Whenever spring comes, Marini and D'Apollonio turn from bulky knits to silk tops and dresses whose necks and sleeves are trimmed with several rows of crochet. The patterns are the pair's own designs, applied by hand using a proprietary oil printing method. "It's a secret," Marini insists. "It's something that’s very us, because of the washed/faded effect." The process is another way of ensuring that each piece comes out slightly different, which is important to the designers.