15 Facts about Bikinis

1. The most expensive swimsuit in the world is a bikini that is worth $30 million dollars. Designed by Susan Rosen and Steinmetz Diamonds, the bikini is made with more than 150 carats of D flawless diamonds which are all set in platinum.

2. Thongs are illegal in Melbourne, Florida as of January 2005. The punishment is a $500 fine or 60 days in jail.

3. One of the first chest-revealing suits for men appeared in 1932 and was called the “Topper.” The suit had a detachable top that could be zipped away from the trunk bottoms. Unfortunately, men who chose to appear topless at the time were often arrested for indecent exposure.

4. Tyra Banks was the first African-American to appear on the cover of a Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition, in 1997. The second was Beyoncé Knowles, in 2007.

5. The world’s largest bikini parade took place on November 9, 2009. Clad only in bikinis, 287 girls paraded in Johannesburg, South Africa, to raise awareness for breast cancer, which affects one in every 30 South African women

6.The thong (Old English for “flexible leather cord”) is known as fio dental or “dental floss” in Brazil.

7. The term “G-string” does not derive from the fourth string on the violin (G string) Rather, as linguist Robert Hendrickson suggests, the “G” in G-string or “geestring” stands for “groin.”

8.During the eighteenth century, women wore “bathing gowns,” which were long dresses of fabric inspired by promenade or lawn dresses. Made from wool or flannel, these bathing costumes had weights sewn into the hem to keep them from floating up. Men would wear a body-fitting wool suit with long legs and sleeves.

9. When the first bikini was introduced in 1946, it was marketed as a two-piece swimming suit that revealed “everything about a girl except her mother’s maiden name.

10. When the Barbie doll debuted on March 9, 1959, her first outfit was a black-and-white striped swimsuit.

11. Women’s swimwear makes up about 70% of the swimwear market. Children’s swimwear constitutes 13%, and men’s approximately 17%.

12. China is the world’s largest exporter of swimwear, constituting approximately 70% of the global shipments. (SnSbikinis is not Chinese)

13. A mankini, popularized in the 2006 film Borat, is a sling-like swimsuit worn by men.

14. The last time Marilyn Monroe appeared in a bikini on screen was in the 1962 film Something's Got to Give.

15. Though nude bathing was perfectly acceptable, ancient Greeks might also wear bathing costumes, which were essentially street-wear togas. When bathing again became popular in the early eighteenth century, both women and men wore toga-like garments that paid homage to the ancient bathing institution.