Do You Wear a Bikini?

I think you (and people in general) should wear whatever you are comfortable in. I find it obnoxious and rude for people to presume that if they don't want to look at it, it shouldn't be made visible...example: my great aunt will say that it is okay for my sister or me to wear a bikini, but not okay for someone with any meat on their bones to wear one, because 'people don't want to look at that', well, then DON'T LOOK!!!

I'm about 5'1" and weigh approx 150. I wear a size 10 jean. I will never wear a bikini. I'm not comfortable with it. I look horrid in them because my belly is jiggle, my thighs are jiggle and my butt, well it's huge. So, no bikini for me. I wear a tankini. The bottoms off all of my suits have the little skirt or are shorts. That's what I feel comfortable in.
Personally, I'm not a fan of bikinis on anyone! I have never really understood why people would want to parade around in less than what their underwear covers. That's a personal choice for me though. If you feel comfortable in it, then you might as well wear it!

Even if I had an amazing body I would not wear one at the neighborhood pool. Just would not feel appropriate.

I think bikinis will always look good on women who are more pear shaped and have a small waist/flat tummy with a bigger butt. Apple shapes with tummys-not so much.

LOL, you are on here all the time, how DID you miss it? ;)

HECK YEAH I WEAR A BIKINI! If it's just me and my guy out on the boat, I bust out the itty bitty ones... but usually around the kids and his little brothers, i wear more modest, mommy appropriate two pieces.

I'm 27, but let me tell you, I don't have a great body after 3 pregnancies. I have stretch marks on my hips, thighs, BELLY, and probably on my butt too. My tummy is my 'skinny fat'; all the loose skin and stretch marks from 3 pregnancies.... I just don't care what other people think. I'm so super glow in the dark white that I don't really tan, but when I do get a little color, I get this funny super white starburst shape of whiteness if I flatten out the skin on my tummy because the sun can't get there, LOL!! It's so bad, but like I said, I just don't care. Life's too short too not have your fun in the sun!!

If I'm feeling a bit self conscience, I'll wrap a towel around my middle or wear a strapless sundress... but I think people are too busy laughing at my whiteness or super ridiculously large sun hats to be staring at my belly ;)

Side note... I'll wear a bikini, but you will NEVER see me try to run in one. Hello jiggly EVERYTHING!! This isn't Bay Watch here, LOL...

I am right now a solid size 18. I wear a tankini, but it's full coverage, no belly poking out. I like the ones at Target because they're all mix n match tops & bottoms so I have a brown full coverage bottom & a black skirt-ish bottom & a few different tops.

I don't think it should be based on your size or age necessarily, but just good old fashioned common sense (I know, I know, we don't all possess that quality, but let's TRY!) as to whether or not a bikini is in order. Will you be at a beach with the general public? Are you so heavy that you have numerous rolls all hanging out? Are you old enough to be sufficiently wrinkley & still sporting a string bikini? If you can answer yes to any of these, then you should probably opt for a 1 piece or a full-coverage tankini.

I am 28 with 2 boys and weight 120 lbs, I only wear the tankini style swim suits. I'm self concious about my "mom marks" so I choice to cover up some, also I dont want to have to worry about things "falling out" when I'm playing with my boys at the pool.

Personally I do think there comes a time when we need to scale things back and cover a little more of our bodies. I do think that bikinis are for young firm bodies - there are young moms who can still wear bikinis - but I think some people really don't take an honest look at themselves in the mirror. I used to wear bikinis all the time when I was young and firm - but had my kids at 37 & 40 - so I never went back to bikinis...

I've found that in the US we are more conservative about putting our saggy wrinkley bodies out there than they are in Europe or South America. - and I think we're not wrong. When I see older people at the beach who are generally not from the US & they're accustomed to other cultures - with it all hanging out when it shoudln't be I do find it pretty unsightly. I do not want to be subject to seeing most of other people's bodies - bad neough I have to see my own in the bathroom mirror! ;o) What you wear in your own backyard is your business obviously - but if you have too many bumps on you butt, tummy & thighs the rest of us really don't want to see it.

