The Icons - The Bikini

While starting to write this piece about the bikini, I managed to distract myself (read: procrastinate) and buy two bikinis. Yup. In the middle of that sentence, in the name of research, I stopped and purchased all the swimwear for my holiday. But the pitstop gave me a little motivational thrill, and here’s why.

Most of us haven’t seen the sun (proper sun), or a beach, for almost three summers. The thought of swimming in the sea, buying ice cream from some dude in a dinghy, and feeling that warm glow on our skin at the end of the day – well, it’s intoxicating. My husband and I have just booked our first beach break as a family of four, and shopping for bikinis is taking on a whole new significance this summer. For everyone. It evokes all that happy anticipation of finally having a holiday, of a break from the grind, of freedom. It isn’t insignificant then to tell you that the bikini was, in fact, invented back in 1946 to celebrate people’s jubilant, liberated mood for the first war-free summer in years. French designer Louis Réard revealed his two-piece creation – which exposed the midriff partly due to wartime fabric rationing – at a public swimming pool in Paris, on showgirl Micheline Bernardini. Of course, there were outcries of scandal (“inconceivable!” said one glossy mag), and it was immediately banned by a litany of beaches, cinemas and beauty pageants. But the bikini babe was here to stay. A game-changer for more than just the world of fashion, this was a pivotal moment for women and their bodies, their sexuality, their self-expression, their independence. Diana Vreeland declared the bikini “the most important thing since the atom bomb”.

Thankfully, fabric rationing is no more, and the dental floss thongs made famous on the Copacabana aren’t our only option. After two kids, I want to be hoisted, supported, cupped and flattered into the perfect bikini shape – which – judging by the last hour’s scrolling – happens to be a floral molded triangle top by Vix Paula Hermanny and a pair of black crepe high-rise briefs by a brand I’ve recently fallen in love with: Onia. I hate the assumption that post-kids, a two-piece is off the menu. Why should it be? Sure, I’ve got some one-piece back-up swimsuits in the drawer, but they’re really the understudy to my leading lady bikinis. As I get older, the bikini silhouette I want to wear has changed – as has my body. I’ve graduated from the strapless tops and low-slung side-tie bottoms I used to wear in my twenties, to something underwired or molded, with a wee bit more fabric across the butt. But I still stand firm that finding the right bikini can and should make you feel glamorous and confident.

In between buying bikinis (make that three now, whoops), I did actually perform some research for this piece. My blood boiled to read one of the most-searched terms related to the subject: ‘what age should you stop wearing a bikini?’. Oh please. This isn’t 1946 anymore. Rejoice in the sun finally shining and if you’re feeling it, channel your inner wet-haired Ursula Andress or Gwyneth Paltrow with Mr Ripley.

Some parting shopping thoughts: the trying-on session is a marathon, not a sprint (get as many options as you can), and the spray tan should really come as part of the purchase, (it makes such a difference to how confident I end up feeling). Other styling support acts for this summer’s bikini? A sarong to tie asymmetrically around your waist (Melissa Odabash is my go-to); an oversized white linen shirt, and a pair of high-waisted Bermuda shorts, to wear with slides and a straw visor at lunch. Bon vacances!