Summer Brings a Bathing Suit Retro-Spective
By AYN ROBBINS
INTERESTING LOOK: This poster displays the new look in bathing suits as displayed in Dillard’s at Promenade Mall.
AYN ROBBINS for GTR Newspapers
As a long time reader of Sports Illustrated, I would like to point out that we guys pour over those swimsuit issues for no other reason than to look for ideas for nice gifts for our wives/ girlfriends.
Nothing more.
– deadmandeadman on emscee/blog
If the snow fell in Tulsa on March 29 while I was lapping up the sun poolside at Caesar’s Palace in Las Vegas, does that mean it didn’t really snow?
It is now a nippy, sunshiny day in April, but I am gue
ssing the snow did actually fall here in T-Town because there isn’t a bathing suit in sight in any of the shops or department store windows at Utica Square, and there is now a weather alert on Channel Six, messing with the airing of Survivor, as we head into Easter Sunday which makes me ponder: If an Easter bunny hops . . .
“And your point is???? my precocious, size zero, teenaged niece, Crystal, might ask. Yes, there is a point to my not-so-silent musings, Dear One. Hear me now or hear me later. This is what you will be wearing as you leap from Dripping Springs or jack knife off the diving board at Southern Hills or LaFortune Park or in your own back yard this summer.
Lo and behold, like a burst of sunshine as you enter the North Entrance of the second floor of Dillard’s/Promenade: the proverbial “itsy-bitsy-teenie-weenie-yellow-polka-dot-bikini??? (by Guess), skimmed with delicate flirty ruffles (a la the Fifties and Sixties influence I have been telling you about for the past year in every category of women’s apparel). Psychedelic geometric circles in blues and golds intertwine and stand out in posters and on mannequin posteriors. Ed Hardy’s biker tat bikinis are also hot on the scene.
The racks are brimming with blossomy lemony yellow, lime green, and hibiscus red/orange as if they were brilliant bouquet offerings to the Greek Goddess of Summer.
Take a dip in a tankini (shaken not stirred) from Victoria’s Secret. Tank tops and bikini bottoms are sold separately, which make custom-sizing a breeze. Monokinis are one-piece suits with lots of pieces missing. String bikinis and thongs haven’t gone anywhere. Separate tops worn over cut-off jeans are also popular this coming season. The classic lines and good taste of Calvin Klein are affordable at under $100. Check them all out at www.victoriassecret.com.
The First Lady’s favorite sensible on-line shopping site, J. Crew, is offering confetti-dot, ruffled two-piece suits with bandeau tops in papaya and tropical aqua at $46. My guess is the super-fit Mrs. O will make a splash with the family this summer in a solid-colored Italian jersey tank. It is $118 and can be viewed at www.jcrew.com.
For a little more Rodeo Drive, you will adore the often one-of-a-kind, sometimes avant-garde, sassy-chic, always “ahead of the rack??? Isabella’s in Brookside (across the street from Oliver Twist). In a brief chat, proprietor/fashionista Kim Abdo assured me that the Fifties are alive and thriving this summer. “Think Marilyn Monroe in that white one-piece.? Don’t know what “suits? your figure best? Stop in and see Kim. She offers individual service to her clientele, a luxury long gone in this economy and what we love most about boutiques – in retrospect.
If you are in the job market, get a boost to your confidence and wardrobe with Kim’s professional styist/personal shopping services. This would make a marvelous gift for someone on your list or yourself. She will also reorganize your closet, which can be dramatically life-changing. Trendz readers will receive a 50 percent discount all summer. “It is not how much you have or how much you spend on your wardrobe that makes you a standout, it is knowing your body and how to put together what you have on what you have for a look that is uniquely your own.??? (Call Kim at 918-744-9100.)
Community Food Bank
While we begin to fill out our bathing suits and fill up our swimming pools, let’s not forget about the growing number of hungry people in our state who battle hunger and cannot fill up a bowl of soup. They don’t have time to think of the fun things that should be a part of their lives in the summertime because they are malnourished, even starving, trying to find food and shelter for their babies and loved ones and cannot exercise their inalienable right: the pursuit of happiness.
Please join us at the 13th Annual Empty Bowl Supper on Tuesday, April 22 from 5:30 to 9 p.m. at the Renaissance Tulsa Hotel, 6808 S. 107th E. Ave. Individual tickets are $35 and include a fabulous dinner of soup, salad, and dessert, served in the handmade bowls which you get to keep. There is an open bar and plenty of silent auction items to bid on. The Grand Prize in the main auction this year is a three day Napa Valley Vineyard Retreat, tour and wine tasting. To make reservations or for more information, call Cindy Stevens, Community Food Bank of Eastern Oklahoma (918) 585-2800 ext. 124 or contact cstevens@cfbeo.org. Last year the Food Bank distributed over 8 million pounds of food. This event raised over $125,000 for the Food Bank.
Ciao for Now!
Updated 05-04-2009
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