Getting caught up is what Mondays are all about around here.
I spent the morning at the computer as usual and eventually broke for lunch around noon.
I fixed myself a simple roast beef sandwich on toasted honey wheat bread with melted muenster cheese, mustard and spinach.
Sides included another sliced pear and my new favorite chips!
Have any of you guys tried Popcorners chips?
I bought them on a whim last week and am so impressed!
They are perfectly crunchy and packed with flavor without being greasy. I can’t wait to try more flavors, though I’m a little obsessed with the kettle flavor and will have a hard time not just buying that one over and over again.
Bathing Suits: A No on the Ruching
After lunch, I got around to trying on the bathing suits that arrived in the mail for me over the weekend.
I ordered two different bikinis from Victoria’s Secret in hopes of having a new suit for our upcoming cruise at the end of the month. I haven’t purchased a new bathing suit in several years. I tend to order them online and buying a bikini online is quite a guessing game, so they often get returned.
Fortunately one of the suits is a keeper, but the other one was definitely not.
Riiight.
That bathing suit looked like it offered a lot more coverage online and I didn’t notice the ruching down the middle of the butt on the Victoria’s Secret website. What is that? A stitched-in butt crack?
I’m sure it would look adorable on some, but on me it looked ridiculous and it’s already packed up and ready to be sent back.
I’m just glad I got one winner! I’m so picky when it comes to bathing suits (aren’t we all?), so I was relieved to at least find one that will do.
Back to work!
Question of the Afternoon
- Where do you typically buy your bathing suits?
I typically get my suits from Victoria’s Secret or Target. I love the suits at Everything But Water, but they come with a hefty price tag!
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LOVE popcorners! i just tried them for the first time the other day and i got the cheesy jalapeno flavor and it was delicious 🙂
I agree – that is a weird design! I usually get mine at Target and the Gap – for whatever reason one style at Target fits me well and most styles at the Gap do. I always want to order from VS but I’m so picky about bikinis and I don’t want to have to pay return shipping!
Hey Caroline! Now you can return your VS orders to the stores so you don’t need to pay for return shipping 🙂 This is what motivated me to order a couple swimsuits and sizes and then return whatever doesn’t work!
I used to solely buy at victoria’s secret and target but i’ve recently come to love J. crew!
I used to get all of my bathing suits at Target – they have so many cute options and used to be even cheaper, back in the day. HAHA – a stiched-on butt crack – that almost made me laugh out loud in class 🙂
I used to be a big fan of buying them at surf ware type stores – but I swear in the last 5 years the backside coverage has shrunk to look more like a brazillian cut suit.
So funny, I just bought a bikini online from Victoria’s Secret last night! I have a big butt and it’s hard to find bottoms that work… I bought one of their “cheeky” bottoms (kind of like the ruched one you showed, but without the frilly edges on the outside of the butt area, haha) and am hoping it works on me. I feel like when a bikini bottom is gathered in the middle, it gives you a little “lift” and draws the eye away from what seems to be a few unbanishable dimples on the backs of my thighs (shudder, haha!) I’m anxious to get it and see. I love the pattern on that ruched one, though, so cute!
And yes I was obsessed with Everything But Water, especially back in the UCF days… I’d drool over the store at Millenia, but not over their $70-per-piece price tags!
Happy Monday Julie!
I buy my bathing suits from VS as well. I bought one last year off their site and I had the same thing happen with the butt crack stitching. Terrible! I loved the bathing suit but there was NO way I was leaving the house with a fo-butt crack.
i know! what is WITH faux-buttcracks? they’re ALL over the place on the VS website!
I feel like most females do VS or Target – you can’t go wrong!!! I’ve bought a few expensive suits and they start falling apart so definitely not worth it!
Those chips sound good! I usually get my suits from target or old navy – i’m pretty cheap! Especially since I never wear them anymore living in Chicago!
PopCORNERS?! I already eat PopChips by the bagful (seriously. 1 giant bag = 1 serving); I will have to keep an eye out for these!
A stitched-in butt crack?! Funniest line I’ve heard all day!
I have tried buying suits online. Never works for me. I have never, ever kept one. I like the Joe Boxer suits at Sears. Yes, Sears! And Target always has good suits, too. I buy at least one new suit every year.
I usually buy them at the end of the season from J. Crew. I love their suits – I like Victoria’s secret too – but I want to be able to try them on first. I’m weird about bathing suits and honestly, the older I get, the more I want to wear a one piece so I try to find cute ones that don’t look like grandma suits.
I have no idea why they added the stitching right down the middle this year. I think it looks really odd. Now I have to be very careful about the type of bottoms I select. I buy all of my bathing suits at Victoria Secret or J Crew. J Crew often have great sales!
