2015 Bathing Suit Trends: Cover Ups for All Shapes and Sizes

2015 Bathing Suit Trends: Cover Ups for All Shapes and Sizes

Via Title Nine

In my teens and 20s, the idea of a cover up never occurred to me. What else would you need by the pool or at the beach but a towel? Now, in my 30s, I love a good cover up. Not just because my life tends to lend itself more to going from one activity to the next, and not just because I'm more concerned about sun exposure (which I am), but also because I've realized how stylish they are. They're what makes an ok swimsuit feel special. 

Here are some of my favorites for you to consider!

My Favorite Plus Size Bathing Suits for 2015

My Favorite Plus Size Bathing Suits for 2015

The retro styling! The stripes! The high waist!

I work with several clients who identify as wearing plus size or curve size clothing. I try to be careful not to separate styles into sizes because I truly believe that most styles work regardless of your age, height, weight, etc. However, I am sensitive to the fact that many women think carefully about swimwear and how it fits because it's so vulnerable to be nearly naked. 

For that reason, I'm spending a bit of time talking about curve sized swimwear today. That and there are so many great options! My recommendations for swimwear options in curve sizing are: Torrid, Swimsuits for All, some Asos, Macy's, and ModCloth.

First, Swimsuits for All. You must check these out, especially the Gabi Fresh line! They're incredible, sexy, and look supportive in all the right places. I adore them. Here's a look at them on Gabi Fresh herself.

The patterns! I can't get enough of that green print! And I love the high waists on these two piece suits, don't you? 

Macy's

So, if you like the flattering cut of a high waist but don't want to show off your midriff every single time you wear a swimsuit,

One Style Every Woman Should Try

One Style Every Woman Should Try

I often read articles with titles like "5 Accessories Every Woman Needs," and they're either one of two things: (1) a long list of everything you could possibly ever have, broken into 5 categories or (2) very specific things that I do not think work for every woman.

A high waist is not a style that will work for every woman, but I'm being up front about that. What I do think is that every woman should try a high waist. And here's how to do it.

Try a high waist under anything. I rarely tuck my shirts into my jeans, for example, so having a high waist on just means that my lower belly is a bit more tucked in.

Via

Or, like the images above, show off that high waist! Try a high waist with a shirt tucked into it. The wide leg here makes the waist the skinniest part of her body and helps accentuate her natural hourglass shape. A variation on this would be to leave the shirt untucked and highlight the waist with a belt (wide or narrow) around the skinniest part of your waist. 

I love a woman with bold curves in a high waist, don't you?

I've mentioned my favorite high waisted jeans from Old Navy before, which come in petite and talls. I also love these ripped Curve skinny jeans and these sizes 14-24 from Asos,  and these petite skinny jeans from Asos, too. 

High waisted pants are great for petites because they lengthen the legs

My Review of the New Mango Curve Sizes Site

Mango Curve Sizes

I think we're all working through what to call sizes, and there are some alternatives to "plus size" that I really like. Personally, I wish more stores just mixed all of their sizes and models together instead of having "women" on one page and "plus size" on another. I'm often browsing the "plus size" or "curve" sections and wishing those same styles were represented in more sizes, and I know the opposite is certainly true. And I'm not sure that "curve size" really explains anything since curves occur on many sizes of women, and separating plus size or curve size from "women" implies that the women who wear those sizes are somehow, what? Not women? I have a feeling that we're getting to a better place on all of this, and I look forward to being a part of that conversation.

Mango just recently launched a line they call "curve sizes," titled Violeta. I have not seen any of their clothing in person so I'll be reviewing their site and their look today.

First, the website. It's a bit confusing because their sizes listed on the main US/English page are 40-52. If you click into the individual images of the clothing and go to select your size, you'll see American sizing (sizes 8-20) as well as a size guide. I think that could be more clear on the main page. I'm not sure most American women in a size 8 would click on the "curve size" tab, but it appears that size gets to double-dip: there are size 8 mediums in the "women" section as well as in the Violeta section. That's a bit confusing.

Next, their style. Here are a few things I'd like you to know about shopping at Mango-in all of their sizes.

First, their styling can seem a bit dowdy, especially the images they choose as their main images. I'm not sure why they do this, but it's really worth it to take the time to click on anything you might like. If you hover the mouse over each image, you'll see it off of a model, but that often doesn't tell you much. Once you click through, you'll see a few ways to wear each piece, and the second images are often much more stylish. Here's an example from Violeta.