This is THE summer essential, the one fashion piece, well I should say two (small) pieces, that we live in all summer long. At least I do! We are so used to wearing it that we may have forgotten about it’s history. Well, I’m proud to remind you that it’s a French invention! Yes you heard it right! “The modern bikini” as we know it today (the one that is more revealing and shows the navel) was invented in 1946 by French Designer Louis Réard. Back in the 1930’s women were wearing swimsuits but none were showing the navel. It took the end of World War II and the desire to express more freedom for the modern bikini to become a global success. By the way did you know that the Bikini was named after the first American test of the nuclear bomb in the Bikini Atoll, which took place four days before the bikini was launched?! I was recently going through one of my coffee table books: “French Style” by Berenice Vila Baundry and came across the story. I thought that was an interesting and fun fact to share.
The bikini is definitely the star of the summer and I feel we cannot have too much of them! Growing up by the beach in the South of France, I played in the water A LOT! I’m a beach girl at heart, who’s the happiest by the water. So wearing a bikini is second nature for me. In the summer they are like my underwear! I wear a bikini almost every day and I can wear a different one every single day. So yes I have a lot of them! Now when it comes to selecting your perfect bikini, I would say the following:
Pay attention to the cut. You want a cut that highlights your assets! For the top, I’m a huge fan of the classic but chic (in my opinion) bra style with cups similar to a push-up bra and the triangle cups. They both lift the breast. For the bottom, I like V-shape cuts. They are very flattering on the hips.
Avoid patterns. As you may already know I’m not a fan of patterns on clothes and it’s the same for my bikinis!
Choose solid colors instead.
Stick to neutral colors to be safe such as a black or/and white bikini. I mean come on a black bikini is THE best! You want a casual chic look at the beach or pool? Well, make sure to have a black bikini in your closet!
Remember to choose flattering colors that go well with your skin tone. Nothing better than a pop of color especially for a bikini to have you shine, look and feel fabulous! I like vibrant colors such as blue, pink, yellow, orange and red.
Don’t hesitate to mismatch your bikinis! You don’t always have to wear the bikini set as you bought it. Have fun, you can mix top and bottom colors like red and white, etc. Mismatching is ok! The key is to keep the colors in check and have them go well with each other.
It can be difficult to find a cute bikini without breaking the bank. Well I’m happy to report that I found plenty of good bikinis at Victoria’s Secret and they were on sale! The good news is that their clearance is still going on, so take advantage of it like I did! The price is so good that I did buy the same bikini but in different colors! I literally restocked my bikinis drawer for the summer. You will see what I bought in the picture below.
I bought their push-up bikini top in 3 different colors: black, red and pink! I absolutely love the pink bikini in the middle of the picture above. This is my favorite bikini of the summer. It’s still on sale and very cheap! The Brazilian bottom is on sale too. You can get this set for $20 right now!! For me that’s A STEAL!!
Oh and don’t forget to style your bikini with a cute hat, good sunglasses and nice cover-up! This is the way to be chic at the beach and pool!
XO from your favorite French Girl on the Stack! 😉