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This one's for you, fellow moms! I was looking for cute and stylish modest swimwear this summer. It wasn't always easy to find swimsuits with plenty of coverage and which were cute, stylish and designed for anyone under the age of 50. But rest assured, those types of swimwear do in fact exist! Here I'll talk about some of the styles I found for summer 2022 from different places and different budget ranges. I was finally able to get a great suit and I hope that you too can reap the rewards of my internet hunt. I'll show pics of each style and link back to where you can get it. First though, some mom-specific swimwear tips:
Tips for swimwear for busy moms
Get a color or pattern that stands out for your kids
By far the best tip I have for you is to go for a color or pattern that's easy to spot at the pool - something that stands out from the crowd. Why? Just as it's important for you to be able to see your kids at all times, it's equally important for your kids to be able to see you. Of course, if you have a non-swimmer you'll be at arm's reach of him or her at all times anyway, but if your kids can swim and you're at a busy community pool then it'll help if you're wearing a color that is a little less common. Most colors work OK for this except black or dark blue. The other reason an easy-to-spot color can make life easier is if you're meeting friends at the pool. People can be much harder to recognize in their swimsuits and with sunglasses on. My previous neon yellow suit has worked out really well for that! I'd tell friends I'd be wearing bright yellow, and it's always made it easy. As much as I still love that suit, I needed to get a new one to alternate with it on different days, which is how I came to write this article.
For this reason, all the swimsuits, tankinis and swimdresses I'm showing pics of here are ones that fulfill the stand-out color requirement.
Always think whether the swimsuit can handle you carrying a baby or toddler without a wardrobe malfunction
Another mom requirement is carrying a squirming baby or toddler without accidentally revealing more of your body than intended. I'm pretty sure most swimwear designers do not even consider this when creating their styles! So again, all the styles I've selected here are ones I'd be comfortable wearing while carrying a baby or toddler - nothing is going to skew weirdly in a way that will expose parts you don't want exposed.
My recommendations for modest and cute swimwear for summer 2022
Here is my shortlist (OK it's not actually that short!) with pics of the pieces I recommend for anyone looking for a modest yet trendy look at the beach or pool. You'll notice a range of styles and budgets here. I show one piece swimsuits, tankinis, and swimdresses. This is because some women are more concerned about their top being covered up, others about coverage of their bottom, and others like to have everything covered. So you're certain to find something here that will please you. Feel free to click or tap on any of the images to look at sizing and pricing. There's also some extra budget-friendly tips and tricks I mention at the end which helped me a lot when I got my cute swimdress.
High Neck One Piece Swimsuit
One of my absolute favorites for plenty of coverage at the neck and bottom while still looking super-stylish and youthful is this Ellen Tracy one piece high neck swimsuit available at Marshalls for a steal! That's right, Marshall's has online shopping available now. Look how awesome this suit is:
Sandy Tie Front Swimsuit
If you're OK with showing a little more skin up top but still want plenty of coverage at the bottom, then the Sandy Tie Front Swimsuit from Joules is right for you.
Contrast Trim One Piece Swimsuit
On the other hand, if you're fine with a higher-cut leg line but want to have more coverage up top, then go for this sleek, sporty yet alluring contrast trim one piece swimsuit from Forever 21.
V-neck wrap front swimdress
Let's move on to something different: a swimdress. I love swimdresses because of their modesty at the upper thigh region. I don't feel self-conscious at all in a swimdress, I just feel like I'm in a mini-dress that I happen to be able to wear into the pool swimming. Here is my favorite swimdress this season, and as an added bonus it's budget friendly: this V-neck wrap front swimdress from Old Navy. Best of all, it's available in a range of color options and sizes.
Reversible Rio high neck one-piece swimsuit
Let's move on to if you want to really get noticed and stand out in an awesome suit... but still with keeping your modesty. For this situation, I recommend the Trina Turk reversible Rio high neck one piece swimsuit at Marshalls - it's an absolute showstopper!
The pic and link above are from Marshalls but if they don't have the size you want, you can also get it at Macy's here - it's just more expensive at Macy's.
