Tankini Wahini

Is anyone else appalled at the price of bathing suits? I just ordered one on clearance from Land's End, the crown jewel of the bathing suit empire for those of us who are looking for bathing suit descriptions that include such phrases as:

• The texture that slims
• Tiny vertical ribs smooth and slim your figure
• Details that flatter your figure
• You'll look a size smaller—instantly
• Skip the sit-ups!
• Anxiety zone solution: tummy control firms you, yet you feel comfortable

If you are looking for a bathing suit that will make you look hot, do your shopping elsewhere but if, like me, you are looking for all of the attributes listed above (taken directly from the latest Land's End swim wear catalog), you need to look no further than LandsEnd.com. Better start saving now though because a suit that lets you skip the sit-ups isn't going to come cheap. I got a bargain, snagging one from last year's collection off of the online clearance rack for $39.99. Any of this year's line will run you $90 and up for a tankini, the only acceptable mom-suit at pools these days. Sure, traditional bikinis are always acceptable for the lucky Mamas who can pull them off but for most of us, its tankini city.

But $90? $90! Does that seem a bit excessive to anyone else? You can hop on LandsEnd.com and order a pair of men's trunks for $19.99, NOT on sale. What's up with that? It's not like women's suits are incredibly detailed and made of high cost materials, we're just desperate to pull them off, so desperate that we'll drop $120 on a good suit without hesitation. So, don't be snowed by promises that you can skip the sit-ups if you wear a particular suit. Do a few sit-ups, shop the clearance racks and flash dirty looks from under your sunglasses at the hot moms in bikinis at the pool. Everybody wins.

Comments

[suburbancorrespondent]

I got mine on clearance from Lands End in 2006 for 50 dollars. It's worth every penny; I mean, unless public humiliation turns you on...

[nsgee1]

The prices aren't even in direct ratio to the amount of fabric, which means big girls whose suits may use extra yardage are the same price as the skinnies made of fabric scraps. Go figure

[Becky]

Take a look at my blog entry from Sunday and you will notice that I am wearing the obligatory Mom Tankini.

[madhousewife]

I saw that Lands End suit for $90, and I fell in love with it. But the most I've ever paid for a bathing suit was $40, and that was for a maternity suit. I hardly ever have occasion to wear bathing suits, so I can make mine last for years. I loved that maternity suit, but of course it no longer fits, as I am no longer pregnant and have no plans to be.

The really frustrating thing is buying bathing suits for my daughter, who already needs to wear women's sizes, and is still growing. I could maybe justify spending $90 on a suit for me, as I'll probably be wearing it the rest of my life, but she'll probably need a new one next year. At least she swims 100x more often than I do, so she'll wring our money's worth out of it.

[Angie]

Oh my, and I almost had a heart attack at the $30 I paid at Target for my new suit. And I'm mortified to wear it in public. Money well spent! I haven't lost enough weight to move into the tankini category, so it's still skirted frumpy suits for me. Wahoo!

[Leanne]

Hey, just 'cause a few posts ago you were into grammer - I think it's Lands' End. Yep, it's a typo but they couldn't afford the reprinting costs years ago when they started so it stuck - annoyingly so. :)

[Jacquelyn]

Good catch, Leanne. I looked up Lands' End on wikipedia and dang if you aren't right!! It was a typo just like you said. Very interesting.

Here's the link if anyone is interested: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lands'_End

[Keli]

I was quite shocked at the price of bathing suits! All people talk about is the escalating price of gas. What about bikinis? Here, in California of course, the price of everything is higher. No longer are bikinis sold together, but the tops and bottoms are sold separately. For a mere $85 EACH! Thank goodness, I bought when they were still sold as a set.