My friend Mandy and I both have reason for a new swimsuit. She’s going on a honeymoon in Jamaica, and my kids are leaving for sleep away camp for 3 weeks – giving me time to travel with Jeff. We both wear underwire bras, so we tried on the Freya and Fantasie swimwear lines. They range from B to HH size. Mandy is a 34C and I’m a 34D. She’s a dress size 4 and I’m a 6/8, so she’s a full size smaller than me (and about 5 years younger, and never had a baby, but we won’t go there.)
So here’s what we tried on and here’s what we thought:
The Panama Cooler bikini was the first one Mandy tried on. It has an underwire halter bikini top and boyshorts bottom with a cute plastic buckle (shown). The print was youthful and lively – shades of camo mixed with bursts of deep aqua and sky blue. Mandy loved the fabric, but not the cut of the bottom. This swimsuit convinced her that she certainly needed the C on top, but that she did not want to try on any more boyshort style swimsuits. (There is a brief bottom in the Panama Cooler print too, but not in her size.)
Next Mandy tried on the Soda in green. If you want options - this is the swimsuit for you!! This is a great Freya mix-and-match swimwear collection:
There is even a soft cup one-piece tank and underwire one piece tank with halter in the Freya Soda collection. Mandy tried the soft triangle bikini top and classic brief bottom. The green shade was very pretty – the colors of fresh spring grass. It would look great on my friend Tanya with her brown wavy hair to her waist. Mandy liked the cut on this one – the soft cup bikini top was secure and flattering without push up, the bottom has good butt coverage and was trimmed with a cute enamel logo charm. Many of these pieces are on sale now!
While she was trying that on, I put on the Mangopolitan. Its white, chocolate and mango pattern of flowers and dots was cute and feminine – just enough to distract the eye from body flaws, in fact! The Triangle halter top in a 34D was a magnificent fit. The girls were secure and the cleavage created was flattering. The bikini bottom has a full coverage on the butt, and around the waist it has a fold of fabric so you can control the height of the waistline. I’m sure this makes the swimsuit more flattering for more body types, but it also allowed me to keep it unrolled and up high to my navel, hiding all signs that I ever had 2 babies in 2 years.
Mandy liked the Mangopolitan and she tried it on too. We both agreed the top was cut impeccably and flattered so well. It was a lot like the Soda top, but a bit more cleavage enhancing. The Vodkatini swimsuit is colorblocked shades of mocha, black and white, and looked like it had the same awesome cut on top, but they didn’t have my size. These colors would probably look good on me for a more sophisticated look. (Freya's Vodkatini also has a retro brief bottom with a big buckle a la James Bond, a boyshort bottom and an underwire bikini top. At 34D the soft cup was cut so well I did not need the underwire. Something about that inch-wide seam along the inside of the cups kept “the girls” happy.)
While she tried that on, I tried Fantasie’s Seattle tankini in black. The top overlapped the bottom enough that it gave the coverage of a one-piece while still being sporty like a tankini. There is a brief bottom, and a brief bottom with some tummy control - it's just a front lining that offers moderate support, not something that squeezes you in an inch. The tankini top is bandeau style - above the boobs the seam is straight across - and has removeable, convertible straps. It had full hidden underwire and buckled in the back with a copper metal buckle that created a pretty keyhole in the center of the back. I tried it on with and without the straps, and also as a halter. The halter look gave the top seam a bit more shape, and under the bustline there was an empire seam with the same copper metal buckle. This helped a bit with shaping, but basically I realized a bandeau cut was not for me. I don’t belong in tube tops, I need to highlight my boobs to take emphasis off my hips.
There is also an underwire balcony bikini top and a sweetheart padded underwire top. And a one-piece tank with full underwire and deep Vneck with front lining that offers moderate tummy control, an underwire shelf bra and foam sling support for chest support, and shirred fabric by the tummy to flatter curves. Mandy tried on the sweetheart padded underwire top in red with a gold buckle. It's not heavily padded, it’s just enough to line and provide modesty, not enough to add a size. There was a pretty gold slide on the shoulder strap and gold rings to adjust the straps just like you would a real bra. In fact, that was Mandy’s complaint. She felt it looked so much like a real bra that she wouldn’t feel comfortable in it out in public. She likes her swimwear to look like swimwear. I thought she looked amazing in it! It was very similar to the Soda bikini in green one she tried on, but with a more structured top.
Last but not least we both tried on the Fantasie Jaipur underwire bandeau suit with adjustable leg – mainly out of curiosity. I had never worn a swimsuit with an adjustable leg before. There were black ties decorated by copper beads at the bottom of the side seam by the hip. You can pull the bottom fabric of the swimsuit up along the strings to allow more hip/leg to show, creating a ruched effect. The beautiful paisley pattern of red, black and ivory hid all figure flaws. This swimsuit was too long for me, there was extra fabric that would have helped someone 3-4 inches taller than me (I suggest this suit if you're 5′8 or taller). It has a full, hidden underwire bra in front with hook and eye closure hidden in the back so it buckles like a real bra. It also had a bandeau top, so I almost avoided it, but the great paisley pattern is set off by a thick black band of fabric across the top so I though it might draw attention up to the neck. The straps are removable and convertible. So basically if had a V top and was cut shorter-waisted, I’d love it. (It was hard to wiggle in to, but an extra 40 seconds in the dressing room is OK with me if I’m going to wear the swimsuit for 3-4 hours.)
I took the black Seattle tankini home and the Mangopolitan bikini. Jeff said the tankini looked good to wear to water parks (translation: sporty, good fit, good coverage, not too sexy) and the Mangopolitan bikini was “exciting” (translation: excited him!!) I wonder if I could wear the Seattle tankini in the sun all day because the back copper buckle is right against the skin and might heat up. (It’s also difficult to buckle on your own. I was happy to have Mandy and Jeff help me secure this one!)
Mandy and I had so much fun and liked the fabrics, colors and cuts so much that I plan to reenact this day in the dressing room with my friend Joy in a few weeks. Stay tuned for that, and for more Freya and Fantasie swimwear reviews after these suits hit the Florida waves!
No comments:
Post a Comment