Hands up if you have holidays on the brain?! Yep, it’s that time of the year again when we go on the hunt for fresh new bikinis and swimsuits. But buying swimwear that looks gorge yet suits your body shape can be difficult, sadly we don’t all look like the models who usually advertise the hottest swimwear trends so it’s useful to know what will and won’t work for you.

Wearing swimwear that caters to your shape makes all the difference to your confidence and how you feel when you are half naked on the beach. So hopefully this post will be helpful with your holiday shopping.

Short Body

Lengthen your body with vertical stripes and other details such as halter neck straps will lift the bustline and draw the attention upwards. Low-rise bikini bottoms will also make your torso appear longer.

If you have a shorter torso some swimsuits and bikini top straps might fall down from your shoulders. Try petite swimwear from the likes of Asos and TopShop that is made to fit shorter people. If you also have short legs and are feeling brave, go for a thong for optimal lengthening.

Short body swimwear

1. Figleaves

2. Missguided

3. Asos

4. Nasty Gal

5. H&M

6. Topshop

7. Topshop

8. Figleaves 

9. Nasty Gal

Tummy Tucking

Draw attention away from your mid-section by covering it up with swimsuits and high waisted bikinis. Thankfully both are on trend this year! Peplum and ruffle details conceal and draw the eye away from your stomach area, plunging necklines also keep the focus upwards.

Tummy Tucking swimwear

1. Figleaves 

2. Figleaves

3. Figleaves

4. NastyGal

5. Figleaves 

6. H&M

7. H&M

8. Figleaves 

Large Bust

Support is key for larger busts when it comes to both comfort and appeal. Bra-style bikini tops with underwire or molded cups provide support and can usually be adjusted for a perfect fit. Avoid too much fuss like ruffles up top to keep the focus away from your chest.

Large Bust swimwear

1. Figleaves

2. NastyGal

3. H&M

4. Figleaves

5. Figleaves

6. ASOS

Small Bust

Swimwear styles with lots of detailing such as embellishments, ruffles, bold print and patterns can create curves and give the illusion of a larger bust. Padded bra-style bikinis are the best for creating cleavage. Halter necks and bandeaus also look really cute on those with less to show!

Small Bust swimwear

1. Figleaves

2. Figleaves 

3. H&M

4. NastyGal

5. Figleaves

6. PrettyLittleThing

7. H&M

8. Topshop

9. Missguided

Bum

It goes without saying but bigger bums need more fabric. Highcut and string bikinis are uncomfortable and unflattering on bigger bums, especially if the back of the bikini is completely hidden! A good idea is to keep to solid colours for bikini bottoms, and printed tops to balance out the curves.

Swimwear for bigger bums (1)

1. Figleaves

2. Figleaves

3. V by Very

4. V by Very

5. H&M

6. Figleaves

No Bum

Small to no bums require the opposite. Busy prints and details such as ruffles give the illusion of curves. Showing a little cheek will also be more flattering than a full coverage bottom when there is not much to cover.

Swimwear for smaller bums

1. ASOS

2. NastyGal

3. TopShop

4. ASOS

5. ASOS

6. ASOS

My personal favourite place to buy swimwear is Figleaves. They always have so many nice pieces (a few examples above) to choose from in shapes and sizes to suit all body shapes. The quality is amazing and so so comfy to wear! All their items are “shapewear” to ensure all the bits you’d like to hide are hidden. I can’t recommend the swimsuits enough!

Sophie x