Anna Cole mix and match plus size high neck front-tab tankini tops and bottoms
Now for plus sizes, my favorite is this Anna Cole mix and match high neck front-tab tankini collection at Macy's. I love the splashy colors and playful style. I also love how there are plenty of different options for the swim bottom, including different color options (which all match a color in the top), and a skirted option as an alternative to the regular swim bottom.
Cabana Life preppy geo long sleeve swimsuit
If part of your reason for wanting to be modest is sun safety, then you're going to love this Cabana Life preppy geo long sleeve swimsuit at Marshalls. It combines a sporty look with a preppy upbeat pattern to create the ultimate in looks and practicality.
Kate Spade floral bow-strap v-neck one piece swimsuit
Kate Spade is synonymous with elegance and beauty, so if you're looking for an excuse to splurge, this floral bow-strap v-neck one piece swimsuit at katespade.com is the one for you!
Budget-friendly tips and tricks for swimwear shopping
Most (but not all) of the swimwear shown above is priced affordably. But if you're on a shoestring budget and have next to nothing to spend, let's cover a few tips.
Amazon.com
You can find plenty of cheap swimwear, especially swimdresses, at Amazon.com. But be aware that many of the cheap options are overseas brands from China, and quality can be hit-or-miss. You might get a really awesome deal on a great quality suit (my favorite yellow suit is from one of those overseas brands) or on the other hand you might equally well run into quality issues. It's hard to predict. But it's worth at least taking a look - examining the reviews help too, as you'll get a feel for whether other women would recommend that item. You can look here at modest swimwear on Amazon.com.
Be careful about checking the sizing - the brands that are made in China can run very small (Asian small/medium/large is very different to US small/medium/large), although some brands will have adjusted their sizes to reflect US sizing. Amazon products all show sizing information so you should be able to compare the suit with your measurements and get the correct size from that.
eBay.com
Another good place for rock-bottom prices on swimwear is ebay.com. If you're thinking of shopping there, look only for "new with tags" items - there is a filter you can apply for that. Be aware that some sellers ship direct from China or another overseas country, and I didn't want that since it could take awhile to arrive, so I also recommend applying the "US only" (or wherever you live) filter to your search results. The reason you can get some great deals on eBay is that some online retailers such as QVC have new-with-tag items which are a customer return that didn't fit the customer. The brand doesn't want to bother taking the time to sell these returns again so it packs them off at a low price to an eBay seller, who passes the savings along to you. Always read the product description very carefully, especially the sizing information. Also, check the seller's reputation score. I recommend only buying from someone who has a 99.8% and up reputation. Tip: sometimes the same item is available from different eBay sellers, so shop around for the sellers with the best reputation score and the ones who show the sizing information.
This is exactly how I found my new suit, a QVC return on eBay - it was absolutely gorgeous! It was normally $80 but I got it for $26. I could quickly see why it had been a customer return though - the suit ran very small. Luckily I read the sizing info on the product description at eBay and I could see that meant I would need to order a size up from what I normally fit. Even then, it was a little snug getting it over my hips! So be extremely careful about reading sizing info ahead of time because many eBay sellers don't accept returns (that info is displayed on the product page). If the seller doesn't give sizing information for that product, either don't buy that item or ask the seller first if he or she has any sizing info for it. This is even more important if you're planning on buying from an eBay seller located overseas - their sizing may not match up at all to what you would normally go for, so always check your measurements against their sizing chart.
Marshalls.com
I know that some of the suits I illustrated above in my shortlist are from Mashalls, so we've covered this store a little bit, but I'd like to mention it a bit more. It's a place where you can get designer brands at a rock bottom price point. This is because sometimes brands have too much of a particular style so they offload it at a very cheap price to Marshalls, who then passes those savings along to you. You can take a look at all of their swimwear here. The only downside is that things can go out of stock there quickly, particularly in popular sizes. So if you see something you like, you should buy it before it's gone!
You may also like: where to find the cutest swimwear for toddlers and young kids.