What do people think about bikinis?

I swear to God, I went in to buy bikinis, and the lady’s like, ‘You’re not getting out of this store ’til you get down there and show me what you do for those abs and the arms’. She wouldn’t sell me my bikinis! I had to get on the floor and do the stomach thing.

Everyone has a different body shape, so you kind of have to figure out not only what works best for your body type, but what also makes you feel confident. Even if everyone thinks you look good in a bikini, and you don’t feel good in it, you’re not going to be at your best. If you feel great in a bikini, you can always work it.

Wear whatever looks (and feels) most flattering. I wouldn’t rule out bikinis; they can actually be more attractive than the average one-piece on many people (myself included, and I’m not an hourglass).

I have a waist, not an incredibly noticeable one, but one nonetheless. When I wear one-pieces, the difference between my waist and upper hips (where the outer edges of the suit cut off) isn’t great enough for my waist to still be visible. In this way, most one-pieces tend to have more of a rectangularizing effect, which is fine if you’re doing competitive swimming and don’t want your boobs to get in the way, but won’t be flattering on everyone.

My advice would be to either look for:
1) Bikinis with ruffles, because the added volume on your chest and hips will balance out your waist more. While it probably won’t have a dramatic effect, it will at least soften your overall shape and give a more feminine appearance, if that’s what you’re going for.

2) If you’re not ready to try on a regular, two-piece bikini, go for a monokini. That is, the modern kind, which seems to be a one piece with the sides or middle kind of cut out, sometimes in intricate ways. It may not completely re-vamp your body shape, but the right one will shrink the perceived size of your waist, and again, suggest curves.

3) One-pieces. If the above two are too revealing for your comfort, I’d opt for a one-piece that is darker in the sections you want to minimize, and lighter/with a busier pattern in the ones you want to maximize.

I far prefer bikinis to one-piece suits.

Two basic reasons:
Bikinis allow for much more flexibility of movement in the waves. One-piece suits are much more constricting.

I personally cannot find a one-pice that fits me, as I am different sizes on top and on the bottom. If there’s room for my chest and back, the bottom is huge and floppy. If the bottom fits right, I can’t even squeeze myself into the top. One can usually purchase bikinis as matching separates.