For many people, swimsuits are an everyday wear. Kaiona Swimwear was founded right on the island of Oʻahu by an ocean lover, so when we say “everyday wear” we mean it! Our Hawaiian sustainable swimwear brand is made out of high-quality fabric from recycled ocean plastic and has a variety of prints and colors. The fabric is extremely durable and made for anything from lounging out to athletic activities like surfing. Just like your favorite shirt, you want your favorite swimsuit to last as long as possible, and we have many tips and tricks to help with that.
How long should a swimsuit last?
At a minimum, a quality bikini should last at least a year, but it depends on how often you wear it, where you wear it, and how you care for it. No one wants to spend money on a new wardrobe of bikinis every year, plus think about the impact on the environment! With the right care, most high-quality swimsuits should be able to last two years or more without any major damage or discoloration.
Tips for reducing salt and chlorine damage
Whether you are swimming in a pool, ocean or lake, you will most likely be wearing a bikini. What you probably didn't realize is that while you are in the water, your bathing suit is soaking up the water and whatever salt or chemicals are in it. At some point, swimsuits experience chlorine and salt damage that will fade and eventually age your suit to the point that there are visible effects to the fabric. Our bikinis are ultra-chlorine resistant, however there are still a few things you can do to help with chlorine damage.
For starters, be sure to hop in the shower or any sort of fresh water immediately after getting out of the pool or ocean, this makes the biggest difference. The water will rinse out any salt or chlorine that was absorbed and can damage the fibers overtime. The sooner you can get the salt and chlorine out of your bathing suit, the better. If you are going right inside after being in the water, taking a shower with your swimsuit on is the easiest thing to do. The washing machine is harsh on bikinis and ruins the stretch. A better way to get your favorite bikini clean is to wash it with you. While you're in the shower, just run some of your body soap over your suit, rinse it out, and hang it or lay it flat somewhere to air dry out of direct sunlight. If you don't want to wear your bikini in the shower, you can of course hand wash it with a neutral soap or just plain cold water.
Eventually after a few wears and hand washes, you may feel that it needs to go into the washing machine. If that’s the case, the less time the swimsuit spends in the washing machine the better, but use a delicate cycle, mild laundry detergent, and make sure to wash it on cold. Hot water and bathing suits don't mix well! The same goes for the dryer. Never put a bathing suit in the dryer as the heat will deteriorate the elasticity. Always hang dry a bikini in the shade.
How to Prevent Swimsuit From Fading
Other than salt and chlorine damage, bikinis that aren’t properly taken care of can often start to fade sooner than wanted. One way to keep your bright swimwear from fading that many people swear by is to start with a pre-treatment. This is something you want to do with a brand new bikini before it even hits the water. To do a DIY bikini pre-treatment, combine roughly four cups of water with two teaspoons of vinegar, and massage your swimwear in this mixture. By doing this, it will help keep the colors bright and reduce bleeding.
The oils found in sunscreen can also fade bikini fabric, but there is something simple you can do. Put your sunscreen or tanning lotion on and let it soak in prior to putting on your swimsuit. The more that soaks into your body, the less that soaks into your bikini or rashguard. Sunscreen contains ingredients that can stain the fabric and can lead to the eventual breakdown of the material.
One of the main causes of fading is drying a bikini in the sun. It's important to let your swimsuit dry in an indoor or shaded area to reduce sun damage. It's a given that you will be out in the sun when you are in the water, but the less time your bikini spends in the sun the better, especially when it is drying. Another tip to help keep the fabric in good condition is to never leave your wet swimsuit bundled up in a beach bag for too long. The flatter the bikini stays the better. Continually bunching or rolling up your bikini creates added wear and tear on the fabric.
Surfers’ secrets: How do you remove surf wax from a bathing suit?
If you enjoy surfing, you've probably experienced the pain of getting wax on your favorite surf suit. There are two methods that can help get the sticky wax off so it doesn't have long term effects on your suit.
The first way is probably the most common, all you need is a piece of normal copy paper and an iron. To start, find the wax on your swimsuit and put the piece of paper over it. Then take an iron and iron over the paper on the lowest setting. The heat of the iron will make the surf wax stick to the paper, drawing it off of your rashguard or surf suit. It may need a wash after this step, so just take some neutral soap and water and hand wash it so you can help get any leftover wax off.
The second way to help remove surf wax from a bikini is to rub the waxy areas with coconut oil to loosen the wax, then add some water to help wash the wax and oil away. These two tricks will help elongate the life of your surf suit so you can continue to look and feel incredible while catching waves!
Check out our quick swimsuit care information on the FAQ page so you can make sure your favorite bikini is well taken care of. Using all of these tips and tricks to help your swimsuit last longer will make a difference for your bank account, and the earth.
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