I tried Popcorners at BJ’s a while ago and I loved them! I always forget to pick up a bag. They are so good 🙂
I need to get bathing suits for my honeymoon. I hate all the ones I have and haven’t bought any in such a long time. I’ve been browsing Victoria’s Secret or I was thinking about trying some on in Target. I’m nervous to order them online.
For the past several years I have purchased from Vic S’ only, buying at least 2 new suits every summer (they aren’t cheap!) But this year I decided to check out Target and I found 2 super cute suits for less than ONE from Victoria’s Secret.
I have tried on the rucheted bottoms before and I felt completely out in the open. My boyfriend wasn’t a fan of the possibility of everyone seeing what’s for his eyes only, either!
“a stitched in butt crack”…hahaha! WHY would someone ever think that’s an attractive design?!
Bathing suit shopping is difficult enough as is so I’ve never done it online. Last year I actually had quite a bit of luck at Target of all places.
we have good stores on the highstreet here for bikini’s, topshop is quite good. Those popchips look so good, checked out the website. Don’t think they ship to Ireland, another thing to add to my list of things to find on my next trip to the U.S!
I honestly love Target for bathing suits and I actually got quite a few cute ones from Forever21.com just before our cruise this past January.
They’re cheap but they’re cute and who wants to spend tons on bathing suits anyway! Especially with a sewn in buttcrack! hahahah I laughed out loud on that one!
I LOVE the kettle popcorners. I can put away a whole bag in one sitting if i’m not careful.
Usually ruching is just one thread woven in and out of the fabric and pulled tight. Could you just cut the thread?
Ooh yes, I don’t think I care much for the ruching either! I haven’t actually purchased a VS bikini before, mainly because I’m too scared to order from the catalogue – I feel like no matter how hard I try, the suit probably wouldn’t fit! We don’t actually have VS stores here in Canada, but I like Bikini Village for swimsuits, and occasionally I’ll buy cheapie ones from Old Navy if they’re cute and provide some decent coverage!
I love Target for swim suits! Since they are so cheap, I don’t mind only having one season with them and then moving on 🙂
I tend to go with Victoria’s Secret. I like to mix and match my bottoms and tops. I think VS is great for that!
I’m a VS and Target girl myself when it comes to bathing suits – mostly VS when I get the clearance suits with a coupon code! In fact, I should go spend my Secret Rewards Certificate, since I have 51 days til my CRUISE!
I buy mine from VS too, and from a local swimwear place called The Swimwear Hut. I have bought one off VS before that looked so cute, but when I received it I realized it was a whole lot more NEON green than I had hoped! I usually love their suits though 🙂
It’s funny, I’ve actually been wanting to try the ones with butt ruching lol. It somehow gives the appearance of a nice tush imo. I usually buy mine from Target and VS, but definitely more from Target because $ trumps $$$
Target or Macy’s.
This year I found some really veratile ones by Kenneth Cole at Macy’s. I am shocked at how much love them!
You should totally try Venus.com… I LOVE the suits I get from there! Look for the goddess bikinis I have a couple of different colors!
Target
I tend to go with VS myself, but usually around spring break time when they go on sale or at the end of the season if I can help it. Sometimes, I just take the plunge and go for it though! It’s hard to tell what will or won’t fit, but I have about 3 suits from them that are winners and have only ever sent one back. I SO agree with you on the weird ruching they’ve been showing on swimsuits and even underwear lately. It’s just so weird. Not flattering!
I buy all of my swimwear from VS – but on clearance! 🙂
I saw someone with a ruched bathing suit bottom like that when I was on vacation a few weeks ago. I have to say – it accentuated her curves, but not in a tasteful way in my opinion. Am I the only one who judges when I see another woman wearing a less-than-modest bathing suit? I know I shouldn’t judge, and some of it just stems from jealousy wishing I could look as good in something like that. Anyway…I like the suits from Athleta. They’re sporty and cute but still functional and reasonably-priced (especially when they’re on sale).
I’m not big busted but heard from someone who is that Athleta is good for that sort of thing.
I just want to point out that ‘modest’ is a very subjective thing, and usually heavily influenced by one’s surrounding culture. In Brazil, so many women on the beach wear thong bikini bottoms, including women old enough to be grandmothers and women who would be considered ‘obese’. Nobody really cares. Many enjoy a good chuckle about the American-cut swimsuit bottoms that they call ‘diapers’. Also, a lot of people I’ve met from South America, Europe, Australia (women and men) wear skimpy bikinis/sunbathe topless or don speedos/tight skimpy shorts mostly for the simple sake of minimizing tanlines. I think it’s just part of the beach culture and being comfortable with the idea of wearing less clothing.