I wear one-peice or tankini both have "skirts" that help cover up the bumpy thighs. I'm also a size 14 and am 5'8"... I figure if I don't want to see all my bumps in the mirror in my bathroom no one else wants to in the bright sunlight! Just doing you all that favor. ;o)

I do wear a bikini at my age 42. I wear one rather than a one piece for several reasons. I have tried on many a one piece and always feel really fat looking in them because of the way they cling to my belly..weird I know. I am smaller on top anyway so I can play up that asset better in a bikini.
I think as long as your are not wearing a teeny tiny one then a bikini is fine..

I had to start wearing bikinis *because* I was full-figured. I have an exaggerated hourglass shape (as in my boobs are 3-4 dress sizes bigger than my waist, and my butt is probably 2 sizes bigger than my waist) so any swimsuit that fit my stomach was obscene in the chest area, and anything that covered the girls was baggy around the midsection. At least with dresses you can get them altered, but I'm not so sure about swimsuits.

So I started getting bikinis because I could get the top and bottom in two different sizes and then just not worry about my waist at all.

HOWEVER, ten months after having a baby, I now have "post-pregnancy stomach" - it's pretty much back to its original size but still has that extra-skin business that my husband thinks is fine, but I find gross. And my boobs are even *bigger* than they were, I don't even know how that's possible. So sadly this summer I may be swimsuit-less, or I might try to find a tankini that fits ok.

As for age - you are whatever age you feel you are! My mom just hit 60 and while I'm sure I will never see her in a bikini, the woman looks 50, dresses 45, and acts 40.

I asked the same question a week or so ago -most mom's said "rock it if you can" - and when I went to FL last week I did wear a modest bikini - halter top, full cut bikini bottom - and I looked good. LOL I think I even have a picture to prove it...

Well, I say wear what your are comfortable in and screw everyone else! I personally won't be wearing a bikini this year thanks to the lovely stretch marks my daughter graced me with this past fall :) Although, like you said....men perfer more skin naturally...my husband has even had the nerve to say "they're not so bad...they look like flames and I like flames." Nice...I know : ) On a serious note, I need to be careful what sort of top I wear, with my daughter pulling on things I just might end up flashing everyone if I'm not careful : )

I have never worn anything other than a bikini, even when pregnant.Yeah, I have twins, and my body is not as firm as it used to be but I'm fine with it. Quoting others from here, I'd say because I am from Europe. I can't imagine wearing a one piece. I think I'd feel like I am wearing a sack at the beach.
I am 36, hm size, well depends but between 0 and 2, I have my tummy sticking out a bit, some cellulite here and there, not the biggest boobs out there, really no butt to speak off. BUT, I like how I look. I embrace my imperfections. Will I stop wearing a bikini? Possibly, someday, but not anytime soon. I wish all women, of all sizes and shapes would embrace and love their bodies. It's there, part of you so why not love it?

I wore a bikini a few times in my younger years but as I've matured I've gotten more modest. Now I feel like my body is only for my husband to see. Even in a one-piece, I tend to wrap a towel around me except for when I'm in the water. I don't really want strange men looking at me and having lustful thoughts. For the same reason I tend to wear skirts and shorts to my knees, my shirts never leave my midriff uncovered, etc. It's a personal choice for everybody, I guess. I have no problem hanging out with friends who wear bikinis, I don't judge other people for what they do. Wear what you're comfortable in!

I didn't wear one before pregnancy, and I'll never wear now, afterward. :)

For those that do feel comfortable, I say go for it. But I'm not.

I'm not a fan of the bikini and wasn't a huge fan in my 20's at a size 2 either. I'm more of a tankini lady or a really pretty strapless one piece.

I think that if you are comfortable in it, go for it. My sister wore a bikini 9 months pregnant with twins!

to be honest (and I can say this because I am bigger girl, lol!) I don't think they should even make bikinis over a size 10! And if you are a small size but are older and/or have stretch marks etc, then they shouldn't be worn either. There are lots of cute one piece bathing suits that can make a person look a ton better. In the privacy of your own back yard, that I don't care about. Bu

I think some fuller-figured women look better in a bikini than skinny-minis. I am tiny, size 0 even when I'm bloated, but I look terrible in a bikini. My stomach has ugly skin. I've seen many fuller-figured women in bikinis that look fabulous. It's all about shape and skin tone. A tankini is much better for me, but if you look good in a bikini, go for it!

