Summer is here, and that means it is now officially swimsuit season!
Every year, I anxiously await the release of my favourite stores’ swimsuits collections. Of course, each year brands release the standard black and navy-blue bikinis in a classic bikini bottom and triangle top silhouette. However, each year I’m most excited for the swimsuit styles that are new and destined to be the next big trends.
This summer, there are some new styles and new brands emerging as the dominant trends in women’s swimsuits.
Brands: Style over steep prices
The main trend this summer is the idea that the brand of your swimsuit does not matter nearly as much as it used to. Back in 2010, for example, the brand was everything.
The notoriously pricy swimsuit brand Triangl peaked in popularity in 2010 and left women emptying bank accounts or bidding for knock-offs on eBay to grab a suit. The brand was the trend, not so much the style. The average price was around $100 in total for the top and bottom.
Now, affordable brands are the new trend- it doesn’t matter where your swimsuit comes from so long as it comes in a trendy style. Notably, the online brand Zaful has blown up in popularity this year.
Zaful sells different clothing items, but predominantly markets itself as a swimsuit seller, and for good reason. There are hundreds of swimsuits available on the site at any given time. The swimsuits come in every style, silhouette, colour, or pattern you can think of- costing less than $20 in total.
One drawback, though, is the very limited sizing options. In general, Zaful swimsuits run small, so it is often necessary to size up. And, since the tops and bottoms are sold together, they must be the same size which can be tricky for women who differ in size from their top to their bottom half. Most notably, the largest size is only a L, meaning a lot of women may not be able to shop there.
Luckily, there are similar websites with comparable pricing, such as Fashion Nova.
Two-Pieces: High-cut and cheeky
The 80s are back … kind of. This summer, high-cut swimsuits with cheeky bottoms are on-trend. There are less fully high-waisted options, and bottoms with the full bikini coverage are few and far between.
As for tops, the standard triangle top is not on trend this summer. Instead, there are square and oval neck tops with adjustable spaghetti straps and thicker tank top straps.
For fun, there are some one-shoulder two-pieces or two-pieces with cutouts for added style.
The standard swimsuit material is still popular, and thick ruched fabric material is also in.
One-Pieces: Cut-outs and cross-backs
This summer, one-pieces are showing a lot more midriff than they did last summer. One-pieces have large cut-outs or twists in the front that expose the midriff- sometimes so much that it looks like a two-piece from the front.
If there are no big cutouts in the front, then the back of a one-piece is bound to be low cut or have crisscross straps in the back. If this is the case, then the straps are likely to be adjustable – a welcome change from one-pieces of previous years that did not allow for any adjustments.
There are also off-the-shoulder or one-shouldered one-piece options this summer.
Colour: Neons and patterns
This summer, neon is a big colour trend. Neon pink, green, blue, and even yellow options are available in both one and two pieces. However, mixing and matching different neon tops and bottoms is not as on-trend- stick to wearing the same neon colour on your top and bottom this summer.
For one-pieces though, there is some neutral colour blocking, especially with black and white on one-pieces with cut-outs.
There are a few key patterns that are popular this summer. The splattered polka dot look is a new trend this summer that is a twist on the classic polka dot. These polka dots are rough around the edges and smaller than the classic polka dot. They are either black or white depending on the colour of the rest of the suit. Typically, this pattern comes on a black, white, red, or blue swimsuit.
Another popular pattern is a marbled pattern that mimics the patterns seen on a slab of marble. This pattern comes on both one and two pieces but is seen more often on two-pieces. Typically, this pattern comes in white to mimic the classic marbled look.
So, there you have it a compilation of all the new trends in women’s swimsuits this summer.
