These 15 Incredibly Chic Pieces Have Made Us Actually Look Forward To Wearing A Swimsuit This Summer
Proving the impossible, one cover-up at a time.
Image: HBO
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by The Candidly Team
It's not okay to hate our bodies. But it is okay to hate our bathing suits.
Can we all agree on this?
Swimsuits are like tight low jeans in how they absolutely squeeze us into the least flattering versions of ourselves. But where jeans have gotten better, most bathing suits have gotten worse. The bottoms especially. They dig into our thighs, ride up the back, make us spill out in all kinds of uncontrollable ways.
We’re not saying you shouldn’t feel comfortable in a swimsuit. You should. We’re just saying that there’s a reason we all look better naked than in a swimsuit, and that is that the way they’re cut is hellish and confusing.
But we’ll stop laboring the point, because we think we have a solution.
There are 4 kinds of things we love that make wearing a swimsuit, not just bearable but enjoyable. When we have them on we look chic, summery, and elegant to the point we feel like this:
Image: HBO
Or this:
Or this:
Image: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Or even this:
Image: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
It’s all about the styling of select choices that make us comfortable to move about with our bodies in our bathing suits. And here are those choices:
1. THE COVER UPS
The Kimono Cover-Up
WHAT: Free People Magic Dance Border Print Duster
Why we love it: We won’t deny we were inspired by White Lotus season 3, where all those swimsuits were layered under swirls of whispery, gorgeous, open-front cover-ups. This one not only fits our non-White Lotus budget but has the prettiest colored prints that we can match to whatever solid suit we’re wearing. With dark sunglasses and a straw hat, you’ll feel better in nothing else.
Price: $78
The Classic Cover-Up
WHAT: Tuckernuck Tan Crochet Collier Dress*
Why we love it: That classic A-line shape skims over bellies and makes legs look inches longer. But this cover-up has the added benefit of being crochet, which we’ve really wanted to dip a toe in but hadn’t found anything that felt quite right for our over-40 sensibilities. This one flatters everyone and sizes up to XXXL.
Price: $198
The Button-Down Cover-Up
WHAT: J.Crew Relaxed-Fit Beach Shirt In Linen-Cotton Blend*
Why we love it: If you want something foolproof and quiet luxury, just get this button-down which is long enough to sit open over your full suit or be buttoned and belted and worn to lunch. And yes, it does indeed cover the butt.
Price: $68.50
This Easy Breezy Dress
WHAT: Dissh Fable Dusty Blue Stripe Midi Dress*
Why we love it: Covered head to toe and yet we still get to feel a wee bit sexy … ish.
Price: $226
2. THE SKIRTS
The Maxi
WHAT: H&M Maxi Wrap Skirt*
Why we love it: A whisper of a skirt that covers all the important bits of our bottom halves, because what can we say? Sometimes we’re just not feeling our knees.
Price: $45
The Midi
WHAT: Free People Lowen Midi Skirt*
Why we love it: We already own this poplin skirt in 3 colors and pack it on every vacation. But we only recently realized how chic it is to toss on over a bikini when strutting to the smoothie counter.
Price: $60
The $20 Skort That Looks Designer
WHAT: MakeMeChic Women's Wrap Skirt Skort*
Why we love it: Over a black or white one-piece, you’ll have no problem convincing people you spent $500 on your look. Also, because it’s a skort, you’ll have zero fear of bending over and giving your visiting in-laws a show.
Price: $32
The Most Thrilling Pareo
WHAT: Negative Pareo in Tigre*
Why we love it: Gorgeous, light, drapey silk and a print that makes our Target swimsuits come off deeeeply luxe.
Price: $160
3. THE SETS
The Chicest Beach Set Known To Man
WHAT: Dissh Zaria Off White Shirt* and Pants*
Why we love it: It’s an outfit, one we’d proudly wear browsing the seaside shops of St. Tropez. But over a swimsuit, that open-front top is perfection. It’s a splurge, we know, but we will be wearing this over a swimsuit for the remainder of our days.
Price: $193 for the shirt, $215 for the pants
The Over-The-Suit Shorts
WHAT: Quince 100% European Linen High Waisted Shorts
Why we love it: The perfect-fitting, waist-nipping, not-too-short shorts. The price is incredible. We have 4 colors in our carts as we speak.
Price: $30
The Light, Linen Set
WHAT: Z Supply The Perfect Linen Striped Top* and Short*
Why we love it: We are, at our core, cozy people who’d rather be in pajamas, so wearing this to the beach or pool is actual heaven. Heaven.
Price: $88 for the shirt, $64 for the shorts
4. THE SUITS
The Single Most Flattering One-Piece
WHAT: Andie Swim The Amalfi One-Piece*
Why we love it: Alright, we know we said swimsuits are hellish, but there are some, very, very few in fact, that have changed our minds. This one actually changed our lives. Andie is a brand that understands how real bodies look and does things like cut the bottoms so they don’t dig into your thighs.
See their star Amalfi suit on the right next to a standard bad suit on the left:
* Gifted product
The back has lots of coverage without looking like a diaper, and there are so many colors and sizes, your head will spin.
Price: $112
The One-Shoulder Suit
WHAT: Summersalt The Bow-Shoulder Ruched Sidestroke*
Why we love it: We gasped after trying on this suit. The fit is magic, and the look is so timeless and chic. It also comes in long torso, so we don’t feel like we’re stretching out a vertical rubberband by existing.
Price: $135
The Non-Dorky Swim Dress
WHAT: Andie The Malibu Swim Dress*
Why we love it: Swim dresses are no longer the tent-like, loud-printed things our grandmothers wore to water aerobics. They’re chic, and most importantly, they cover your bikini line. There is nothing like going to the pool without an ounce of fear of stray hairs or razor bumps.
Price: $142
The Swim Romper
WHAT: Land’s End Women's Tugless Strappy X-Back Romper Swimsuit
Why we love it: Ditto to everything we said above. So cute, we wear it all day before dipping in the sea. Sizes in plus and long torso, too.
Price: $135
At The Candidly, we try a lot of stuff so you don’t have to. We only recommend things we truly love, and that we think you’ll love, too. All products are chosen independently by our creative team, and all details reflect the price and availability of products at the time of publication. If you buy something we link to, The Candidly may earn a commission.
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