Believe it or not, swim season is once again upon us. Of course, for many of us, shopping for swimwear has been a beyond stressful experience in the past. Fret no longer. Our resident swim expert, buyer Megan Puma, is here to help.
We caught up with Megan to find out what’s new in the world of swimsuits and, most importantly, how you can look and feel your best in a bathing suit. She’s sharing her top five secrets for a successful swim season.
You would be forgiven if lately your mind has been prone to wandering to images of postcard-perfect beaches or balmy spring break destinations. Who couldn’t use a vacation this year, be it IRL or a mere mental escape?
Whether you’re in need of a great swimsuit or just something to look forward to, picture yourself in your happy place wearing any of these six hot new collections. Filled with bra-sized support, invisible shaping powers and wild plus-size stunners, we’re getting in a swim state of mind with a little help from our go-to labels. Wanna come with?
As with most of the stuff in our closets, it’s possible to have a million swimsuits and still feel like you’ve got nothing to wear. How is that even possible?
We’ve found it comes down to this: You’ve got to match the suit to the situation.
This summer especially, when being outdoors by the water is probably as good as it gets, it pays to get strategic with your swimwear. By planning out what to wear based on where you’re going, you’ll look and feel like you’ve got your act together. (Even in 2020, it’s never too late.)
Our Bare Necessities swim expert Megan Puma is here to set the scene, so you always know what to wear where…
A swimsuit is probably the most revealing thing you’re ever going to wear in public, so there’s every reason in the world to expect that those few yards of fabric should be working overtime to cut you a secure, stylish figure.
That’s why we pledge our eternal allegiance to the best slimming swimwear out there—Miraclesuit and Magicsuit. And there may be no bigger fan than Bare Necessities resident swimwear expert Megan Puma.
Miraclesuit invented the concept with their “Look 10 pounds lighter in 10 seconds” claim to fame. Megan concurs: “They’re unsurpassed at slimming swimwear, and there’s a suit for every body, every age.”
These two sister swim brands fit sizes 8 to 24W. Some also come in DD-cups. (In swim, notes Megan, that’s most likely bigger than an equivalent DD-bra cup, so check ’em out if you’re very full-busted.) These days, the lines have more in common than ever. Miraclesuit typically has lots of great prints; Magicsuit tends to come in lots of solid colors and can skew more contemporary. You’ll also find some lighter jersey knits in the Magicsuit mix.
Bikinis sometimes get a bad rap for offering too little coverage and support for the chestier among us. Fake news! No longer should you feel like you need to sacrifice style and have to wear a basic, bra-looking swim top to the beach (or, heaven forbid, a sports bra—yes, we’ve heard it all).
At a specialty swim shop like Bare Necessities, you can find a vast range of bikini cuts and styles that actually buoy your boobs and bring you the season’s hot trends.
You have to see our swim buyer Megan Puma’s top picks for the smartest bikinis the world of fashion has to offer. Whatever swim style you prefer, they’ll shore up your confidence well before you hit the water.
Bras and swim are what we do at Bare Necessities. That’s how we know you want very different things out of them: From bras, you often want pretty but subtle designs that reliably work with your assets and your wardrobe. From swim, though, you’re more likely to want to make a style statement.
We’ve long loved Freya and Fantasie because their designers get this, too. While both of these sister brands cater to women who wear small band-full cup bras, they do it their own ways.
Buyers Heather Viskovic and Megan Puma are on-hand to share their Fantasie and Freya favorites.
We always love getting to know the person behind her namesake label. That includes Rebecca Virtue, the creative director of two of our very favorite swim brands, Becca and Becca Etc.
Born and raised in California with an interior designer for a mother, Rebecca grew up surrounded by the beach lifestyle and great design, both of which she channels into her work every day. She was good enough to let Bare Necessities take a look inside her head to find out what makes these labels so fun, fashionable and flattering.
For the coverage of a one-piece with the ease of two, we keep returning to tankinis.
We believe your swimsuits should always work hard for you; with tankinis, that’s super easy. You can choose from a menu of smart design details based on your needs. Here’s what to consider:
And when it comes to bottoms, you can play it almost as many different ways:
Now that you know your options, here are some of Bare Necessities buyer Megan Puma’s top tankinis of the season.
Sunny days are here again, and so are the latest swimsuits. While bikinis and tankinis will always have their place, at the start of the season we’re always partial to one-pieces that not only have some flair but also make our bodies look their best so we can feel confident getting out there.
The latest wave of one-pieces comes in fresh silhouettes and a broad range of coverage levels for way more options than your average maillot: “You can pull off a skimpy one-piece that’s super unique and cool-looking or a higher-coverage swim romper and look equally cute in either one,” says Bare Necessities swimwear buyer Megan Puma. Support and shaping are more common than ever, too.
One and done? Don’t mind if we do.
If you’re liking what you’ve been seeing from Birdsong bras, then get excited for Birdsong swimwear! Our exclusive new line of bra-sized swim separates is designed to give you the support you’ve always wanted, in the trends you’ve got your eye on, in a ridiculously inclusive size range.
“Before Birdsong, there was a gap in the market for fashionable, high quality, supportive, reasonably priced swimwear,” says buyer Megan Puma. “Birdsong makes this season’s top trends available to full-bust and plus customers. Now you have a whole array of mix-and-match options that pack a lot of power but don’t look frumpy or like you’re wearing your bra outside.”
“What’s great is that whether you’re looking for a tiny bikini or modest coverage, there are silhouettes that cater to everyone—there’s tighter and there’s looser, bold trends and subtle classics, poppy prints and solids that go with everything—but they’re all supportive. They’re for every woman, every age. What are you comfortable showing? What do you want to conceal? Now there’s a way to do it so that whatever you want to wear, you’ll feel comfy and confident in it.”
Megan hopes Birdsong swim reaches as many women as possible to make swimwear shopping feel like less of a drag. “I want to help women realize we shouldn’t have to change ourselves to look and feel the way we want to in a swimsuit,” Megan says.
If you’ve been holding out hope for warm weather, take heart. Spring break is so close, we can almost taste it.
Whether you’re going on vacation and find yourself in a need-it-now situation or you’re starting to think about swimwear for later in the season, this is the ideal time to dip into swimwear that’s both highly flattering and highly functional: Don’t be your own worst enemy by waiting until the last minute to face down a historically daunting task because, inevitably, only half of that two-piece you like will still be available in your size.
Better to choose from the best of the best Bare Necessities has to offer in your size while the pickings are good. Like for instance…
Every body is beautiful and deserves its moment in the sun—but still, it’s February, and maybe you’re not ready to strip down just yet at the water park or on your vacation.
Bare Necessities swim buyer Megan Puma firmly believes that’s swimwear’s problem to solve, not yours. “Your bathing suits should be working on your behalf,” she says. “These days, you can always find something to meet your needs without changing anything about your body or your style. All you have to do is identify what you want to gloss over,” Megan says. “Think of it like ordering from a menu. What special benefits do you want?”
So if showing a lot of skin isn’t your thing, or you need to minimize the potential for wardrobe malfunctions on an extended family vacation, be sure to check out Megan’s modest swimwear recommendations.