I'm 46, 5'2", 104 lbs, and I wear an itty-bitty string bikini.

I am all for other women wearing bikinis - I think they are cute. But I don't like to wear one myself. I just don't feel comfortable in it. I never have been comfortable in a bikini even when I was younger! I'm 39. I have a "stick" shaped body...everyone in my family does. No breasts, no hips. Now after having kids I have a loose, wrinkly, stick-out belly with lots of stretch marks. It's NOT pretty! I don't want to see it myself much less show it to the world.

I wear a tankini because I feel that my abdominal skin tone just doesn't look good enough to be in a bikini, and that isn't going to change unless I have a tummy tuck. I think once a person has saggy skin, visible stretch marks or rolls on the abdomen -it's time to say, "Bye" to the bikini! We should want to look good, and you can be large or small, fit or not so fit -but you should wear clothes (including bathing suits) that enhance your body instead of making it something to stare at (not in a good way) on the beach. I see no problem with a size 14, 38 year old wearing a bikini as long as you have toned abs and no baggy skin or stretch marks -if you do, then it's only an unsightly distraction. All of our legs, hips and arms show in bathing suits, and if those have any problem areas (mine sure do) -then I don't think I need to add to it by revealing my baggy-skinned tummy.

Two cases in point:

A few years ago at the beach I saw a very young woman in a tiny string bikini. She had a LOVELY figure -wonderfully toned and proportioned. This was overshadowed though, because she had obviously had a child and was one of us who got deep purple, cavernous stretch marks from the top of her pubic line all the way up to her breasts -even on the sides of her abdomen. It was pretty awful! She would have been gorgeous in a tankini or a one piece. Of course I said nothing, but I wanted to say, "Honey -you had a baby and that's awesome, but some of us don't escape pregnancy as unscathed as others!"

Last year at the beach I saw a woman who was between 60 and 70 probably. She had a great figure and a great tan and looked like someone who had done physical exercise her whole life. She also was lovely, but she had on a bikini. Because of age, she was saggin' and baggin' all over the place -which is perfectly normal -but she would have looked so much nicer and classier in a tankini or one piece. Her bikini was also incredibly youthful (looked like something out of the junior section with a ruffle) -so it just looked kind of silly on her. I'm sure at that age maybe you just no longer care, but in response to your question -yes -I think we should all honestly evaluate ourselves in the mirror as we age and our bodies change! If you truly think you look great in bikinis, low-rise jeans, mini-skirts or whatnot and nothing is hanging out, bulging over, or sagging and scarred -then go for it! If I do wind up getting my "mom special" of a tummy tuck and breast lift -then yes -I would wear a two-piece that revealed my abs. I've worked really h*** o* them and with the exception of that saggy skin -they look good -but they won't be show-worthy unless that's gone! I'm 41 and I wear sizes between 10 and 14 depending on what it is and who makes it.

I am self-conscious about my abdominal area so I wear tankinis usually. I think it's all about what the person is comfortable with. Not really about size or age...it's about attitude and confidence!

I don't wear a bikini, I would look truly awful, I am fat and have cellulite lol.
And yes I think once you are in your 30's you need to hang it up, it's a bit crass to show all that skin when you are older and have kids - I mean what is the point in having it all hang out if your not looking for another man.
Curvy women can wear bikinis with style, but not curvy and cellulity.
Of course in your own yard - wear what the heck you like!

Even if i had the perfect body i dont think i would wear a bikini. Im almost 30 and modestly id say that a tank-ini is about as far as i would go. I much prefer a halter one piece though.

With all the bouncing around i have to do in the ocean and pool to contain my kids i worry that i would accidentally turn the location into a nude beach!

I used to wear bikinis all the time. In my late 20s I hit a point where I just felt like I didn't want everything out there for people to see and it had nothing to do with my age or weight (I was 28 and a size 2). So I switched to tankinis at that point and two years ago I had a baby, I'm back to my pre-pregnancy size and only have a few stretch marks, but I still wear a tankini.

I think for me it was seeing my 60 year old mother-in-law wearing teeny bikinis that I thought were really inappropriate. I understand that she should be able to wear what makes her comfortable, but she was also making everyone around her uncomfortable when she was picking up her grandchildren and nearly falling out of her top.

