The beach is a-calling!

A few days ago it hailed here in Trondheim. Then came two days of glorious sunshine, which I took as an excuse to eat more icecream. And today? It's as gray as gray can get. All in all a very descriptive picture of how spring in Norway can be. But somewhere in the horizon summer is lurking, which has made me start thinking about swimsuits! I'll be spending 18 days in Spain this August/September and I am e-x-c-i-t-e-d!

I'm going to need a swimsuit or two! I've done a little bit of searching and there are quite a few repro alternatives out there. I'd rather have a repro than a actual vintage garment as I'll need something that I can wear and wash frequently without being worried about destorying a one of a kind piece of clothing. A lot of what I've been finding have been very alike - A lot of polkadots, cherries and plains in that classic 50s swimsuit shape. It would have been great with a little more versatility, but I'll gladly take any of these too. And most of these aren't what I would call budget friendly. *sad face* I found them on sites with different currencies but I'll post the USD equivalent for easier comparison.

Esther Williams is a retired competetive swimmer and movie star. She starred in many movies during the 40ies and 50s untill retiring from the film industry in 1960. She has fittingly lended her name to a line of retro swimwear that come in a different styles and patterns. I've never seen or tried one in person but from what I can gather they are of great quality and very flattering no matter what body shape you are. ModCloth sells quite a few different ones, but they are cheaper if buy buy them directly from the official Esther Williams website. The links I will be providing are from a third site (Retrodress) which offers the cheapest price I could find, but I haven't taken shipping/handling fees into concideration and I have no personal experience with this shop.

#1: Esther Williams - Red Stripes Classic Seath $65

#2: Esther Williams - Cabana Heat Classic Seath $65

#3: Esther Williams - Splash Classic Seath $65

#4: Esther Williams - Wild Thing Classic Seath $65

#5: Esther Williams - Black with Red Polkadot Classic Seath $ 65

Retrodress has loads more EW bathing costumes (including two pieces), click here to go to their EW section.

You can't go wrong with a plain one, right? You can always add extra intrest with a few nice accessories if you find it a bit too bland.

#6: Modcloth - "I'll Take The Scallops One" $149.99 (Out of stock ATM)
      Anthropologie - Cannes Maillot $148
I love this one, but the pricetag is not for me.

#7: Net-A-Porter - Norma Kamali/Bill Ruched Halterneck $606
The colour? Yay! The price? OUCH. Ouch, ouch, ouch.

#8: Lindex - Badedrakt rød $42
You can find Lindex in many countries in Europe. I wanted to try and find a retro looking swimsuit that I could actually try on in a store before buying it and this was the closest I got - A more modern twist on the classic. I don't think this is a winner in my book, but if I see it in person I will try it on. :)

#9: Ellos - Badedrakt med skjørt $59
Ellos is a online store available to some countries in Northern Europe. Ellos has a 50% discount for first time customers which would make this a option in the cheap end of the scale.

#10: Babygirl Boutique - Marilyn in Madrid red twist $42
Would love this one at that price (currently on sale) but they only have it in size XS.

 Patterns and prints for president! I wish there were some more quirky ones, but here is a selection of the ones I found and liked. :)

#11: Cath Kidston - Sunspot Ruffled Swimsuit $72
How cute is this little number? I love that what appears to be polkadots are actually little suns or fuzzy circles. The entire back is rouched and it looks so comfertable! It's 100% cotton though, how would that work in the water?

#12: Downeast - Retro Revival Suit $49.99
A modern swimsuit with some retro elements. I don't think it's the one for me though, as I would like some ruffling across the belly and a little less cleavage. :)

#13: Kaliko - Elipse Print Halterneck Swimsuit $88
*makes grabby hands* Me gusta!

#14: Epla - Vintage bathingsuit $59
Epla is the Norwegian equivalent to Etsy, and this is the only actual vintage piece in my selection. I think it's been for sale for over a year! The only information on size is that it would best fit a S/M so it might be too small for me anyway.

#15: SimplyBe - Panache Page Halterneck Swimsuit $74
Cute button detail in the cleavage.

Already have these two

These two I already own, a bikini and swimsuit in cherry print, both from Pinupgirl Clothing. The black swimsuit is ok but it's too big for me now (I'm smaller now then when I bought it) and I would like something a little less rockabilly.
The bikini looks RIDICILOUS on me. I've never worn it since that first time I tried it on. Yuck. It would probably have looked better if I were a little more endowed in the chest area but I'm not so... No, just no. :P

What do you look for in a bathingsuit/bikini? Do you have any more suggestions on where to get them?

♥, S