American Summer: Summer Swimsuit Edit Lookbook

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If you’re a long-time reader of Keep Calm and Chiffon, you know that I’ve been pretty open about my journey of getting laid off from magazines and falling into the freelance life. As a freelancer I get to tap into lots of my skills from back in the day working at print magazines and in many ways I still apply my editorial decision=making to campaigns I work on today for brands. I conceptualize a shoot, create a mood board, picture which outfits will be shot with which backdrops, and actually go out and shoot it. Usually this process gets applied to one-off projects or campaigns, and this time I wanted to create a more continuous story.

So Jessie ventured with me to Coney Island last week to shoot this lookbook that I’ve decided to call American Summer. This is an edit of four of the swimsuits that I have been obsessed with for summer 2019 and I am in love with how it turned out. I tried to incorporate my print editor sensibilities and stick to three images for each outfit, as though I only had three pages to work with, to make sure that I was really choosing the strongest images that I felt could tell the story best. I hope you all enjoy this, and be sure to check out my Instagram to see an exclusive video of these outfits in action. If you’re inspired by this and want to see my lookbook of spring/summer outfits inspired by Gossip Girl characters, be sure to check out this YouTube video.

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Vintage boardwalk empire

Pairing a ruffled bathing suit top with a pair of satin pants is a great way to bring some glamour to a traditional swim look. Grab your basket bag, a hair scarf, and some oversized frames to complete the look.

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Shop the look:

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color me happy

A playful swimsuit that incorporates tons of different colors will do all of the talking for you at the beach. Pair this suit with classic black frames and a scrunchie for a laid-back vibe.

shop the look:

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It’s Tie-dye for

One of the biggest spring trends continues to pop up throughout the summer months as well, and you should definitely consider getting your hands on a tie-dye suit. With some cat-eye sunglasses and tennis sneakers, the retro vibes really shine through. If you’re looking for more outfits that feature white sneakers, my friend Thalita has a whole blog post on how to wear white sneakers.

Shop the look:

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aquamarine

One-shoulder tops have been all the rage on the streets so it’s no surprise that that style found its way over to swimwear as well. Just beware of un-even tan lines by re-applying that SPF.

Shop the look:

Photographed by Jessie Alcheh

Where is your favorite place to shop for summer swimwear? Leave it in the comments!

yours,

Austen