Stares in the Sun

From the Lido and Monte Carlo to the beaches of Southampton and Malibu, this has to be the greatest summer ever--provided the sun keeps shining. For four years, the trend in bathing suits has been to expose more and more skin, and the designers are not yet quite done. There is still an itsy-bitsy, teeny-weeny more bikini to be pared, even if it means shifting to materials like the loosely crocheted fishnets that got started in St.-Tropez.

On the other hand, there is a school that believes the female torso is already as stripped down as it can get this side of decency. Supporters of this view have decided to replace mere bareness with well-designed scantiness. Their favorite is the one-piece bathing suit. But if this summons up images of yesteryear's skirted models or even the tank suit, look again (see color pages). The one-piece advocates are using all kinds of current high-fashion tricks, including plunging necklines, ruffles, open sides and cutouts.

Eyebrow Plucking. Leader of the bareness-now, right now, school is still Rudi Gernreich, whose 1964 topless set off the exposure explosion. In his 1968 collection, he compromises slightly by using see-through vinyl to hold together the tops and bottoms of his bathing suits. He says: "Only the areas that must be covered are covered--with wool knit." But at least he concedes that coverable areas exist, which for Gernreich is something.

Donald Brooks is another designer who admits that he has "stripped the bikini down to the bare essentials"--gaily colored scraps of cloth in flowered or geometric patterns. Bill Blass keeps on turning out bikinis because he finds that women, for variety's sake, like a whole wardrobe of them. But the models must be updated. "A bikini has to be connected," he says, "to look appealing and provocative this season." Blass's answer is a chain that links bras to bottoms.

The fact is that many designers and their clients are getting a bit bored with the bikini. Ann Cole, of Cole of California, notes that bikinis used to account for some 45% of bathing-suit sales, but now have only about 20% of the market. "The bikini will never vanish entirely," she predicts, "but it can't be bikini year in and year out." Tom Brigance, who has created more bathing suits over the years than anyone else in the business, complains: "There is very little a designer can do with a bikini. It's like plucking an eyebrow." He now concentrates on one-piece suits with wide belts to draw attention to waist and bust. "A belt," he explains, "is like a hatband. Without it, the true shape is lost."

Sex & Conservatism. Some designers are trying to win both sides of the argument. In addition to his bikinis, Blass, for instance, offers a one-piece suit with a high-rise belt attached just under the bosom to give a modified Empire look. He has also experimented with a belted suit that laces loosely down the front. This one anticipates another coming fashion trend--to leather. It is made out of a new material that looks like leather, "breathes" like leather, but can get wet all over. "It's fantastic," he says, "water rolls right off it." Just like human skin.

Even the relatively covered-up styles expose considerable areas of flesh, presenting many women with their annual moment of awful truth. "Next to going to a dentist, women most dread buying a bathing suit," says Ann Cole. Her calculated remedy: a new line of skin-colored suits embroidered with white flowers. The wearers look trim and nude --from a distance--while remaining covered and helpfully girdled. "It's sex and conservatism in one package," Miss Cole states. Another camouflage is a new version of that old favorite, the tunic, which hangs loosely to the hips and adds a touch of shadowed piquancy to the flab within.

Watching the Watchers. "The woman who walks away from the beach without a cover-up is out of her mind," says Designer Brigance. Even on the beach, girls are likely to feel the need of protection from sunburn, windburn, sandstorms and stares. To cope with the problem, some suits, called "stripper-dippers," come in three pieces--bra, pants and a removable midsection. Other cover-ups range from elongated sweaters that reach mid-calf (elsewhere called dresses) to Donald Brooks's coolie shirts, which just cover the suit at the hip line. Some of the most elegant are the ankle-length caftans, many of them without sleeves, designed by Italy's Emilio Pucci, who also turns out a full range of matching beach bags, hats, sunbathing mats and towels.

A new item in beach paraphernalia is oversized, clear-rimmed sunglasses known as "owl" and "moon" glasses. Most novel are "nudie" glasses, designed by London's Bernard Kayman. Their lenses are tinted at the top, to protect against the sun and replace missing eye makeup. They are clear at the bottom, permitting men to see the wearer's eyes. "Men hate to look at women with dark shades. After all, eyes are one of the things that men look at," explains Kayman. They are, to be sure, part of the total work. But on second thought, what good girl-watcher wants to know that he's being watched?

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