I Tried Rag & Bone’s Trompe l’Oeil Denim Swimsuit
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It was just a couple of years ago that Strategist writer Brenley Goertzen started noticing — and wearing —Rag & Bone’s sweatpant jeanseverywhere, from dinner to Zoom calls. Not long after, Strategist senior editor Winnie Yang picked up a pair of her own and went on to wear them for a total of four flights in one week. Hundreds of our readers followed suit, too, with one commenter agreeing, “They look shockingly realistic in person.” Since then,many brands like Halara and Gap have re-created the style for much less, and Rag & Bone has expanded the collection to include pairs withtrack-pant-like stripesandRudy Jude–esque patches. So when I noticed that Rag & Bone turned its denim-duping abilities to another category — this time swim — I was curious to see if the pieces were just as convincing. After all, they’d be getting wet, and, well, denim and water notoriously do not mix elegantly.
The new swim collection includes ten pieces — two bikini tops and bottoms, two one-pieces, and several cover-ups — and I tried four of them. The prints on the actual swimsuits are divided into two styles: a more realistic take on denim and another two-dimensional style that’s supposed to imitate waffled denim. I have yet to see waffle jeans in their true form (though some brands, likeTommy Hilfiger, make waffle-denim tops), so the vision of the latter style didn’t land — at least in my opinion. But I still think it was more visually appealing than your average swimsuit.
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When I wore the more realistic wash, though, I felt like I could truly convince people I was swimming in jeans — or, at least, a denim bodysuit. The wash is used on just one of the one-pieces and the cover-ups, and thefauxseams on both pieces are flattering and realistic. They creep up the bodice of the suit, almost like two opposing parentheses, highlighting the curve of my waist. Rag & Bone gives the swaths of “denim” in between them the same hyperrealistic treatment as the sweatpant jeans; the light-blue wash I tried has the same slight color variations you’d find throughout a pair ofLevi’s. When paired with the cover-up, which has retro flowy sleeves and a dainty string tie in the front, it makes for a rather elegant Canadian tuxedo. I didn’t try the suit in the washed-black version, but I’d imagine you’d find the same attention to detail. Photos on the brand’s site show subtle white flecks poking through the washed black, just likemy favorite pairof washed-black jeans.
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In the water, the bikini and one-piece perform comparably to other high-end swimsuits in my drawer. They have generous lining that’salmostthick enough that I wouldn’t feel compelled to wear anipple coverunderneath. I’ve never worn actual denim in the water (who has?), but I was surprised by how little thefaux-denim fabric changed once it was wet. I’d expected the lighter wash to morph into a more of a true-blue denim underwater, but I could only tell which part of the suit had gotten wet when I looked closely. Unlike the Wicked Witch of the West, Rag & Bone’s disguise doesn’t dissolve when it gets wet.
The suits are flattering, too. I’m partial to triangle bikinis, and I can see this one becoming one of my favorites. The string ties are thick and secure; I never felt like the bottoms were going to come off (although I must say I wasn’t swimming laps). The triangle cups themselves are flattering, too — not too skimpy, but still subtly sexy. The bottoms are high-cut on the hips and more cheeky than not, almost like theLeft on Friday Sunday suit. If you’re looking for something withmore coverage, I’d recommend sticking to the one-piece, which ended a couple inches lower on my hips and had more coverage on the bum. Still, it ran larger than the bikini: I had to size down to an extra-small and tighten the straps almost to the max. The size small in the bikini top and cover-up fit me without a problem, but I probably could’ve sized down in the bikini bottom, too.
Compared to the sweatpant jeans, thefaux-denim swimsuits are far less practical and even more of a conversation starter. Really, who in their right mind would wear a bona fide denim swimsuit to the pool? The Miramar illusion invites more spectacle than anything else. Still, when I wore thefaux-denim pieces, I felt more similar toBhavitha Mandava at the Met Galathan a girl trying to get away with sweatpants in the office. If you’re looking to stand out at your local pool or distinguish your Instagram photo dump from the rest, the trompe l’oeil suit will do just that.
More trompe l’oeil pieces to consider
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