We live in an era in which Instagram has transformed male beachwear from something casual and unimportant to something that will remain in the file forever.
Whether summer or winter, the mind tends to wander to sun-drenched beaches, long weekends in the Caribbean, family trips to Florida, or simply lie on the sands of the South Pacific.
Adam Brown, director of the London swimwear firm Orlebar Brown, had his “Archimedes in the bathtub” moment at a pool party in 2005.
The invited men looked bad and felt worse, wrapped in huge swimsuits that had to be free wriggling before entering the dining room for their food. “My friends really laughed at me,” Brown told me. “They said, ‘Who would want to wear a fitted swimsuit?'”
These days, who does not? Brown’s vision anticipated an era in which Instagram has transformed male beachwear from something casual and unimportant to something that will remain in the file forever.
Like the best contemporary swimsuits, those at Orleans Brown allow a smooth transition from the pool bar to the restaurant’s food. Quick-drying polymers are the key. A tradition of technical fabrics that goes back to at least the 40s.
Before placing your order, here is what some of the most important names in swimming pool clothes for men advise.
Start with your height. In their design, modern swimsuits have amphibious ambitions. “We design our suits so that they can be worn instead of normal shorts,” says Faherty Brand co-founder Mike Faherty, who attracts high-end customers with 18 and 23-centimeter (7 and 9-inch) surf swimsuits, respectively. .
How to choose? The easiest way to decide, says Faherty, is to rely on height. “The tall guys over 1.90 meters tend to opt for those of 23 centimeters (9 inches),” he says. The lowest, of 1.55 meters and less, go by those of 18 centimeters (7 inches) “.
Adopt a European wave. The French brand Vilebrequin began in 1971 after its founder, Fred Prysquel, went after his future wife to Saint Tropez to woo her. Feeling uncomfortable in the Speedo-style suits of the time, he created an elegant suit that offered greater coverage.
This model, called Moorea, has a shot of 14 centimeters (5.5 inches) in the medium size, while longer shorts created in 1996, the Okoa, have a shot of 21.5 centimeters (8.5 inches).
“Traditionally the American customer is more conservative than the European one,” said Michelle Copelman, design director at Solid & Striped, which offers suits in four sizes. “But we are observing that men in the United States are beginning to explore different silhouettes.”
Choose an extravagant pattern carefully. At Orlebar Brown, the company offers quarter length shorts, from the tiny springer to the dane, which goes almost to the knees. Brown tends to prefer mid-length ones, and when he ventures to the shorter side of the spectrum, he chooses a solid color or a simple pattern, rather than one of his strident styles with printed photographs.
