Bathing.Freaking.Suits.

You know.... I wasn't gonna go there. I wasn't going to be a cliche and talk about bathing suits and confidence so early in the summer. But you know what... BATHING SUIT SHOPPING IS HARD. And all of us women need to rally, support and help each other. Believe me, I know first hand how difficult it can be.

It was exactly a year ago when I found myself staring at my post-pardum body in a bathing suit. Why didn't I think of it earlier?! My daughter was born in the spring so that meant I was going to be having to wear a bathing suit ... well... looking like I just had a baby. I took a deep breath and went head first into trying on as many bathing suits as I could. Something HAS to work I thought to myself. Thank goodness my best friend Dina was in town to be my moral support. We went through the racks with a careful eye, knowing that I wasn't going to feel great. BOOM. That was my first problem. I was already setting myself up for failure! Once in the dressing room I had to remind myself (and so did Dina) that I had to be kind to my body. Um, hello! I just had a baby! But still, it doesn't change the fact that bathing suit shopping is hard no matter what's going on. Putting on a tiny amount of clingy fabric on your lady parts and walking down the beach can be downright daunting. You are putting yourself in a vulnerable position and that can be overwhelming.

So, there I was totally consumed by the task at hand and I realized I had two options. I could either walk out of the store without a bathing suit and not celebrate my absolute favorite holiday (July 4th is the BEST ya'll!) this year. OR I could step out of my head for two seconds and realize that I was being WAY too critical of myself. I decided to treat myself like a client.

I told myself "You are beautiful, your body is beautiful and pretty freaking amazing. Now let's get you some bathing suits."

And then I came up with a plan. Below are my top three tips that helped me get through bathing suit season with more confidence.

1) Identify your "favorites" - Go into your closet. What are trends you see? Do you love hot pink everything? Are nautical stripes your thing? Like to wear low cut, revealing tops? Whatever it is, identify those things and then seek a bathing suit out that has those characteristics.

2) Wax it, Dye it, Primp it - What makes you feel good? Do THAT. It may not seem directly related to bathing suits but it is helpful whenever you are trying to boost your self confidence. You don't want to be thinking about your hair AND your body in a suit. If you are like me and you always feel better when your nails are done, or your eyebrows are waxed.... then please wax those brows!

3) Make it an outfit - When getting ready for the beach, create an entire look. This can be casual, I'm not saying rock stilettos and a ball gown to the beach. But wearing a cute pair of sandals and your new sunhat will definitely help you to feel good about your overall appearance.

So have you had a similar experience? How are you feeling about bathing suit shopping? I can't wait to hear about your experiences AND if these tips helped you!

Also, over on my Facebook page I share a video talking about these same tips as well as a few other pointers for feeling great. Check it out here.

Happy summer and happy shopping!

xoxo,

Melanie