a very American model. You do the collection, but you also do the perfume and other things.”

Indeed, through a number of licensing agreements, Vera Wang’s name is associated with everything from stationery to bedding. Most significant is her longstanding partnership with mass market department store Kohl’s, at which Wang has built a lucrative, full-fledged lifestyle brand, Simply Vera, covering clothing, accessories, sleepwear, shoes, jewellery, home, cosmetics and a fragrance, available exclusively at the retailer.

But with so many different business lines, how does Vera Wang maintain the integrity of her brand name?

Attention to detail is critical. “Whether it’s eyewear for Kohl’s or eyewear for my collection line, the frames should be beautifully shaped, the lenses should be interesting. I study everything about them. I’ve always studied fashion back to tail, since I was 14 years old. So you can imagine now, I’m way more obsessive than I was back then, because my livelihood depends on it.”

Wang is also careful about choosing her partners. “You are there to grow a business together [and] you have a brand to protect. You have to be able to strike that business relationship where they don’t feel it’s us against them or them against us — we are all trying to come together with something that works financially, artistically, and is mutually beneficial.”

Nonetheless, one of the brand’s partners in Asia, a key focus of the company’s expansion plans, recently sparked controversy by charging customers at the recently launched Shanghai bridal flagship a fee for trying on wedding gowns (a practice that Wang has since abolished).

“That wasn’t specifically a statement from me, that was a statement from the Shanghai store operator,” says Wang. “They implemented it to protect [against] counterfeiting. We have very carefully educated their salespeople as to our look, quality, what we believe in aesthetically, how we like a client to feel that they are getting the best treatment possible. But we do not operate those stores. Needless to say, the press was very upsetting to me on a personal level.”

“I try to not get ahead of myself,” she says. “Sometimes you are influenced by the people around you and they’re pushing you and it’s hard to make every decision a right decision. But I try to have my feet on the ground. It’s been a trip of passion and respect for the client and respect for how relevant you have to keep the brand in a changing world.”

Research for this article was contributed by Suleman Anaya.

By Tommye Fitzpatrick

Photos courtesy of Morena Rosa

Scouted while working as a bartender at a function his parents were catering, Christopher was signed by Graham Edwards from Gadal Model Management in Barbados. The embodiment of effortless sophistication, this Caribbean charmer will be heading to Milan for the shows in June, where his agency Fashion have high expectations.