BOMBSHELL BATHING SUITS

While I'm freezing my behind off here in Australia, I'm aware it's summer in the northern hemisphere and so time to start making some cute swimsuits and sundresses to put in my etsy store.
I've been browsing old photos on the web for inspiration, like these gorgeous shots of Marilyn, below.





I intend to make some one-piece swimsuits like the ones worn in the 1940s and 1950s, that are made of non-stretch fabric and rather like skimpy sunsuits or playsuits, usually with shirring in the back for comfortable fit. However I do love the look of the high-waisted two piece bikini, so have started one today, in black and white stripe (clik on the pic for a better view):




I adore black and white as it's so striking and elegant in any context - you'll see a lot of black and white creations if you browse through my past sales in my etsy store.
I also love to add a touch of red to the black and white to give a garment verve, and sex appeal. There's something about the combination of red, black and white that really shouts 'strong and sexy' to me. So, I'm trying to figure out how to get that dash of red into this black and white design - as you'll see in the next pic, I'm experimenting with scarlet ric-rac and cute vintage buttons. I have a feeling the red ric-rac against the dazzling monochrome stripes may be a bit overpowering and upsetting to the eye:



......anyway, I'm still working on them as you can see. I've lined the bias-cut, darted pants and inserted the zipper, now all I have to do is elasticate them. I'll be using real swimsuit elastic so these will behave just like a bona fide swimsuit, so besides strutting your stuff like a vintage pin up girl beside the pool, you'll be perfectly safe to take them in the water, too.
I'll post pics of the finished set as soon as they're done!