Getting ready for the pool... bathing suits and cover-ups

Y'ALL... I don't know about you, but I dread swimsuit shopping.  I have been having the hardest time this spring trying to find swimsuits so I finally sat down one night and ordered from five different stores.  That's right... FIVE. DIFFERENT. STORES.  I told Ben not to be too alarmed when he saw the credit card bill because most of it would be returned. :)

I thought I would share with y'all what I discovered in case you too are looking for bathing suits and failing.

*I previously ordered from Athleta and didn't like anything that I ordered.  I should clarify and say that I didn't like the cut, the material was great.

First- where I ordered from: Target, Ann Taylor Loft, J. Crew, Victoria Secret, and Nordstrom. 

Second- I waited until they all came in and then tried everything on (I ordered over 20 bathing suits).  Then I narrowed it down to my top four.  I showed Ben and the girls and they voted on which ones they liked the best.  I kept three.

I ordered similar styles from different stores and they all fit very differently.

J. Crew:
I'm 5'3" and all of their one-pieces and mono-kinis were clearly designed for someone between 5'5"-5'7".  There was just too much material in the torso and so they didn't fit me well.  I returned them for that reason, too much material.

Ann Taylor Loft:
I kinda liked all of the bathing suits from here, but I didn't LOVE any of them.  I decided to keep ones that I really LOVED and for as expensive as bathing suits are, don't settle for something you don't love.  All of the Loft bathing suits were returned.

Target:
I figured since I had been having difficulty with expensive bathing suits, to also try some inexpensive ones.  I actually liked most of the bathing suits from Target, but I kept one that I really LOVED.  The one I kept, Ben said was his favorite.  I also kept a swimsuit coverup from Target.  I tried to find it in extra small, but the smallest size is small.  It's kinda big, but again, it's a coverup so not too big a deal.

Victoria Secret:
I bought six or seven suits to try, most of them in small AND medium because I wasn't sure of my size.  I ended up keep a tankini that I really, really LOVED.  I returned the rest because they just didn't fit right- either too much material or not enough.

Nordstrom:
I ordered a bunch from here, probably eight or nine.  There were two that I really, really, really liked.  I ended up keeping one that Elizabeth said was her favorite.  It's a monokini and very colorful and I think it will be super fun.

So... here is what I kept:

 This coverup from Target

This bathing suit from Target

 This tankini from Victoria Secret

This monokini from Nordstrom

So... I'm now ready for the pool (if it ever stops raining and warms up)

Happy Monday y'all!