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Introduction

Swimwear is the term used for garments designated for swimming and beach wear. It has gradually evolved over the years from the bulky garments used to completely cover the body into the selection of brief pieces of fabric arranged to expose as much as possible of the body.

Finding the right sort of swimwear is not always that easy particularly if you do not have a large budget. There is an enormous variety of body sizes and shapes for both men and women and correspondingly there are an enormous variety of outfits ranging from the very cheap to the very expensive.

Fashion Dictates

If it was just a case of having a bathing costume to wear when going swimming and replacing it when it had worn out, life would be relatively easy. But there is the matter of fashion. Every year the designers come up with a different style so that the previous year’s model suddenly looks old fashioned and we feel compelled to buy a new one. As purchasers we are confronted with one piece swimsuits, two piece swimwear, some with long tops, some with skimpy tops, high leg cut, high waist cut, different cup sizes, in a variety of fabrics, colours, patterns, two tone and so on. The choice is endless.

History of Swimwear

The earliest recorded bathing costume was in 350 BC in Greece which was a toga-like garment for bathing. During the 18th century people visited spa resorts for their health where they spent time in the spa waters. Naturally they needed something appropriate to wear, other than their day clothes, when they were engaged in public bathing. Later the recreation of beach bathing demanded a specially made outfit to maintain decorum and decency, so the bathing suit was developed.

Initially the swimwear was rather like ordinary daywear, and the dresses worn by the women sometimes had lead weights sewn into the hems to prevent the skirts from floating up. As the expansion of the railways enabled the masses to spend time at the seaside a more practical type of outfit was required. By the early 1900′s the swimsuit consisted of bloomers with black stocking and shoes, and the top was like a jacket belted at the waist. Swimming was considered suitable for men, while women were assisted into the water for a short dip.

Over the century attitudes changed and swimming became an Olympic sport for both men and women. Gradually the swimming costume changed to adopt short capped sleeves and more ankle was exposed beneath the bloomers. As women became more active in the water the swimming costume needed to be less cumbersome so the neckline was lowered and the tops became sleeveless. Eventually the Princess cut was introduced which consisted of the trousers attached to a blouse in one piece.

In 1909 Annette Kellerman, the Australian swimmer, film star and author, defined ladies swimwear when she wore a loose one piece suit and was arrested for indecency, but by 1910 “Annette Kellermans” became the new accepted ladies swimwear.

From then on the swimsuits became lighter and briefer. By the 1920′s the women wore figure hugging tank suits made from wool Jersey and by 1928 they had evolved into the swimsuit we would recognise today. In the 1930′s cotton was introduced for bathing suits sometimes with little overskirts to disguise bulky thighs, but film stars wore fashionable figure hugging costumes with higher cut legs sealing the fate of the fashionable swimwear.

The corset manufacturers in the 1940′s saw that women with less than perfect figures needed swimsuits to hide or control the bulges, so seeing a gap in the market they produced costumes which had control panels for the tummy and bra cups and bones to give support to the bust. Using the techniques applied in corset making they introduced the stretch factor to bathing costumes so that they were more flattering than ever before.

With the development of modern fabrics, Nylon and Lycra became the fabric of choice for swimwear because of their stretch properties. This meant that the costume could be pulled on without openings or fastenings and gave a firmer cleaner line to the figure. Women continued to wear all in one swimsuits until the 1950′s when the bikini became popular.

Leisure Swimming or Sunbathing

Although certain costumes are called swimwear, in fact some never get near the water. They are solely for sunbathing which usually means they are as small as possible, just barely covering the essential bits so that the skin gets maximum exposure to the sun and such a design would be classed as a bikini.

Two Piece or Bikinis

Over two thousand years ago early mosaics and pottery from Greece show what in fact looks like an early version of a bikini. These garments were used by women performers and acrobats and were in two pieces to cover the breasts and the lower part of the body, much like the current style of Bandeau tops. Modern day runners and athletes wear something very similar when competing. Paula Radcliffe when running the Marathon last year, wore a garment almost identical to those worn thousands of years ago!!

