Wednesday, May 30, 2012

Bathing Suit Shopping...

The one! Almost...  St. John's Bay -
Bandeau Swim Dress, only $42 at JC Penney
Memorial Day weekend has just passed.  The weather was sensational - the kind of weather you hope for in the dead of summer for 4th of July barbecues, last minute trips to Lake Michigan, or wonderful, summery tomfoolery in general.  There was so much to do!  Most of these things to do, of course, required a bathing suit.

No problem.  JC Penney has oodles of cute bathing suits in all shapes and sizes, and their new pricing is outstanding.  No clearance or sale needed.  Whereas most places the price of a bathing suit will quite easily start at around $80 and we keep our fingers crossed for a sale, their one piece suits were mostly between about $35 and $42, and a two piece could range from $18 to $50.  Yeah, I'm plugging - I was impressed.

I wasn't sure what my struggle would be trying on bathing suits 120-some pounds lighter, so I went in with an idea of what I wanted.  It needed to have some kind of skirt to hide my weird thighs (loose skin from weight loss is a bugger, I tell you...), and not be too big in the bust.

I really thought it would be a piece of cake!  However, over two hours and dozens of bathing suits later, I left empty handed. I found myself having the best luck with size 14 one piece suits, or size 10/12/Large tops and 14 bottoms.  The plus size 14's worked great for the length I wanted in skirts, but were constantly too busty.  I'm such an inbetweeny!  There was one suit that was just about the most perfect thing ever, except that it was made for a person with the torso of a 10 year old girl.  It had a lovely vintage flair to it, the skirt was the perfect length, it hugged my curves like a glove, but I was in danger of having it slide down & make for some awkward moments if I didn't constantly pull it upwards.  I never have issues with that because I'm so short-waisted, but alas...  The hunt will have to continue.

Whether we're a size -8 or 28, bathing suit shopping is always interesting!  What are some of your issues bathing suit hunting?  Have you had any luck?  If you've got some tips or favorite shopping spots, share!  

6 comments:

  1. Jessica M (Facebook bud)May 30, 2012 at 5:18 PM

    Well of course you had to pull it up! Look at the woman in the photo, it's barely covering her nips! Yup, I'm comfortable "around" you to use the word nips. Seriously though, that is a really cute suit and since I'm short I might just have to check it out. :o)

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    1. Hahaha! You're so right! I didn't really notice until I posted the pic for this blog post, but thought, "Hmm... I guess it's really low on her, too..." It might just work awesome on you, then! It was sooo great, minus the whole not-fitting-properly part. I think I might end up doing separates!

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  2. I'm all about the Land's End suits. Plus you get to pick cute mix-y match-y skirts and tops. Yes, in the $80 range again, but I've had mine for (uh oh... ) a really long time! Like a stupid tankini thing for 10 years? Yikes.

    My issues are always in the top area. Ridiculously, as I get older I care less.

    My grandma used to alter clothing for people and she always told me no one is a perfect size anything. So maybe you could shorten the straps of the one you liked or something?

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    1. I just checked out their website yesterday, Liz! They had so many cute things, and I was particularly excited about the high-wasted skirts they had. I'm so down with something covering/holding in my tummy. Then, I could get whatever cute top I want! My problem always used to be the top, but the bottom half is my biggest challenge right now, it seems. If I can muster up a few bucks, I'm fairly certain I'm going to follow your lead. And I might also have to follow you Grandma's lead and have my Mom help me out with some tailoring. Once I get it, I'll have to join you guys for a Kal-Haven ride and the grand finale will be running dramatically into Lake Michigan in my new suit, haha.

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  3. I've found varying success with different things at different price points. At the lowest price point I found a bathing suit of separates. It was a one shouldered number and the bottom had it's own skirt. That was less than $30 at Walmart. Really surprising but it worked and is to this day, one of my favorites. Cyberswim.com sells a suit called the Miracle Suit and they let you shop by shape issues if you like that kind of control. Supposedly, they're really great at slenderizing but it's hard for me to be super objective.There's a brand called Loft that does some great retro suits like you mentioned up above but their price point is a bit high. You might be able to find them on sale somewhere though. Jantzen is another great bathing suit line that does similar stuff. They can be pricey but you can also find them at Overstock.com for really great prices. Good luck! Let us know the results.

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  4. I highly recommend trying out the new Old Navy one piece for this season. It's similar to the suit in the picture, and a great price. Congrats on your awesome journey! You're an inspiration!

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