Bikini History

The first bikini, according to popular culture at least, was launched in Paris during the summer of 1946. Designed by Parisian Louis RÈard, the first bikini was unveiled at a July fashion show – the only woman courageous enough to model the suit for RÈard was Micheline Bernardini, a nude dancer at the Casino de Paris. RÈard’s design was loosely based on Jacques Heim’s suit, the atome, which had been released earlier in the year. RÈard had, as he put it “split the atome” and come up with an even smaller suit – the bikini modelled by Bernardini was a string bikini, the smallest suit in modern memory.

As with many things in fashion, the bikini of 1946 was hardly new news. Looking back through time, one will find scores of paintings and drawings depicting women in remarkably similar suits – even in the 1930s, women in films were spotted wearing what anyone today would consider a bikini suit. The difference between those and RÈard’s creation was simple: marketing. RÈard’s bikini was named for the nuclear testing carried out in the south Pacific around the time of his suit’s debut. And though the launch of RÈard’s bikini created more of a ripple than a tsunami, it was only a few short years before the bikini craze captured the imagination of designers and ladies in the world’s most fashionable cities – even in conservative America.

The bikini appeared in a number of high profile places – notably on Brigitte Bardot in 1957’s ‘And God Created Woman’, on Ursula Andress in 1962’s ‘Dr No’ and then in a series of ‘Beach Party’ films, staring all-American sweetheart Annette Funicello. The song ‘Itsy Bitsy Teenie Weenie Yellow Polka Dot Bikini’ is credited with catapulting the suit to immortality in the early 1960s, and when played in season, is said to reliably drive women to the tills with a new bikini in hand.


High Waist Bottoms ( 3 for 2) £10.00	Capri Separates Mini Hipster Bikini Brief With Band £10.00	Mix and Match Swimshorts (3 for 2) £10.00
High Waist Bottoms ( 3 for 2) £10.00	Biarritz Ruched Bikini Brief £10.00	Fortune Classic Bikini Brief £10.00
Sweetheart Dot Gathered Bikini Brief £10.00	Cabaret Classic Bikini Brief £10.00	High Waist Bottoms ( 3 for 2) £10.00
Mix and match stripe bikini pant £10.00	Corsica Classic Brief - Pink £10.00	Marrakesh Fold Bikini Brief £10.00
Mae Fold Bikini Brief £10.00	Tunis Classic Bikini Brief £10.00	Atomic Bikini Short £10.00
Kiwi Ruched Bikini Brief £10.00	Malibu Bikini Short £10.00	Cotton Bikini £10.00
Marrakesh Classic Bikini Brief £10.00	Riviera Tab-side Bikini Brief £10.00	"Bikini White/Black Girls Belt" £10.00
"Bikini Black Girls Belt" £10.00	Cumbia BA Bottom Pant - Chocolate £10.13	Mae Folded Pant - Black and Ivory £10.40
Party In My Cabana 15ml by OPI £10.50	OPI Party In My Cabana Party In My Cabana - Party In My Cabana £10.50	OPI Bronzed to Perfection Bronzed to Perfection - Bronzed to Perfection £10.50
Anna Classic Pant - Black £10.50	Baywatch Bikini Ready £10.77	Personalised Football Tattoo Mug £10.95
Girls navy butterfly tankini set £11.00	Animal Jungle Scoop Bikini Pant - Blue £11.00	Floral Bikini Short £11.00
Feric 2 Piece Fixed Taper Triangle Bikini - Black and White £11.20	Dark purple embellishes bikini pants £11.20	Fiji Bikini Brief £11.20
O Beach Swimwear £11.50	Maui Ring Side Pant - Olive £11.75	Onechanbara Bikini Samurai Squad XBox 360 £11.97
Mirage 2 Piece Halter Triangle £12.00	High Waist Bottoms ( 3 for 2) £12.00	Summer flower bikini pant £12.00
Pink foil bikini pants £12.00	Mixed spot colour block bikini pants £12.00	Hazy stripe bikini pants £12.00
Anna Folded Pant - Black £12.00	Anna Folded Pant - Teal £12.00	Ava Low Rise Pant - Black £12.00
Lucille Classic Pant - Red and White £12.00	Eclipse Rio Brief - Black £12.00	Montego Bay Ruched Hipster Bikini Brief £12.00
"Low Bikini 07 Triple Pack" £12.00	"Low Bikini 08 Triple Pack" £12.00	Puerto Rico Classic Brief - Pink Paradise £12.03
Trainer Swim Bikini £12.26	Saige Tube Pant £12.38	Saige Ring Pant £12.38
Play Bow Pant - Black £12.40	Obviously for mens sinuous low rise bikini brief (only size XL left) - CLEARANCE £12.40	Girls pink floral bikini £12.50
Reversible Solids Classic Pant - Pink and Orange £12.60	Oasis De Rio BA Bottom Pant - Fuchsia £12.75	Blue beaded bikini bottoms £12.80
Blue striped sparkly bikini bottoms £12.80	Fiji short £12.80	St Lucia Bikini Short £12.80
Cuba Bikini Short £12.80	Fiji Classic Bikini Brief £12.80	Riviera Bikini Short £12.90
NINTENDO Boating Bash - for Wii £12.99	Freya Fortune Class Brief Apple Sour £13.00	Orlando Classic Brief - Black £13.00
Woven Cami £13.00	Eclipse Classic Bikini Brief - Black £13.00	Freya Trapeze Plain Brief Titanium £13.00
Maui Full Classic Pant - Pink £13.00	Eclipse Rio bikini brief £13.00	Play Fixed Tri - Black £13.20
Matt Separates Hipster Pant with Frill - Thai £13.25	iQ-Company Swimwear £13.47	Paris Classic Bikini Brief £13.50
Rosapois Bra's £13.50	Vive Maria Swimwear £13.50	O Beach Swimwear £13.50
Vive Maria Swimwear £13.50	Rosapois Bra's £13.50	ELLOS Pack of 2 Bikini Bottoms £13.50
Melbourne Adjustable Leg Bikini Short £13.50	Isis Classic Bikini Brief £13.60	Lucy B Gloss Lip Balm 6ml £13.60
Lucy B Gloss Lip Balm 6ml £13.60	Twilight Classic Bikini Brief £13.60	Puerto Rico Folded Brief - Pink Paradise £13.65
Lolita Bikini £13.80	Bikini Pant - Copa Blue £13.98	Bikini Pant - Rio Red £13.98
Bikini Pant - Lemon Frost £13.98	Panache Mae Hipster Brief Black/Ivory £14.00	Gold lime stripe bikini pants £14.00
Orlando Classic Brief - Chocolate £14.00	Performance Swimwear bikini shorty £14.00	Ruched Pant - Coral Pink £14.30
Chelsea Bikini - - Womens £14.39	Delphine Bikini £14.40	Tahiti Fold Bikini Brief £14.40
Capri Mini Hipster With Band - Spa £14.50	Eclipse Classic Fold Brief - Black £14.50	Nausicaa low rise bikini brief £14.50
Seattle control brief £14.70	Play Fold Pant - Black £14.80	Dreamboats And Petticoats Summer Music CD £14.99
NINTENDO Boating Bash - for Wii £14.99	Freya Cabaret Brief Freesia £15.00	Zoggs Bondi Bikini Brief Blue/Sky £15.00
Candy Bikini Bottoms £15.00	Pour Moi Fusion Brief Cranberry £15.00	Candy Bikini Bottoms £15.00
SHELLEY BIKINI BOTTOM £15.00	MALIA BIKINI BOTTOM £15.00	Tango Bikini Brief £15.00