I do not wear a bikini, but I never have been big into them ever. I do wear a two piece but it is a full length top with a bottom. Maybe if I felt more comfortable with my body I would wear one but I have always had body image issues.

I spent A LOT of time in Europe so wearing little to nothing no matter shape or size was the way of life on a beach, and sometimes at the pool. So to me rock what you like, it is not for me to say if someone should not be wearing this or that type of swimsuit :) In some cultures curves are prefered and the "flaws" of a not perfect body is what makes it perfect. Many paintings of women have glorious curves and thought of as goddesses, not the size 4 and under. Just wish I felt more comfortable with my curves.

I'm 44 and weigh 270. I have a bikini, full bottom with skirt and a tiny bikini top (I'm pear shaped). I wear it sometimes on our "no kid weekends" with hubby in our pool. But I don't wear it in "public" since not everyone is as "size accepting" as we are. :o) We are going to Mexico in a couple weeks for hubby's company trip. I have a halter top that goes with the bottoms and one piece suits as well. I'm taking all of them and will wear them to the pool and beach. I am comfortable with myself and know that hubby loves my body. I'm attractive and don't care what other people 'think". I think you should do what makes you happy and that's it! Good luck!!!

http://www.mamapedia.com/questions/11009910364602236929
We just talked about this recently ... many say it's a personal choice ... mine is tankini, in the plus sizes they just fit better than one peices.

Yes I wear my bikini. I am 49 OUCH! but I pass for 30's. I am proud of my size 2 rocking body and natural perky boobs.

Im of similar size and carry it well. I dont have stretch marks, so Ive always worn a bikini. Now that Ive had a csection, my lower belly is not so hot, but tucks into panties well, so it will be fine in a fuller cut bikini bottom. (that paints such a lovely picture, its not THAT bad at all, just not the same)
A one piece, on me, looks HORRIBLE. I have very long legs and my body looks short and out of proportion in a one piece. Nevermind what a 1 piece does to my boobs! Bikini's can be very structured, in terms of the top giving support. Sure I have a Mommy body, but its an hourglass shape, and isnt unappealing either. I will wear bikinis forever Im sure, always have. Im coming up to 37 this year.
Is there an age and size to hang it up? I guess if ones belly is hiding the bottoms, or boobs are hanging to your knees, well maybe.

I wear a bikini. I am in my 30's, size 6 and can still pull it off. I will continue wearing it until I can't pull it off anymore. Every Spring I work out just to tone up so I can put the thing on with some confidence. My problem area is my legs and no swim suit covers that so I try to put the focus on my abs and *supported* chest region. A good, supportive suit is so worth the expense! I also feel like a two piece fits my shape better as I am larger on top and have a smaller waist. One pieces tend to hang loose around the middle and do not offer as much support up top.

As far as anyone else, I think that as long as everything is pretty well covered up you can wear what you want. Just wear a good suit in your size and make sure nothing hangs out. That goes for all sizes, shapes and ages.

I don't think it's based on age or size. Any lady who wants to wear one should wear one! Any flaws I pick out in myself, I don't mind in other people. Personally, the same way I conceal my midriff to accent "slimmer" body parts in other outfits, I would take advantage of a supported middle of a one piece if it looked better than a 2 piece ( I actually hate pools and beaches though and haven't had a suit in years :). A swimming suit is revealing no matter what, so the more flattering the better. A halter with big bottom bikini is really no different than a one piece visually unless some belly bulges out of the former. I don't think a few extra inches of flubby bare middle is an asset (not that your middle is flubby- I'm talking about me :) Personally I've never been a bikini person even with a scrawny 20 something advanced yoga body. I liked one pieces or at least covered bikinis with either shorts on the bottom or a tunic on the top, and in the water they were annoying because they slid up when you jumped in and swam. But if you like a bikini, I say rock a bikini!

