For a brief but depressing period I was employed at a swimwear store.
It wasn’t a fancy boutique, but they stocked all the well known brands in a range of different styles.
The building was enormous, with wall to wall bikinis, tankinis, fancy one-pieces to sip mojitos in, baby bathers, budgie smugglers, man-trunks and your classic serious, sporty racing togs — basically, the place was hell on earth.
I am a firm believer that acquiring a bikini body for Summer takes one step: put a bikini on your body.
Sadly however, sometimes finding the bathing suit that best fits your body requires entering an ill-lit changing room with a pile of bikinis so large, you ‘d be forgiven for wanting to string them all together to hang yourself.
Here’s what I learned from working in a swimwear shop one horrible Summer:
1. Nobody likes shopping for bathers.
You may think it’s just you, but truth be told, most people find shopping for togs confronting.
Even when you’re feeling great about your body, whether you’re super fit or comfy just as you are, sometimes staring at your bum from five angles under a set of harsh fluorescent lights will still reduce you to tears.
And that’s okay. In fact, it brings me to my next point.
Listen to Jo talk about her experience on the latest episode of Mamamia OutLoud:
Listen to the full episode here.
2. It’s okay to have a meltdown.
It’s normal to have insecurities about your body, especially when it hasn’t seen the light of day for months. Or you’ve just had a baby. Or you look up at the glowing swimwear model, with her freshly bleached teeth and digitally enhanced thigh-gap staring down at you from the wall.
Top Comments
I never go swimming or to the beach so it's one hell I don't have to live through!
I would like them to bring back longer in the leg style, e.g. kind of like swim short style that the women used to wear back in the 20s, just because it can be a hassle to have to do your bikini line all the time. Shaving legs too is a pain but not quite as obvious if you don't get around to it, but I find in my tankini I am forever pulling it down to look like a dress because of bikini line issues.