ISLAND STYLE
Hard-to-fit find solutions with custom swimwear

• Succeeding with swimsuits

By Paula Rath
Advertiser Staff Writer

Hoppy Smith, coach for Lanikai Canoe Club, asked O'ahu designer Georgia Mitchell to copy her favorite swimsuit. She's been wearing this one ever since. Deborah Booker • The Honolulu Advertiser

"Going to stores and trying on 15 suits was too difficult for me, and I gave up," said the fit, trim breast-cancer survivor.

After falling in love with Kailua Beach, however, Lorenz decided, "I'm here. I'm hot. I have to be able to go to the beach." So she went on a mission to find a suit.

Ann Graham's custom suits at Suits You provided an answer. Lorenz said finding the right one "Was one of the easiest things I've ever done. (Graham) has a knack for making me feel comfortable, and an eye for what I need. And I didn't have to deal with sizing or anything."

Lorenz ordered a custom boy-cut bottom in a dark color and mixed it with a colorful T-back top with maximum coverage. She also ordered a tankini she loves — two suits in one short visit.

Custom suits are a solution for many island women frustrated by swimsuit shopping. They can choose the style and fabric and have alterations made to their exact body type.

Many women are different sizes on the top and bottom, an issue easily resolved by having a suit made to measure. There are often compromises that have to be made when buying a suit off the rack: The top fits perfectly, if only the bottom had a little more coverage in the back. Or the one-piece is great, but the leg would look better cut a little higher on the thigh. Or the style is terrific, while the print is too big or too bold or too bland.

We made it our mission to find what's out there in the way of custom swimwear. We found a handful of shops, all of which offer a variety of styles and abundant choices in fabrics and patterns.

Keokia by Georgia Mitchell

• Mitchell works from home on the Windward side. She has 30 years in the swimwear business — 10 with Keokia. Trained as a professional dressmaker in Los Angeles, she owned three custom swimwear shops in Southern California, sewed for Tres Sea in Kailua and has been doing her own custom work since 1992.
• Keokia offers 15 styles of tops, 12 bottoms, 12 one-piece suits and 12 for aerobic exercise. Mitchell can also copy a favorite suit or work from a magazine photo. Her best sellers: paddlers and fitness swimmers like the racer back and the tankini. Turnaround time: one week.
• Prices: $35 i $50 for one or two pieces.
• Phone: 262-2133.

North Shore Swimwear

• This custom shop, in business for 13 years, is in the North Shore Marketplace in Hale'iwa. There are three seamstresses and two cutters on the premises. The shop serves customers from all over the world (this summer, orders have come in from Romania, Germany, Japan and Indonesia through its Web site), including canoe paddling teams on the East Coast.
• North Shore Swimwear offers 20 tops, 20 bottoms and 3 one-piece styles. Best sellers: Tankinis and low-rise retro '60s designs. Turnaround time: one to two weeks, or same-day service for a $40 rush fee.
• Prices: $62 per set, $66 per one-piece, plus $8 alteration fee per piece.
• Phone: 637-7000, or on the Web at northshoreswimwear.com.

Gundy Hawaii by Gundy Kamau

• Gundy Hawaii, at 2850 S. King St., has been in business for 18 years. Kamau, a self-taught designer, started with swimwear for her daughter. Her customers are pageant participants, body builders, fitness and bikini contestants: These suits are not for the shy and modest.
• Gundy specializes in young, slim and sexy, and she doesn't work with sizes 10 and up. The shop offers 10 styles of bottoms, triangle and teardrop tops, and 10 one-piece designs. Best sellers: G-strings or thongs. Turnaround time: one to two weeks.
• Prices: $45 and up for bikinis; $65 and up for one-piece.
• Phone: 942-4600.

Suits You by the Graham Sisters

• Suits You, in Kailua, across from Castle Medical Center, has been in business for two years. Sisters Jill and Ann Graham worked in a Kailua swimwear shop for several years before setting out on their own.
• The Grahams offer 16 styles of tops and bottoms, and 10 one-piece suits. Best sellers: T-back tankini and retro '60s styles. Turnaround time: one week to 10 days.
• Prices: $60 i $75.
• Phone: 262-6632.

Succeeding with swimsuits

The fitting room is a decidedly hostile environment. The harsh florescent lighting wreaks havoc on skin color, laugh lines and any perceived imperfection. The mirrors seem to reflect our worst nightmares. All in all, one needs a friendly psychotherapist to go along on any swimsuit-trying trip. It's more torture than a woman's self-esteem can handle.

Here are a few tips to help you through the experience:

• Sizing can be cruel. It's a conspiracy. You almost always have to buy a swimsuit one or two sizes larger than your dress size. If you try a suit and it's too tight, go up a size. (You can always cut out the label later.) However if you simply want more coverage, try another style.
• Beware the boy cut. Retro '60s-style boy-cut bottoms are hot this summer, but although they may seem like a good option for those seeking more coverage, they can hit the waist wrong and make a little extra flesh around the middle look like flab. Be sure to look at the side and back views.
• Diversions. A few ways to divert the eye: A suit cut high on the thigh can lengthen the look of the leg. A tankini with a longer top can add length to the torso. A ruffle, stripe or other detail at the neck can draw the eye up and away from wide hips. For the small-busted, many suits offer multiple sizes of pads you can insert into little pockets; try them all. A high neckline can make a short waist look longer.
• Proportion is the key. You may have one feature you want to show off, for example, a small waist. However, if you're curvy, emphasizing your waist may also make your hips look wider. Try a tie-side bikini and tie-strap top, adjusting it every which way. You may be surprised what it can do for you.