Vamp Maillot : Elegant silhouette with front shirring. Detachable strap and soft bra cups. A flattering lower leg gives it a retro look.
Ruffled Vamp: Detachable adjustable neck strap. Feminine ruffling at bust. Underwire with foam cups, removable push up pads. Princess seams, with shirred front.
“It was an itzy bitzy, teeny weeny yellow polka dot bikini that she wore for the first time…..” This year it will be Jantzen’s bikinis that she will wear for the first time. Their new 1950s inspired suits will make every woman feel like that timeless Hollywood starlet in that yellow polka dot bikini. The colours, cuts and styles evoke 1950s beauty and the heritage behind Jantzen’s.
It’s a mixture of vintage and modernity, creating the Perfect swimsuit. All styles and cuts flatter any size and shape. This spring’s collection is tame on colour, however the colours chosen show what spring is about. They have chosen to create three different stories with three different colour palates, tropical resort, ultra sophistication with black and whites and a bright summer delivery which consists of inspiring and flattering prints in bold bright colours.
Signature Yacht Dot Swimsuit: Adjustable halter top. Sequin detail. Our highest waist bottom, belted to enhance the waistline and give added style. Slightly lower leg for a retro look. Full seat coverage.
Apart from a choice of summery colours, the contours and silhouettes complete the perfect 1950s inspired suits. Representing vintage and mod swimwear Jantzen’s collection includes; ruffled tankinis, retro malliots and bikini sets with high-waisted belted bottoms (very 50’s indeed) . To cater to the fuller figure women, Jantzen has also designed chic and sexy cover ups to coordinate with the collection of swimsuits.
Reviving the sexy styles of the yellow polka dot bikini, Jantzen’s creates a collection illustrating the true meaning of their heritage and the fact that what is old can be new again.
BLK1 Model. BLK1 Swimsuit photo shoot. Photographer: Peter Sollner
A luxurious Roman villa dating back to 320 CE, The Villa Romana del Casale is adorned with statutes, wall paintings and beautiful mosaics. Between the Corridor of the Great Hunt and the Hall of Orpheus and through the ante-chamber, there is a room featuring mosaics of ten young women. The woman on the far left of the room is holding hand-weights, another young woman is about to swing a discus and two young women are embraced in a heated running competition. In the centre of the mosaic is the winner clad in golden mantle, with a palm leaf in her left hand and a rose crown adorning her temple. The geometric mosaic derives its fame not from the decorative lining of the coloured guilloches or the athletic motifs of the early Roman era but from the bikini-style costumes framing the girls’ lithe bodies. Part early-eroticism, part-historical ornamentation, the bikini-clad girls pay homage to a bygone era, whilst reminding us that this era may nevertheless have been a tad ahead of our time.
Much has been written about the swimsuit, whether in the style of the bikini or one-piece, as this simple piece of fabric holds up a mirror to the society that we have moulded. What distinguishes the swimsuit from other garments is that it represents a direct measure of what society is willing to tolerate in terms of exposure of the body. The evolution of swimwear represents more than just shifting expectations. It stands as somewhat of a cultural zeitgeist, representing the ethical and political climate of an era.
The 19th Century represented an era of reserved dignity, with women often wearing dresses for bathing, accompanied by knee length pants underneath. It was also common for women to wear tights and boots in the water. Swimwear at this time was characterised largely by conservatism and modesty, with a focus away from the body, with loose fitting and covered garments. The removal of boots to reveal the knee is one of the first signs of a more relaxed attitude to swimwear.
The 1920s represented somewhat of a cultural shift in terms of liberating the woman’s body. The long dresses were replaced with figure-hugging wool jersey tank suits. The bathing suits were cut off mid-thigh, inching the wandering eye just a tad higher, and the swimsuit was fitted with built-in modesty pants. A bathing cap in the style of a cloche hat was a popular accompaniment to the latest swimsuit.
The 1930s represented a departure from the somewhat androgynous silhouette of the 1920s. Cotton printed bathing suits with over-skirts were the new style and the 1930s garnered a greater focus on the commercialisation of swimwear as a reflection of popular fashion and style. Musical films of the era featuring synchronised swimming and stars like Esther Williams propelled a risk-pushing new suit, with bikini up top but a longer and more covered bottom. There was a noticeable shift toward a more liberal interpretation of the one-piece, although certain social sectors such as the Catholic Women’s League continued to advocate for modesty, with a one-piece bathing suit covering the top of the knees. Nevertheless, the new risqué swimsuit paved the way for a lingerie-styled one-piece – the 1940s corset swimsuit.
The 1940s corset swimsuit, which largely continued in prominence throughout the 1950s and 1960s, incorporated a greater variety of swimwear fabrics, such as lined cotton, stretch latex and nylon. The new swimsuits were designed to flatter the female figure with tummy control panels, bra cups for additional support and extra side boning to contour an hourglass physique and to hide flaws.
2008 Black one-piece swimsuit
Unbeknownst to French engineer Louis Réard in 1946, the bikini, which has existed in some form since 320 CE, was at the time heralded as a ground-breaking invention that would shape and shift cultural expectations of modesty and revive the sexuality of the modern female. The invention of the bikini caused such a stir that it was compared with the gravity of the first atomic bomb test the same year on the Bikini Atoll – an atoll consisting of 36 Micronesian Islands in the Pacific Ocean. It is from this historical source that the bikini derives its name.
The 1960s saw the introduction of Lycra women’s swimwear and an increased focus on fabric texture, in particular a focus on swimwear that provides for stretch and pull. Although pleated over-skirts remained in style, the one-piece had to be continually revived to compete with its two-piece competitor. The legs of the swimsuit were often cut higher and straight across to make for a more attractive figure. The 1960s one-piece was heralded as the swimsuit for all shapes and sizes for its comfort and modesty. A later version, such as the Gottex one-piece, accommodates for individual cup sizes and includes control tummy panels to provide maximum support and coverage. The Gottex V-Neck one-piece is particularly flattering for apple-shaped women with a larger bust and thicker waistline and is high-cut to accentuate leaner and longer legs. Gottex showcased its 2007 50th Anniversary Couture collection at ECQ Terrace in Sydney, with a stunning exhibition of custom-made swim corsets, bejeweled detailing and even a bridal piece set. The extravagant collection had catapulted the one-piece swimsuit well into the realm of hi-fashion couture.
1973 saw the introduction of the World Championships for swimming and competitive swimming finally got a firm-fitting one-piece that provided for greater agility in the swimming pool. Competitive swimwear has continued to develop over the years, with the latest invention of the Speedo LZR skin suit acting as a full-bodied water repellent. Some celebrate the LZR suit as innovative design technology; whilst others deride it as “tech doping” and complain that since national teams are often sponsored by manufacturers, nations sponsored by Speedo are gaining an unfair advantage. Representatives for Speedo have acknowledged that the suit improves drag resistance by up to 10% and increases oxygen efficiency by 5%. There appears to be some validity to the “tech doping” accusations, since at the 2008 World Championships in Manchester, 8 of the 9 world record breakers were wearing the latest hi-tech Speedo suits.
Whatever your opinion on the latest design technology, one thing is for certain – the swimsuit has moved well beyond its humble beginnings and stands today not only as a measure of sexual revolution but as a measure of human progress.
BLK1 Model. BLK1 Swimsuit photo shoot. Photographer: Peter Sollner