The ruched bottom pretty much just serves to accentuate the curves of the butt for people who are into that kind of thing 🙂 I know a lot of females with smaller bottoms who like the way the ruching gives them a little more ‘oomph’, and women with not-so-small bottoms who enjoy the same effect. It reminds me of how a top with ruching at the chest accentuates the breasts–basically a form of “stitched-in cleavage”. But it’s never questioned why a woman would want attention drawn to the uh, crack between her boobs… Thank you, breast-obsessed society. LOL
Thank you, Iris! I seriously am trying to be less judgmental, and this is an insightful perspective.
great point, iris! style can depend so much on cultural influences. for me, the brazilian cuts aren’t what i’d personally choose, but women who love those suits would likely hate the ones i love!
Yes! I am still not a fan of wide straps or bottoms because of the tanlines they leave–but this is just when I’m in the sun! For indoor pools I actually prefer one-pieces with lots of coverage because there is no sun. 😛
Anyway, I’m glad to share! Seeing other people’s nonchalance about their bodies actually helped me because I realized they were just out to enjoy the sun, and being in a swimsuit didn’t have to be some big thing about whether or not I looked ‘good enough’ to be in one. I understood that being in a swimsuit is as natural to some people as being in jeans and a t-shirt is to others (I think VS model Izabel Goulart said something to this effect about herself. How appropriate).
And Mae, I’m willing to bet you look way better in a swimsuit than you think you do 😉
Being large busted, I usually order from Victoria’s Secret because they do a lot of the tops by bra size. I’ve also found several halter style tops at Old Navy which have adjustable top and back ties.
Does anyone know of a good source for bra-size bathing suits besides VS? Thanks!
I usually buy from VS Clearance swim suits since they’re so cheap. At the end of last year I happened to buy one of the suits that has a “stiched in butt crack” too, and it is terrible. It looks like it belongs more on a pole, not the beach, and that is not the look I’m going for! I will most likely just order a pair of regular string bottoms to match the top since I love that part of the suit.
I am thankful that our VS in the mall has a pretty large selection of their new suits in the store and that I tried them on before dropping a ton of $ ordering online because they were NO’s!
Love, Love, Love Target suits! I like to mix-n-match things from the year before..I also live in FL so you can NEVER have enough bikinis! =)
I usually go with Victoria’s Secret! And Julie…you make me laugh! “What is that? A stitched-in butt crack?” Hahaha.. LOVE this blog 🙂
Whenever I am in the US I always buy swimsuits at Target, they are my favorite! I also order online from Victoria Secret. Seems to be the two top places for swimsuits!
have you heard of the color run? you should do it!! my friends and i just signed up for a location near us but they’re doing it in orlando in december! watch the video, you’ll want to do it!!!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=ZWsfHC-0d6A
Since I have a really big chest… i have a really hard time finding cute bikinis that dont make me look like im going to hango ut with pamela anderson. also, i dont really care for swimsuits that have underwires (which most larger “cups” do) so i ghave been buying from Venus swimwear because they actually fit really well and have super cute stuff!
Venus swimwear you say?? I have the SAME problem with my chest exploding out of tops from pretty much every store (talk about embarrassing) so I’ll have to look into that! Thanks for sharing… I don’t think I’ve bought a bikini in years because of it! =P
Yes they have some wide “banded” (meaning not string) haters that I just get in D or DD and they are the best cute swimsuits that’s I’ve found! 🙂 glad I could help!
Vix is my favorite. They are pricey but have beautiful suits!
Target Or old navy!!!!!
My sister was told (by a stripper!) that the ruching is more flattering to the be-hind–and that she does it to all her bathing suits and undies…but then again I’m not sure if any fashion advice coming from that avenue would be the best step to achieving a “classy” pulled together wardrobe lol
LOL at this comment. On the flip side, the woman must know how to accentuate her curves!
Most of mine are from VS, I bought them a couple of years ago right before an August vacation..and they were majorly on sale since it was the end of the season! I can’t believe it has a sewn in butt crack – SO creepy, what designer thought that was a good idea?!
Have you ever tried PopChips? They are UH-MAZING. I heard about them from Jillian Michaels on her podcast and just had to try them. SO delish!
ya thats kinda weird fit…i actually usually buy my swimsuits from victorias secret or jcrew…have had pretty good luck with both so far!
I almost always buy my swim suits at Victoria Secret. I usually go in to the store to try them on and buy them, or I at least will try them on and then order the color I want online (:
I usually buy one a year from VS, but I only buy one that I can try on in the store. Sometimes the in-store selection is limited, but I can usually find one I really like. I feel like their bra top swimsuits offers good life and coverage, so they’re worth the extra $$!
same here: victorias secret sales or target.
i do have one from VS with ruching down the crack just like that, but then again, i think my butt crack is one of my finer qualities…
Show us the one you ended up keeping!
I’ve started ordering my bathing suits from Title Nine. They are expensive… but if you can wait for them to go on sale they are GREAT quality and I absolutely love the way they fit.
I have one that I am keeping my eye on right now and am literally just waiting for the suits to go on sale.
Target is a good one, and yes, VS can have some cute ones for sure! I have my eye on a few, so I just need to decide….Summer is almost upon us. Ahhh!