One Girl, Two Cups

I was on a hunt for fresh interview threads, and fell in love with this burgundy BAR III dress at Macy’s. Pretty rad for a third of the price, and I really love their line of clothes. So cute!

It was hanging solo on a sale rack, luckily in a medium. So, I tried it on, made my purchase, watched the light show, and went on my way. Swell stuff.

                                      Ahhh, the light show!

                        

It’s a total winner because IT HAS POCKETS. Certainly worth getting giddy about. Very simple style, which I love, and a plain silver zipper straight up the back. Nothing gaudy. Nothing over the top. But plain jane, and that is what I love. I mom’ed it up with a turtleneck because it was terribly windy & cold on Friday, and even wore it out for drinks with my buddy Jon Horwitz later that evening. I threw on pearl earrings and the skinny mustard belt just to add a little color. It’d be sorta drab otherwise. If I had to describe my style of dress, it’d be that of a librarian. Am I right? I kinda dig that.

                       

                                    “Hi, wanna hang by the water cooler?”

                 

A few summers ago, I stumbled upon the brand COCO REEF in the jungle that is the Macy’s swimwear department.

Bathing suit bottoms littered the floor and the dressing room. Those sticky hygienic liners had been taken off and stuck on the mirrors and walls (because people want their hoo hoo to touch something they aren’t going to buy? Can ANYONE please explain why girls remove the liner? WHAT THE EFF LADIES?!) Nevertheless, I braved my way through the racks, to find a cute ass suit, that was a double DD. AND IT FIT! AND IT LOOKED NICE! So I bought it. It was black, with a teal outline on the edges of the suit.

Coco Reef was the first two piece brand of swimwear that accommodated me and I remember, at the age of 21, feeling a sense of relief. I raved to my mom “LOOK, IT COVERS THE SIDE OF MY BOOB!!” while she did her crossword puzzle and ignored me…but seriously, it was the coolest thing to happen to me in years.

Needless to say, this suit saved my summer. My semester was over, and it was getting hot. I remember being a tad nervous about swimming around my then boyfriend, who had invited me to a lake house with a shit ton of people I had never met. Perfect boob pop opportunity. I’m always down to brave a two piece, but with that comes the potential unintentional flash. I was NOT going to let that happen.

I broke up with him before the lake house, but I did wear the shit out of that swimsuit. While it was the end of one romance, a new one was sparked, with Coco Reef. (You see what I did there?)

HERE IS WHAT YOU’RE MISSIN’….

                        

Now look, I’m gonna be blunt. COCO REEF is very difficult to find online.  For some reason, they don’t have a website….(say whaaaat????) Last time, I was desperate for the REEF, so I tried to buy one of their suits on some swimsuit wholesale online shop (it looked legit). I knew my size, so I figured ‘piece of cake,’ right? Turns out, they took my 50 bucks, told me the suit was not in stock, canceled my order, and I had to call my bank to get the money back. Bastards. It was my own fault for not googling them.

YOUR BEST BET is to stick to Macy’s, Dillards online, Amazon, or maybe Aquabeachwear.com. The selection is totally limited, with maybe 10 suits to chose from max. But I feel this brand has a fit that is SO awesome, it’s worth checking out.

Granted, their suits only go up to like…a DD, but they offer plenty of room, coverage and support, even for big ole GG me. WOULD I LIE TO YOU?! Never. Also, they’re huge fans of the halter top, which can suck at times, and everything ties (no hooks), but it’s honestly not been an issue. AND MY SUIT HAS LASTED FOREVER! I bought it four summers ago, and it’s still goin’ strong. Easy to take care of, reasonable price, and fun ways to mix and match. So check it out!!