In LA, our summertime Sunday fun days are typically spent at the beach or poolside because it is hot as a motherf–…

I probably shouldn’t use that term anymore. LOL When getting ready to enjoy some fun in the sun, the struggle fast became very real in finding a swimsuit to fit my changing body without offending people with excessive butt-age or the occasional nip slip. Swimsuits are made of stretchy material so I thought I’d be fine but with all sorts of new curves going on, I needed to find an alternative solution that suited my new bod much quicker than I thought. Within a couple months of finding out I was preggers, my boobs and butt were busting their way out of every bathing suit I owned and not in a good way. Hello, maternity swimwear? Mmm… not so much.

When perusing my favorite maternity sections and specialty shops online, the major problem I found was that, to be blunt, they just weren’t cute! I know I’m going to be a mom very soon and I have lots of friends who are mamas so I don’t mean this literally but the styles available for the most part are very much, well, “mom bathing suits”. Think tankinis with high necklines, almost shorts-like full butt coverage and big, bold Florida retirement prints made up of weird, whacky colors. If you’re into that kinda thing, power to you lady but it’s just not this mama-to-be’s thing. I don’t want to jeopardize looking and feeling good in a bathing suit just because I’m growing a human in my belly. If anything, this is my time to shine during bathing suit season because I’m finally not self-conscious about maintaining a slim figure and flat tummy all summer long! This year, I am rocking my swimsuit season with a bulging belly, growing curves and a whole lotta confidence and to that I say a big ol’ heck yes please! Now I just have to remember to keep that confidence and body-acceptance going post-baby too… but that’s a story I’ll update you on when I’m in the thick of it.

For now, I am writing this post to share a handful of swimsuit styles from a brand I discovered that changed the maternity-swimwear game for me… spoiler alert: they don’t make maternity swimwear! They’re fabrics are just so solid and stretchy all at the same time that they expand with my new curves and keep everything contained in a way no other swimsuit I’ve found thus far have. **PS This is not a sponsored post, I literally just love them and feel compelled to spread the word because I struggled for months and spent silly money on a bunch of swimsuits from different brands that will get donated or collect dust because the fits did not meet my needs.** The brand I’m talking about and wearing in all of these photos is Vitamin A. I discovered them because my girl Lauren Bushnell did a gorgeous collab with them and I got gifted one of her pieces. Knowing I was preggers, I figured I wouldn’t get to wear it until next year but when I tried it on for fun, I was SO pleasantly surprised to see that it fit. The best part? Not only did it fit, it made me feel sexy! My recommendation would definitely be to go one size up from your pre-pregnancy size and expect that it may not accommodate an 8-9 month belly but I will update you on that when I get there! I’m currently 6 months and going strong with no signs of spilling out of mine anytime soon so I’d call this maternity swimwear success!

Shop my Vitamin A Favorites

SHENAE GRIMES-BEECH

Shenae Grimes-Beech is an actor and YouTuber with a highly engaged community of like-minded women who are here to stand up for what they believe in and lean into discomfort, especially when it means doing the right thing.