Why a Seafolly Bikini from Cocobay always comes on holiday with me!
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This was taken on a recent trip to Herm with my sis to celebrate her 50th birthday. Here I am wearing the sunflower border Seafolly bikini in some kind of crazy action shot!
Is there anything that strikes more fear in our hearts than shopping for swimwear? If you’re anything like me, chances are that you’re doing it in a badly lit changing room, in a rush, when you’re not quite “feeling” it.
I’ve been known to peer out of the changing room whilst sort of wrapping the curtain around me toga style, only to find that there’s no one there to help.
The options are then a) go out onto the shop floor in said bikini to hunt down the right size. Which actually isn’t really an option at all or b) to get dressed, go out, get another size, go back in, try again (hello hot, sweaty, irritated mess) or c) get dressed, buy the whole rack of sizes and do it all at home…only to have to return most, if not all, of the pieces.
And as for beachwear? Well who knew that it was such a “thing?”
This is the Shine On Seafolly Bikini which comes in five styles.
Swimwear and beachwear often assume the same roles in our wardrobe as nightwear or underwear: we know that we need them but they kind of fall to the back of the queue until that “OH FLIP” moment when it’s time to reveal all on the beach. Then we realise that we needed to prioritise them a little more.
Somehow that saggy, lycra depleted cozzie from many moons ago (which is now also slightly see through – yay!) and the sarong/kaftan bought on a trip around the world several decades previously don’t quite cut the mustard – even if the sarong is tied in some fancy way that’s been spotted on YouTube.
This is a Seafolly Bikini from the In the Loop Collection and it comes in 7 styles (including 2 swimming costumes)
That’s where Cocobay come into their own. I’ve previously written about them here and here and I always love what they have to offer in terms of the choice and styles of swimwear and beachwear.
Over the years I’ve had a few trips away. When the children were smaller they were largely to the Channel Islands and now that the children are older we can face going slightly further afield and occasionally, just very occasionally, Mr G and I go away on our own! Wherever I am though, Cocobay swimwear is always with me.
The best thing about shopping at Cocobay…
The best thing about shopping at Cocobay is that not only can their bikinis can be bought as separates but each style comes in a number of different top and bottom choices. Some styles include a swimming costume as well and there’s also a range which come in cup size D,DD, E and F.
If you were to see a bikini but you knew that the top would not make the most of your assets, there will be another option – in the same print – available. This means that rather than missing out and having to go back to square one, you can have something that is effectively tailor made for your needs – whether that’s more uplift in a top, or a deeper style of bikini bottom, or a halter neck, or a briefer bottom – or a swimming costume if that’s what you prefer.
This Seafolly castaway stripe bandeau swimsuit also comes in a white with black combination (£118)
Plus the customer service is fabulous. The girls there really know their products about and they offer great advice as to what will work for you personally. One of the benefits of being able to buy swimwear online is that you can try things on in the comfort of your own home, which makes the whole experience so much more positive and less soul destroying!
Let’s turn to the issue of cost
There are some things in life that we’re advised to invest in and really, they’re just not worth it. I too thought the same about swimwear – and bikinis in particular. I just could not get my head around why people would invest in three pieces of fabric, especially when those three pieces of fabric offered so little coverage.
I suspect that it’s an age thing but I now get it. I absolutely appreciate the comfort of good swimwear, especially if I’m going to be in it all day long (seriously, I wish all my pants were as flattering and as comfortable as the bottoms on a Seafolly Bikini) as well as what it can offer in terms of support and placing things in a position that they once were before 3 babies and gravity had taken its toll.
This is the Seafolly Bikini “Chilli Red” which comes in 13 different styles
The support in the Seafolly Bikini tops is so good that I prefer them to a strapless bra and I’ll often wear them under summer dresses and off the shoulder style tops (in fact I’m wearing one right now!) I’ve not seen any signs of wear and tear in my bikinis and I’ve owned a few of them for several years now. In fact, looking back at the photographs, the bikinis have fared much better than I have! (Case in point the above shot, which was taken a couple of years ago now!)
Moving on to beachwear
I could say that for those times when you’re popping from the beach to the bar for cocktails, it’s lovely to have a beach dress to pop on over your bikini. And for some that’s true. For me it’s more a case of covering up to walk through the local streets to take the youngest to find some hideously huge, sugar laden mass produced ice cream which holds a particularly special place in her soul – but you get the drift.
Having said that, now that (most) of the children are older, we do occasionally get a chance to step away for a few days and I wore this dress on a recent trip to Portugal for a weekend away.
Skemo Borneo Dress from Cocobay (£81)
As well as swimwear, Cocobay has a fabulous range of beachwear which has the potential to make you feel all sorts of glam, put together and on top of your game, even when you know at the back of your mind that there are a million and one outstanding jobs that you need to attend to back home.
Here I’m wearing the pull on teal sundress (£69)
But when it comes to it, holidays are all about stepping off the world for a while – so those jobs are just going to have to wait.
Don’t forget that you can get 15% off everything until the end of August with the code BETH1519.
