This project began with my obsession with 1960s fashion. Through research and my own personal shopping dilemmas I have found that most modern swimwear lives at two extremes: too revealing or too modest. My project is about finding the balance; swimwear that's flattering, functional and just the right amount of sexy. Made from woven polyester combined with bold prints, and structured silhouettes, they feel like vintage but function like new.
I wanted to capture a fun, feminine vibe with soft pinks, and greens. While also incorporating classic 60s patterns like stripes, and plaid. I also knew I wanted to include buttons as well.
Loves vintage, classic, flattering, timeless.
My customer prioritizes style and quality above all else. While comfort is important, they are willing to sacrifice a degree of ease in order to achieve a strong aesthetic. They seek garments that find the right balance of self-expression, and modesty.
Vintage swimwear lacks modern performance standards. Modern swimwear lacks timeless charm.
In today's swimwear market, my target consumers are generally limited to five categories:
After analyzing cotton, nylon and polyester materials, I explored board short fabric to see if its reduced stretch and water performance properties could recreate the structured vintage look.
1960's swimwear examples that inspired my exploration of silhouettes and prints:
I sketched multiple concepts based on the 6 main vintage elements I pointed out above. 1) low waisted bottoms, 2) structured pointy darts, 3) boy-short bottoms 4) sweetheart/v-shaped neckline, 5) buttons, 6) print/pattern placement.
This is my final tech flat drawing and design.
To test the boardshort material, I looked for a real vintage sewing pattern that looked close enough to my design. I found this 60's Butterick pattern on Etsy.
I thrifted two pairs of mens swim trunks to cut up and sew into a first prototype.
This material was actually not too hard to work with and it totally has the structure of a vintage swimsuit while also being chlorine and UV resistant.
I found a fabric company located in Sandy Utah called Raspberry Creek Fabrics that has many print options for board short material.
Material: 3.8 oz %100 polyester sueded microfiber
Going along with the my mood board and print inspiration, I picked out a pink plaid, a green and yellow vertical striped print, a blue/purple/green striped print, an off-white and another vertical striped fabric. I planned on making three suits to show the final vision.
One thing I struggled with throughout this process was making these suits adjustable. Because boardshort material has very little stretch I had to tailor them each to fit almost perfectly.
If I did this again I would add elastic in the waist and the leg holes as well as the under bust and straps. I think this would be a much better solution for allowing them different bodies without having to fit perfectly. Mostly because the fabric isn't super stretchy.
Photography by Lola Probasco and Abbey Gibbs
Models: Ava Probasco, Lola Probasco and Abbey Gibbs
Location: Pinecrest Lake, Strawberry CA
