My Friends and I Feel Like Marilyn Monroe in This Swimsuit
It all started with a simple pair of pants. We posted about thissuspiciously flatteringpair a little while back and the response was so enthusiastic, it got us thinking: Why not sniff out the most flattering things across a bevy of categories, fromthe most skin-enhancing light bulbtothe brightening eye dropstothe shapewear designed for all sizes? Welcome toFlattering Weekon the Strategist.
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One day, scrolling through Instagram, I spotted a very pale, very stylish friend of mine in a gorgeous, red one-pieceswimsuit, striding across the beach looking straight-up like a pinup from a ’60s beach movie. This is a friend who I’d never seen expose her skin to the light of day, who usually hides her body under seven layers of black, and here she was not only confident and radiant, but willing to be photographed in what for her was next to nothing. I texted her immediately. Where did she get thismagicalsuit?
Soon, I had my own red “Bathing Beauty” one-piece by Esther Williams. My friend is skinny and straight-figured; I am not. My size will fluctuate between an 8 and a 10, and I have an ample chest that spills out of almost any one-piece that fits the rest of me. The minute I put this one on, though, I felt like Marilyn Monroe. It had a lovely, eye-catching sheen, ruching (when the fabric gathers in a purposeful way) in the front that minimized my belly, low-cut leg holes that covered the widest part of my hips, and a halter top and light boning for the kind of chest support that most bathing suits never give me. At $90, it’s a fourth of the price of its closest retro equivalent, the cultishone-piece from Norma Kamali.
I’ve had the suit for five years now and take it everywhere I travel.Taylor Swifthas one in polka dots. Zooey Deschanel wore abikini versiononNew Girl. A size-12 friend of mine who has a great, sexy belly, saw mine and has since bought four of her own. She loved that she could see real women — from petite to plus size — wearing the suits on ModCloths’ssite, and practically lives in her suits 24/7 when visiting her family in Hawaii. I love that I can throw on a skirt after swimming and look like I’m wearing a cute dress. Sometimes, I even just put mine on in the winter and lounge around my apartment, feeling fabulous, because there’s no better salve for having a radiator you can’t control than pretending you’re in your own privateBeach Blanket Bingo.
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