Australian Brands Dominating Minimalist Swimwear for Kids
Photo by Illoura
When it comes to earthy minimalist swim, it makes sense that Australia, with its beautiful beaches and laid back surf culture, would be producing some of the best, all the while keeping it eco-friendly. In general, we’ve seen a ton of brands come out of Australia in the past few years mastering the boho minimalist vibe and it translates to swim perfectly.
It seems like everyone has a lane, Europe has some of the strongest modern print swimwear from already established brands, like Bobo Choses, Soft Gallery and The Animals Observatory, the best selection can be found at Smallable. We see more playful prints and classic styles from US swim brands like Minnow, Seasta Surf, Pearl Street Swim, Tea Collection and the UK’s Stella McCartney, the best selection can be found at Maisonette. Earthy minimalist swim has been 100% the domain of Australia. The exception might be US brand June Park who offers earthy tons in a euro cut. Liewood also recently entered the market with cute minimalist everything, including a swimwear collection.
Sill, no one is doing it better than the Aussies. Not only do we love the aesthetic of these minimalist brands, we also love their ethos. Most of them are working to be as sustainable as possible, using innovative fabrics like ECONYL® and REPREVE®, ensuring ethical production and using eco-friendly packaging. They also are are in tune with the dangers of sun damage and have options with full arm coverage and/or matching rash guards as well as UPF 50+.
These brands can be hard to find in the US and Canada, but Little Minimalist has a great selection of minimalist swim, including 3 of the 4 below. You can also find Zulu & Zephyr at Marigold Modern and Go Gently Nation just started carrying Ina swim. Since Australia’s summer is during most people’s winter, their swimwear is often sold out by the time you start thinking about it, so shop early if these solid earthy swimsuits are your vibe. This roundup is strictly for our favorite Australian brands, a full swim recap is coming next month.
ILLOURA
Known for their beautiful knits and cotton gauze, we love this brand’s swim and regular collection. The swim is sustainability made from ECONYL®, a fabric crafted from pre and post consumer waste, such as fishing nets and fabric scraps rescued from landfills and oceans around the world. All suits have UPF 50+ and our favorites are the rashie sets and roo bathers.
INA SWIM
This brand makes swimwear for littles and their Mamas in the same innovative ECONYL® fabric, made from pre and post consumer waste. The fabric is also 2-times more resistant to suntan lotions, oils and chlorine, which means it keeps our oceans cleaner and lasts longer. They take it one step further with their packaging being made from 100% recycled natural waste that’s both photo and bio degradable, meaning if it ends up in nature it will break down within a few months and become stone powder again.
ZULU & ZEPHYR
Most well known for their women’s swimwear, they have been growing in popularity with their kid’s swim. The suits are all made from a signature small rib lycra and are fully lined. Their packaging is made of biodegradable cornstarch and 100% recycled paper. This season they introduced a raw edge finish we love called the mini mermaid edge. Although the line is definitely geared towards girls, there are also unisex styles.
SALTY SWIMWEAR
These suits are all handmade in Bali in REPREVE®, a material made with recycled plastic bottles, it’s maker Unifi has recycled over 14 billion plastic bottles. They also ship their suits in biodegradable cornstarch bags and compostable mailers. Besides their solid ribbed styles, they also offer paisley and other custom prints. All suits are UPF 50+ and are sized from 0 months to 14 years.
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