SWIM TRENDS
SS25 Swimwear: Fashion as Usual
Swimwear keeps blurring the line between fashion and sportswear to become an integral part of a woman’s wardrobe. It’s a phenomenon that involves both the hijacking of sportswear-aesthetic codes and new ways of treating swimwear as a fashion item to be integrated into complete silhouettes.
From twisted sports codes to couture-like swimwear
The de-compartmentalization of sports and casual wardrobes, already well established in ready-to-wear, is naturally reflected in the evolution of swimwear. Just as technical sportswear has become a fashion statement like any other, so sports swimwear is diverted from its primary use—the wetsuit in particular—for an aesthetic that is both functional and aesthetically pleasing in fine fabric versions with a play of topstitching and contrasting colors. At the same time, drapes and bows make up couture swimsuits to be worn for swimming or as a top with a skirt, dressy pants or jeans.
It’s the logical consequence of this de-compartmentalization—you build your outfit around your swimsuit. Inspiration comes directly from the catwalk, where, back from the ’90s, sheer fabrics show the panties off, complete with bras looking like swimsuit tops. It’s all about blurring the lines and revealing toned abs. In addition to the above-mentioned mix of swimwear pieces and dressier garments, you can also go for a total look with designated pieces that complement your swimsuit. Tops, skirts or light sweaters: outfits designed as modular sets to fit the various needs of the day step by step.
Color and prints: everything but neutral
Fashion is all about storytelling. So, whether it’s developing couture codes or sublimating sports codes, swimwear is becoming more and more narrative, inscribing itself in rich and precise universes of reference. This is particularly true of prints and color, with two main directions for SS25. The first evokes Polynesia, with graphic, brightly colorful prints, abstracted leaves and shells, or animal motifs. The second takes up the codes of folk illustrations, with soft color palettes and naive stylization, geometric compositions and a play on texture, with crochet and English embroidery as another way of playing with pattern in a more demure way.
Being bold and surprising when it comes to mixing and matching is another way to enhance the fashion potential of swimwear. In addition to the genre mixing already mentioned, achieving a sense of sophisticated clash is also about mixing the elements of an outfit without totally matching them. For example: mixing coordinated patterns in different scales, or contrasting patterns such as stripes with figurative prints, or bold color contrasts. Embellishments are also a way of creating points of rupture—beads, cords, applied motifs or sophisticated bows create a surprise, unexpected effect.
Peclers Paris is a leading lifestyle trend-forecasting agency focused on building brands through the expertise of an international team of designers, strategic planners, futurists and consultants. The company has headquarters in Paris, Los Angeles and Shanghai.