The bikini resembles women’s underwear and has been described as a scanty two piece bathing suit. The lower part may be two small triangles attached together with a string tie at either side, or even a thong. The upper part may also be two small triangles attached together with a string tie but arranged in a slightly different order. Louis Reard patented the contemporary version of the bikini in 1946; his design was similar to the skimpy string 1970′s bikini and it shocked the world when it appeared on French beaches in 1947.

The very first bikini shown in the cinema was in the Bond film Dr No when Ursula Andress rises out of the sea in a white bikini. This created the iconic Bond girl and made her world famous. When being interviewed on television recently she revealed that the bikini had been constructed out of a bra covered with the fabric to give her the required lift of the bosom. This actual bikini sold at auction for £35,000 in 2001.

By the 1980′s and 1990′s the trend of getting as much of an all over tan as possible bikinis progressively got smaller.

Ultimately the top part of the bikini was abandoned altogether when topless sunbathing became the norm in some countries and the bottom was just a G-string or thong also called a Tanga. Oliver Saillard the fashion journalist states that the bikini is the most popular female beachwear in the world, and that the emancipation of swimwear is linked to the emancipation of women.

In the 1950′s there was a popular song entitled ‘In My little Itsy Bitsy Yellow Polka Dot Bikini’ that indicated the acceptance of the new style of swimwear. I remember my cousin persuading me to try on a bikini and I felt very exposed but she said how fantastic I looked in it because I was so slim.

Although the bikini is now an acceptable garment whatever the size, the one piece swimsuit is still the best for serious swimmers. Some companies are well known for their skill at making swimwear and make all the garments for the Olympic team and other swimming competitions. Now swimwear is available in a wide range of bust sizes and the more expensive makes have control panels for the stomach combined with clever styling to create a good silhouette. Combined with a matching sarong, older ladies may feel more comfortable when walking around the beach area.

Helen Mirren was photographed on holiday in her substantial bikini last summer with the caption commenting on how good she looked for her age and that particular bikini was snapped up from the stores within days. Perhaps the customers believed that they could look as good as Helen Mirren in a bikini if they had the same one.

Leg Line

Some two piece bathing suits are cut so that the waist is high and the matching leg line is also cut high. I believe the aim is to make the wearer look as though her legs are much longer than they are. However if you have less than the perfect shape for this style it can emphasise large hips so it’s not for all women.

Another fashion mode is the tankini where the bottoms look like little shorts and shows the lower curve of the bottom, which is fine if you are young with a nice pert bottom.

The top garments on swimwear tankinis are long tops designed to cover most of the upper torso and usually feature slim bikini style straps.

The classic bikini style is still as popular as ever though, with the cut of the leg line following the natural crease between the leg and the hip.

The most recent development in fabric is the ‘tan through’ swimwear. This allows the body to tan without exposing the body to the world. Some commentators on this style point to the effects of too much sun on the body and the occurrences of skin cancer of which the evidence indicates an alarming increase. However, the counter argument to that is if you are wearing a bikini anyway then the extra exposure to the sun through the top and bottom garments is hardly going to make much difference.

Conclusion

Swimwear is a term used these days to cover all types of beach wear and swimming gear. It is a bit of a misnomer in that many outfits never see the water and are not used for swimming. However there is a huge range of garments available for the purchaser of different styles, sizes and fabrics. The one commonality of course is that everyone wants to look good once they don these garments. The main key to that is to make sure your new swimwear is the right fit and cut, for your body size and shape.

The importance of being properly measured for your swimwear is often overlooked but it is as important as being properly measured for your bra or other underwear, particularly if you do indeed intend to actually swim in your new swimwear! By wearing the right size and style swimwear for your body, will ensure you are really comfortable in it on the beach, in the pool or wherever else you choose to wear it.

