Bikini? Tankini? One Piece? Is there an age cut off? Which do you prefer and why? - YouLookFab Forum

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Bikini? Tankini? One Piece? Is there an age cut off? Which do you prefer and why?

Staysfit

Veteran

Every year I ask again if I'm too old for a Bikini yet. I look at my legs which have had varicose veins since my first pregnancy 22 years ago, I look at my colored (grey) hair, and I think maybe the time has come? Then I pull out my swim suits, try them on and I still like the Bikini. Am I going to be the only 50 year old on the beach wearing one? Help?! Is this totally inappropriate? What do you do and why?

(I actually have multiple types of swimsuits, but am really unsure about retiring the Bikini's)

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58 replies

Latest reply was from Staysfit

carter

Veteran

Bikini works for you. Wet suit for me.

Missey

Veteran

You have a fit body...wear the bikini with pride!

Janet

(website)

Veteran

I'm nowhere near as slim as you, and we're the same age, but I still like bikinis for beach vacations. We tend to go places in which everyone wears bikinis and I actually feel more self-conscious covering up than showing all my cellulite-y, veiny, pale self. For pool parties and social swimming with friends, I wear one-pieces. And then I have dedicated sporty suits for lap swimming.

I say wear what you enjoy and what works for your activities! I don't believe in an age cutoff.

Anonymous

My ex husband, trying to get me to hurry up and finish dressing once said " After five minutes, no one will care anymore anyway". I like to feel like my family and friends are comfortable with my outfit because I don't want that to be in the way but beyond that.. I have no problem believing you look great in a bikini, and frankly, even if you didn't, whatever, I have other things to talk about.

Angie

(website)

Fashion Stylist

If wearing a bikini floats your boat - wear it - at any age. Read my post if you like:

http://youlookfab.com/2011/05/.....-a-bikini/

I just fitted on all my bikinis and I'm happy with them - I'm almost 45. But I did buy a one piece for our trip to AZ last week because we were staying with friends - and I felt more comfortable hanging out at their pool together in a covered one piece. The same holds for visiting friends in Israel and going to the Dead Sea. But if I were at the beach in Hawaii, France, Cape Town or Thailand with Greg, I'd be in my bikinis.

For me, it depends on the setting, activity and company.

Gaylene

Veteran

I agree with Angie. Whether or not to wear a bikini has to do with setting, activity, and company NOT age or shape. I've seen 80-year-old women wearing bikinis on the beach in the south of France looking totally in step with their surroundings and 20-somethings looking odd and uncomfortable poolside at a corporate retreat with male colleagues leering at them.

MsMaven

Veteran

I do have a bikini, worn mostly at home. I'm a bit older than you. I do wear tankinis--Freya has long body tops that work well for me. I don't go to the beach any more--too many pre-skin cancers--but I have donned a tankini on a cruise ship and would do it again at a resort. With my hat, my sunscreen and a big palm tree near-by for shade.

I guess I'm in the it's okay category. My aunt wore bikinis well into her 60s and probably her 80s. She was skinny as can be, but had had 10 major surgeries--scars all over the place. She also toasted to a toasty finish. She was quite a woman.

greycat6

Veteran

If it still works for you go for it. My 50th is 2 months away and I find I am most comfortable in two pieces that camouflage my back side. I'm ok showing abs, cheeks not so much.

My litmus test is to ask my 15 and 12 year old boys if this is ok for 'a mom to wear'. For me, it isn't worth embarrassing them.

SandyG

Veteran

I wore a one piece in Europe and felt like a Victorian. Everyone else, every age, was in bikinis. It was really awkward.

Echo

Veteran

I absolutely agree that the setting is key. With DH on a cruise, a bikini is great. With my kids at the community pool? A one-piece is definitely more appropriate. Likewise, a one piece is a safer option at a waterpark with the kids, as slides have a tendency to move two pieces around a bit. And, like Janet mentioned, sport suits are best for laps or anything athletic.

Jaime

(website)

Veteran

For actual swimming and being near a pool I really prefer board shorts and a tankini top. I don't need any extra sun exposure or worrying about pulling up or down my swimsuit, and like to use the bathroom easily. But if I were vacationing in the south of France I would consider carefully, because I would rather blend in than stand out in that situation. As for you Staysfit, I think you should wear your bikini as long as you want until 120.

Sal

Veteran

I have always preferred a one piece because I am short waisted and I feel a two piece cuts me in half visually. I did occasionally wear one in my 20s but find them a challenge in the mid section.

I love them on other people of all ages.

Sara L.

Veteran

I have the exact opposite problem from Kiwigirl- I'm long waisted and have a hard time finding one pieces that fit well. However, like others have said, I like to wear a one piece at the local community pool but bikinis on vacation or in other appropriate situations.

Joy

Veteran

I've seen plenty of women who look 100 at the beach in a bikini, but I want more coverage around people I know. I have a tankini that I like for the same reasons Shevia mentions. If a bikini has boy shorts and a top that is fairly unrevealing, I would wear it rather than a deep necked, high cut bottomed one-piece.

rachylou

Veteran

I don't like the feel of wearing a bikini. I'm also short-waisted and look better in a one piece, more proportional. But boy do I get grief for wearing a one piece. People always tell me to get with the program. And how no one is that stodgy, like, on the Riviera. Jeez. You'd think I'd just insulted someone's grandma!

Runcarla

Veteran

54 and still wearing a bikini! Best for vacations, or to toss in a suitcase in case a hotel has a pool/hot tub! I have performance suits for laps and water sports.

Adelfa

Veteran

When I was in Costa Rica I wore a one piece *plus a swim-skirt* and boy did I feel out of it. A fellow vacationer, a few years older than I, rocked a bikini. She seemed much more in tune.

