Micro Bikini
First up, we'll run through
a short history of the bikini (no sniggering at the back,
please) and see how we arrive at the micro bikini.
The two-piece swimsuit we know today as the bikini has
only been marketed and sold as such for 60 years. But
archaeologists have discovered Minoan wall paintings from
1600 B.C. and Roman mosaics from 300 A.D. that show the
bikini, so the ancients were livin' it up! Still, it is
the debut of the modern bikini in 1946 and its later
modifications that truly define the swimsuit.
The bikini was invented and launched by two French
designers: Jacques Heim and Louis Reard. Heim was a
swimsuit designer who had created a two-piece suit to be
sold in his beach shop in Cannes. He marketed the swimsuit
as the "atome," (named for its small size and meant to be
compared with the atom, the smallest particle of matter
known). No doubt, it was an outrageously tiny swimsuit.
The same year, Reard was creating his own similar,
two-piece swimsuit. He named and marketed his swimsuit as
the bikini, claiming that it was "smaller than the
smallest bathing suit in the world". Reard christened his
swimsuit the bikini in honor of experimental atomic bombs
being detonated in the South Pacific, near the Bikini
Reef.
So Reard's name stuck, though by today's standards, the
bikinis of the 1940s and '50s were positively modest in
their coverage. Bottoms were cut above the navel, and tops
fully covered the breasts.
Getting smaller by the year
The bikini went through several changes as time passed.
Designers experimented with many varieties for the
swimsuit, including a bikini top with attached propellers
(!), a suit made entirely of red hair, and even a version
made of porcupine quills.
As early as the 1950s, the bikini was already so small
that it could be packed into a matchbook, but even more
drastic shrinkage lay in store. In the 1970s, the sexual
revolution in the United States caused designers to make
the bikini even more revealing.
So we had string bikinis, which exposed the navel by
fitting the bottoms on the hips. The top, too, provided
only bra-style coverage. In the 1980s, the popular thong
bikini arrived on the scene. Designers claimed the thong
bikini originated from the clothing of Amazonian tribal
groups in Brazil. As we know, the thong bikini leaves the
bottom virtually uncovered and the back of the suit
disappears into the buttocks.
Micro bikinis
In the 1990s and 2000s, designers have continued to revamp
the bikini and innovated new styles. While the thong and
string bikinis retain their popularity, the micro bikini
has recently been added to the growing selection.
Essentially, micro bikinis are bikinis combining a micro
bikini top and a thong bikini bottom. Needless to add, it
is scantier and more revealing than traditional bikinis
and hence its name.
Buying micro bikinis
· A word of warning: you need to be careful that you don't
opt for a string bikini when you mean to buy a micro
bikini. There are enough illustrated examples online to
show you the difference.
· Numerous sites offer essential advice like how to shave
your bikini line (hairy exposures will NOT do). Make sure
your pubic area in particular is well shorn.
· Choose the fabric well. Test your skin for itches and
allergic rashes, particularly since you will be spending a
lot of time in the sun wearing your bikini
· Have plenty of sunscreen handy. You need to use liberal
doses all over your body since you obviously will not have
much on in terms of protection from the sun's rays!
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