The best moments of 2012

It has been an very, very exciting year at All Wet Beachwear. For my final blog post of 2012, I wanted to shine a light on the best moments of the year and giving kudos where it is due. Here we go!

Shooting SI from @darciabaum

This year the editors behind the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue did a fantastic job using social media to give us a peek into all that goes into creating the issue and what happens behind the scenes at each shoot. We fell in love with the editors @mjday and @darciebaum on twitter. Thanks for letting us live vicariously though your twitter accounts! Same goes for the SI models. @ChrissyTeigan's twitter feed is so hilarious and delicious it makes us jealous of John Legend, not the other way around.

AWB's L*Fringe Photo by Goldfishkiss

Can we say fringe frenzy! Lspace hit-it-out-of-the-park with their fabulous fringe bandeaus and halter this year. The cut, the colors everything about it was just right making it the must-have item of the year. We still have them on AWB so if you want to pick up more to mix and match with you can find them here. The trend has been picked up by every other brand so for 2013 there are endless fringe options!

Kate Upton's Italian Vogue Cover

This year the swimwear industry launched the career of breakout model Kate Upton. She went from being the face to Beach Bunny Swimwear, to Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue cover girl to the coveted cover of Italian Vogue, a huge feat for someone who doesn't hit all the traditional fashion model marks and we are guessing doesn't fit a sample size. She has a very bright future and wish her many more campaigns, cover and movie roles. We are happy to have her in the industry as a role model given that her extreme measurements are the healthy kind ;-).  

A look from the 2013 Poko Pano show see more here

The Swim Show and Mercedes Benz Swim Fashion Week 2013 were 7 sizzling Miami days of non-stop swimwear! Each season there is always a lot of anticipation: What's new? What prints will we see? What trends emerge? Each show is like a dream come true! You see it all float down the runway one by one on a model. We captured our favorite moments from the shows and shared them on instagram as it happened. You can see those photos from the shows here. The Swim Show is a tradeshow that happens simultaneously where we meet with the designers and get an up close look at everything we've seen in the runway show. When you are seeing countless new beachwear items from 9am until 10 pm every night it is hard to even think clearly! But in the weeks that follow trends emerge and the swimsuits that you might not have noticed stand out in your mind. It is an incredible experience, kind of like bikini boot camp. That is why everyone at All Wet Beachwear knows so much about the fit, fabrics and materials that go into every swimsuit. They have seen it all first hand with input from designers themselves.

A twitpic from the Jewel Dunns River Hotel - @allwetbeachwear

The SPF party in August was a crazy, crazy time. All Wet Beachwear participated in the annual fete in Jamaica, a long weekend of memorable parties. The hotel we stayed at, The Jewel Dunn's River, is definitely a place we will be visiting again!

At the end of the year I would also like give thanks to....

The talented swimwear designers out there dream up new looks each season and then with their teams accomplish the huge task of putting it into production and creating such quality products for us all to enjoy!

Risk-takers like Racquel Black who founded All Wet Beachwear out of pure passion and continues to keep it going with tireless 24/7 hard work building the company.

Instagram! It keeps us in touch with the designers we love and gives us a peek into the personality of the brands. We hope you like our instagram photos. leave us a comment and let us know what you would like to see more of.

A final thanks to our pal Pinterest for giving me hours of endless visual pleasure while creating my virtual dream closet and cataloging all my likes and inspiration. Follow AWB on Pinterest so see what we love.

Can't wait to see what 2013 will bring!

Color Story: What is your favorite?

We will be the first to admit that choosing a swimsuit can be difficult. A great place to start is color. Which color are you drawn to? Which color have you been told you look amazing in? Browse the options within that range. We created the image above to help out. White, black, silver, warm pinks and cool blues are always fashionable, look beautiful in the sun and are universally flattering. See the full spectrum of options on www.allwetbeachwear.com.

FREE BEACH HAT with DESPI Purchase

While supplies last, from Dec 1 - 8 receive a free DESPI Beach Hat with your DESPI purchase. This is an amazing value and available for a limited time so get one before they are gone!

Browse DESPI 2013 styles here!