Rambling Ann

(website)

Veteran

I think I last wore a bikini at age 11. I always wanted a pair of board shorts. All the cool kids in my high school were surfers. This summer, it's going to happen (shorts, not surfing, although in my rich fantasy life, I would learn to surf too).

Astrid

Veteran

People tell me I'm too young and thin not to wear a bikini, but I don't feel comfortable in one. I currently own a tankini with some decently covering shorts and a performance suit for sports. I feel that I look good in the tankini and not so great in the swimsuit, but that's alright. I say wear whatever you can relax and enjoy your day in.

Louise

Veteran

I think when it comes to beachwear wear what feels comfy. I don't think I'll ever be able to wear a one piece, as a 10 on top and a 14 bottom pear i can never find a one piece that fits. I've just bought a lovely black & white bikini top and skirtini bottom. Even though it's very body bearing I feel much more confident in it than in an ill fitting one piece x

Anonymous

You should totally wear the bikini. You're at the beach to relax and have fun. If you love it, wear it.

I personally wear a tankini because I am a bit shy and feel I need more cover.

Staysfit

Veteran

Location specific, rather than age specific. I need to think more about that. I wear swim suits to the local park which has a beach, to friends homes, on vacation, to water parks, and for certain sports like swimming, boating, water skiing, etc.

Right now I have three swim suits, a performance suit, a bikini, and a tankini. Actually, the bikini and tankini are mix and match from Athleta so I can interchange the pieces and create four looks but I mostly end up wearing the bikini top with either of the two bottoms.

From what everyone is saying, it sounds like bikinis are being worn by people of all ages everywhere which makes me happy.

Deborah

Veteran

Wear what you feel most comfortable in and what makes you happy! You have a great slender figure and I bet you look fab in a bikini:) I wear a one piece but It's because I am self conscious and have flabby tum which I prefer to hide.

Anonymous

Well, I'm 51 in a week and I'm still going to wear a bikini on my Greek holiday this year. All ages and all shapes and sizes wear bikinis (and less) in Greece. As others have said though...setting and company may govern how comfy you feel. I do a tankini for more coverage if I just go to a local swimming pool.

Dixie

If you prefer bikinis, WEAR THEM! I don't think there's an "inappropriate" age.

I haven't worn a bikini. Maybe when I was a kid but I don't remember. Since I started puberty, the swimwear shopping became a frustrating experience. I'm currently wearing a 30H bra, so imagine how hard it is to find in your average store something that covers and supports that size (and back in the day I didn't know my true bra size). I usually used to buy boring tankinis and the fit was "meh". The style was secondary, it was not "me", it was more "this is what is available and looks decent".

My back is like a S or M and my boobs are more than an XL, in swimsuit sizes. A couple years ago I bought a tankini from the maternity section (yeah, because these guys think that only pregnant women can have big boobs).

Well, this frustration was before I discovered ONLINE SHOPPING. Last year I bought a blue velvet swimsuit from Modcloth. It's gorgeous. Yes, it's "traditional" because it's an one-piece, but it has a retro vibe and it gives me a nice hourglass shape, and the support is great. I feel glamorous in it and confortable.

I recently discovered that ASOS carries bikini tops in +DD sizes. It looks like they offer good support and shape. Maybe this summer I'll jump in the wagon of the bikini!

So, see? I'm 23 and haven't worn a bikini. If I were you, I would take advantage of it! I'm sure they suit you great. Wear what makes you feel more "you"

Bathing Beauty One-Piece Swimsuit in Royal Velvet

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Style Fan

Veteran

I am going to be 60 in September and I still wear a bikini. Sometimes my bikini has a skirted bottom but my mid section has held up over the years. Sorry if that is too much information. I also don't care what people think so much anymore.

When we get together with friends I am the only one in a two piece. I do wear the more modest bottom (skirt).

Elizabeth P

Veteran

I'm with many, that it's situation dependant not age. I personally have never felt comfortable in a bikini, although I did have a brief period of loving them, when I was doing a lot of scuba diving. A whole lot easier to use the head on a boat, when you'e bundled up in lots of clothes between divies, with a two piece!! But then tankini's became more popular and I haven't looked back. I have a performance suit for "real" swimming. I actually kind of dread the day we go somewhere where I'll feel pressure to wear a bikini, I really don't want to. Luckily in Hawaii, I felt totally fine in my tankini's.

Irene

Veteran

I love the look of a fancy one-piece and like the retro-feel, but nothing beats the practicality of a bikini, both in terms of fit, dealing with beach sand and going to the bathroom/changing into other clothes.

I don't think my mother has ever looked good in a bikini, she's never had the 'right body type' for it, but in Spain a bikini is not something for the young and sexy, it's meant to be worn by just about any woman. Bikinis are not regarded as a sexualized clothing item (and neither is going top-less). It's just another type of outfit for the beach.

I honestly have no issues with women of all ages and shapes sporting a bikini, and I don't think one-piece swimsuits are any more flattering in most cases anyway.

Marina

I may be biased by the fact I'm Brazilian and we are a lot liberal about swimsuits here. We only use swimsuits at beach or pools - we usually use sportswear or normal summer clothes on parks - but here everyone uses bikinis. Not everyone uses string bikinis, but old, young, thin, fat... everyone uses bikinis. A few women use one piece swimsuits and you may see people wearing shorts and beach dresses to walk on the beach or layering wet-suit tops with bikinis for surfing or practicing stand up, but I never saw anyone using a tankini or swimming in shorts.

That much said: if you like yourself in a bikini, go for it!

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