I know this is strange, but I never liked bikinis! The last photo I have of me in a bikini was me as a cute little 4 year old at the beach, holding a fish I'd just caught. I always wore one pieces. Now that is not to say by any means that I've always had body issues! I've been pulled out of condo and hotel swimming pools for skinny dipping with my friends more times than I can count. We used to skinny dip at the local lake and rivers growing up. Even as an adult, there's a clothing-optional beach in Florida that I have gone to alone, or with my husband (it's very isolated though, I could go a whole day on Memorial Day weekend and see 5 people the whole day). I'd swim a little, put on my swimsuit (or not) and read until I felt "warm" and then run swim some more, back and forth and read a whole book that way. I've never been a "prude", but just didn't like the bikini thing.
But NOW I don't have the body to wear a bikini. I technically don't have the body to wear any swimsuit, lol, but I do anyway and am fine with it because my husband adores me and I'm playing with the boys and creating memories with them. But even when I was very athletic, and actually liked showing off my body, it was more of a fun, spontaneous thing and I felt like me wearing a bikini was "trying" and I didn't like that. I generally don't judge others for what they wear though, couldn't care less. There's only one chick in a bikini that gets on my nerves: but it's because she's in her mid 30s with the dangly navel rings we wore in 10th grade (10th grade was the dangly navel rings, 11th grade was a simple nose stud which really didn't last but a year, 18 was the nipple rings which didn't come out until I was 30 and 5 months pregnant, but now I'm just an earring girl), but this is at a family neighborhood swimpool and she pulls her bottom DOWN lower than it should be (by a couple inches) and just stands and poses, at the neighborhood swimming pool where FAMILIES are hanging out together. I've been there with my friends and watched her stand and pose after pulling her bottom down trying to get husbands/dads attention and it's messed up. But she's the only one that I "judge" by what she wears....but it's more what she's doing than what she's wearing.
I also, even before having children and surgery and gaining weight---once I was married, I just felt like I didn't want to show my body off publicly anymore. But I don't concern myself with what other people wear, though I think a neighborhood pool could be a little more conservative than the beach. I don't judge others GENERALLY for "showing off" ---sun feels good! Just have some class.

I have a few. This is the first summer I may try it out in public. I am not set on it yet though. I finally have lost the baby phat around the edges....so maybe this summer is the summer...

I do keep a good selection of cover-ups:) I also have many one piece suits. So no matter what i can get wet!

No I don't wear one. I am only 31 but my stomach is chubbly after #3 and I don't like it but at the same time before him my stomach was flat and I still didn't wear one so maybe they aren't for me. However my sister who is 35 and has an almost 16yo made a comment on how she lost so much weight that she is going to wear a string bikini this summer,my neice had such a fit. I told her she was too old and she would embarass her daughter. I would have been mortified if my mother would have put on a bikini in front of others(she never did thankfully) I was only sticking up for my niecs who has a mother who NEVER thinks of her feelings or puts her in 1st 2nd or even 3rd place in life but as far as age or size I couldn't care less what other women wear if they have the confidence than fo for it! I do think that men should never be aloud to wear a speedo though.....

I am 44 and I have a size 19 Tankini and I wear it to the pool and beach and to heck with other people...I don;t know them and I will never see them again LOL

I'm 33 and love bikinis with the boy shorts. I am very petite (size 0) with very little up top (miss my pregnancy chest!) so I am definately not flaunting anything! I just haven't found a tankini that I Iike, and I find tankinis really adorable. So.....I guess as long as you are comfortable in your own body, a bikini is just fine! I love wearing bikinis, but never anything too skimpy.

I'm my same size before kids, but my stomach looks like elephant skin, so I hung up my bikini for a once piece (we are already celebrating summer here in So Cal). However, I'm a D cup (naturally) and find the one piece dose not offer me the support I like in a bra like bikini top. So I've decided to bikini it, even with my saggy baggy tummy skin. This is because I run around the beach with my kids. And as for those supper supportive one pieces- i think not. Not going there yet.

Well, when Im not pregnant Im a size 2 and I dont wear one because my mom belly sucks and Im in my 20's. :( Makes me sad, but Im just not comfortable.

Um, no. I just turned 40 and am a size 14/16. there is no way I would wear a bikini, in public or elsewhere. Maybe I am too self conscious of all my sags and bags, but this is a definitive NO!!!!

Some of these answers are depressing. What happened to "enjoy your body, it's the only one you got"? Yes, we're all getting older :-(

HAHAHAHAHAHA....Oh wait, you were serious? Hell to the n-o! After 3 babies my tummy looks like ti-dye bread dough!