Our brain is considered as one of the most important part of our body. Has different areas and functions. We can develop it more by exercising. Mental exercises so to speak. Or they get wasted if we stay idle.

There are a lot of benefits if you exercise your brain, it will improve you memory, your concentration, alertness and mental clarity even under stressful situations. Most importantly, there is a long term effect if we continue to exercise our brain, we can avoid potential problems or illness like Alzheimer’s.We don’t want that right?

 There are days that we feel like we’re drained. Burnt out. Lazy. Not capable of thinking clearly and rationally. How we hate those days.

What causes this brain drain?  Stress and anxiety are guaranteed to distract us from our goals and waste our mental energies. Another factor is if we feel like we’re in a loop. Recurring and routine-driven life, nothing’s new and no motivation. We have brains to be able to learn and to adapt to new environments.

And so the solution is to accept new challenges at are not too difficult and of course not impossible. Learn how to cope with stress to keep anxiety from beating you.

In short, try something new every day, doesn’t have to be big or drastic. Small things counts. Like taking a different road to work. Talk and extend friendship to someone you don’t know or barely know. Ask fun question. Read informative articles or materials. Play mental games, take practice IQ tests and other brain stimulating tests. Combines physical and mental exercises helps stimulate the brain and keep it on its best shape as posible.

If there’s one part of the body that needs attention, its our brain.

Face each day as an on-going experiment, a discovering opportunity. You’ll be surprised.

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When it comes to choosing telephone numbers, UK businesses have a number of options (if you excuse the pun). Many opt to use 08 numbers and a quick look through a business directory will prove this. 08 numbers (e.g. 0844 numbers, 0800 numbers etc.) are classed as non-geographic telephone numbers because they do not have traditional area codes that make the location of the organisation using them explicit. This has many benefits, for example, businesses that use non-geographic numbers are likely to see an increase in enquiries from outside of the actual location they are based. This is also handy when advertising and promoting the phone number – particularly on websites as it means that the business is not tied to one location only.

Another major advantage of all non-geographic numbers is the fact that call management systems can be easily used alongside them to help businesses smarten up the way they deal with their calls. For example, phone greetings (e.g. “Thanks for calling…..” and menu options “press 1 to speak to someone about your bill, press 2 for general enquiries” etc). These features are all controlled online meaning that companies don’t have to install any additional hardware or equipment – which makes them a more attractive offering than bulky PBX systems.

Organisations can also handpick a non-geographic telephone number of their choice which is one their callers can remember easily and therefore, more likely to phone.

When it comes to deciding exactly which 08 number to use there should be many things that businesses should consider. Below there is a comparison between just 2 of the different 08 numbers available; 0844 numbers and 0800 numbers.

0844 numbers are often used by businesses to help them fund additional services. They are commonly used for technical helplines and after sales support because companies can actually receive a payment for the calls they receive. This payment can be as much as 3 pence per minute with some number providers. Additionally, there’s at least one provider that offers 0844 numbers for a small connection fee only and no monthly service charge. The cost for people to phone an 0844 number is reasonable at 4.25 pence per minute from a BT landline.

For companies wanting to offer their potential customers a free call from a landline, an 0800 number is ideal. 0800 numbers are popular for advertising and marketing campaigns as they remove the cost barrier for people to call them. In fact, research by the Institute of Direct Marketing has found that companies that use 0800 numbers can increase their calls by 185%. Organisations running 0800 numbers simply pay a connection fee, small monthly service charge and they pay for the cost of the calls they receive which is around 4p per minute. However, this cost is often ofset by the increase in enquiries and sales they receive. Plus, if you’re smart you’ll find a number provider that can offer up to 2,500 free inbound minutes.

The cost to call 0800 numbers from a mobile varies however and for companies wanting to offer their mobile callers a great deal – 03 numbers are perfect… but that’s another discussion altogether…