(from Leo Lionni's "Little Blue and Little Yellow," available from Harper Collins Publishers)

Designing Resort ’10 was exciting for me because this is the first time we have ever created a resort collection at Loeffler Randall. It was interesting to think about what kinds of styles would work well for a season that falls smack dab in the middle of winter and spring. Resort is about sandals and thinking about warm weather to come, but it is also ‘wear now’ – with styles to wear when it is cold outside.

Being that resort is a transitional season, the collection is a riff on the inspirations from both the Fall 09 and Spring 10 collections. It’s a mix of fall’s Louise Bourgeois-inspired aggressive ‘tough chic’ and Spring’s optimism and color.

I began by looking at one of my most beloved children’s books called “Little Blue and Little Yellow” by Leo Lionni, a celebrated author, graphic designer and illustrator. Lionni’s beautiful blots of color (above) inspired resort’s palette of blacks, warm browns, nudes and my favorite new color of the season – dark green.

I love the range of styles in the resort collection. From the super-strappy Carlie mignon sandal that has me dreaming about spring to the Nell tall lace-up boot that is perfect for the chilly days ahead.