Okay ladies, we can’t hide behind our towels any longer. Swimsuit season is here. No, you say! My legs are white, my thighs are dimply, my upper arms are ‘a flappin’…who wants to see all that?

As an angel once said, “Do not be afraid!”

We’ve got some ideas that have you covered–literally.

First, a little camouflaging that you won’t even notice. Hey, isn’t that the point of camo–to hide stuff? We’re using the principles of Line and Design outlined in Chapter 4 of Quintessential Style and putting them to good use in the bathing suit arena.

My co-author Janna Beatty says, “Your goal in dressing should be to strive for visual balance. A marriage made in heaven is when the lines of your outfit and lines of your body come together to create the illusion you want.”

Okay, let’s begin. (And I should tell you, all these amazing swimsuits are available at Swimsuits for All.com.)

Lines – There are Four basic style lines:

1. Horizontal lines (—-) move the eye from side to side. Wear them on parts of your body you want to widen or shorten.

2. Vertical lines (lllll) move the eye up and down. In general they make you look taller. Anything that makes you look taller helps you appear thinner.

(This is the same model as in the first photo. She does look taller and slimmer.)

3. Diagonal lines (////) go across your body at an angle. The more vertical (lllll) the diagonal line, the taller and slimmer you look. The more horizontal (—-) the diagonal line, the wider you look.

4. Curved lines accentuate and add volume. Wear them in areas you would like to draw attention to.

Colors and Patterns

Solid colored swimsuits do not stop eye movement. They create one continuous look from shoulder to leg. This is visually slimming.

Pattern and Prints slow the eye and brings emphasis to areas you want to draw attention to.

Contrasting colors (like black and white) can chop up a look and slow down, or even stop, the eye.

I don’t have to tell you what body shape you have (H, O, A, X, V). You already know that. What you need to decide is which gorgeous areas you want to accentuate and which less-gorgeous areas you want to conceal. It’s all about creating an illusion. And you can use these camouflaging and highlighting principles with all garments, not just swimsuits.

My personal favorite go-to is the swimdress. It visually balances my figure and it covers all my bits.

Photos courtesy of Swimsuits for All. (Except the bikini shown above.)

Faux Tan

And last, but certainly not least, if you want to appear more toned and less dimpled, I recommend using a self-tanner. Our skin might still jiggle, but what the heck…

My choice: Jergens Natural Glow Daily Moisturizer. See my previous blog: Are You Beach Ready?

And remember…

I’ll rephrase that…”If you can’t tone it, SELF-tan it.”