RESORT WEAR

A special collaboration with Anantara’s sun-soaked Marbella resort sets the scene for All Things Mochi’s fiesta-ready collection

- MICHAELA WILLIAMS

With a long-running reputation as one of the original Euro party towns, Spain’s iconic Marbella has endured its share of unfair stereotyping as an up-all-night destination. But this Málaga coastal spot’s (admittedly extensive) party scene belies the town’s natural beauty, nestled between secure seas and Mediterranean hillsides. It’s tucked away in-between in these verdant slopes, through olives groves and vineyards, that you will find Anantara’s newest – and most intriguing – resort.

Surrounded by emerald golf courses and manicured gardens, Anantara Villa Padierna Palace Benahavis-Marbella Resort is moments away from bustling Marbella and the Costa de Sol town’s vibrant port, the latter lined with luxury designers and plentiful people-watching. Hosting its own rollcall of celebrity guests, including Michelle Obama and her daughters, Jennifer Lopez, and scores of more secretive royals, Hollywood stars, athletes, politicians and society stalwarts, the Edward Gilbert-designed resort imbibes a sense of occasion, first implemented by the property’s original lady of the manor. Both a curious world traveler and beloved family matriarch, the late Alicia Villapadierna Klein developed Villa Padierna Palace in 2003, envisioning the property’s vast spaces as a culmination of her global adventures with her husband, Ricardo, and their four sons. Hand-picking personal mementos of her favorite destinations, she created interiors that represented a living map of her and her family’s most fondly-remembered moments. “She was an incredible, truly beloved woman who was the sun to those around her,” reflects Cristina Borges, Anantara’s Regional Director of PR for Portugal and Spain. “A strong, vibrant force of nature who everyone loved and was drawn to. Villa Padierna Palace became a special place to stay because of her energy.”