Swimsuitologist

I appreciate you starting this year's thread. A couple years ago, someone said that the Instagram account for a certain swimwear company -- I think it was bikinilovers -- had taken the place of the swimsuit issue for him. It's easy to go down a rabbit hole -- browsing a bikini company's account will introduce you to models who have their own accounts, and from there you find swimsuit photographers who have their own accounts, etc, etc. Now my Insta feed is an influx of hundreds of magnificent swimsuit photos that would make for some excellent SI issues, if SI was still into that kind of thing. The irony is that, theoretically, the swimsuit designers on Instagram are trying to reach a female audience to purchase the suits, but they use some of the sexiest, male-gaze-pleasing babes-on-the-beach photos you'll see anywhere. It just goes to show that sexy bikini pics are still out there. But the swimsuit issue isn't as interested in providing pure cheesecake anymore. Which is fine. They chose a direction and a message, and I respect that. But I do miss the years when we would all gather here and count down the days/hours/minutes until the new photos dropped.

🎉Double-digit pages. 🎉

Seems like there's some kind of 60th Anniversary "legends" event/shoot brewing, per rumblings on Instagram.

Sometimes life's not so bad.

She's so gorgeous. She seems to have left bikinis and lingerie behind in favor of creating quirky videos on Instagram.

I remember it well. Love that red and black number on Carol Alt. And the "Obsession" pic of Elle is an all-time favorite.

Listen, I long for the days when the swimsuit issue was nothing but impossibly hot women. But I don't have the same loathing of the new direction that a lot of people have. I think there is a legitimate case to make about pushing beauty standards and inviting more inclusion. A lot of it does nothing for me, but that's fine -- I'm not the king of bikinis. But it's very weird to me that we live in a world where Barbara Palvin, Stacey Williams, and Stephanie Seymour were never cover models, but Martha Stewart is.

Went back to refresh my memory -- she had some cute pics last year.

Okay, Padma is probably my #1 celebrity crush, and I just got a lot more interested in this year's issue.

Sara really does make a Dream Team with Bikini Lovers and Cameron Hammond.

That shoot was my introduction to both of them. I thought they were super cute together. Can't believe it was 9 years ago...

Oh, man. Thanks for posting, I hadn't heard. That genuinely bums me out. For better or for worse, she's responsible for a lot of the real estate in my brain.

She is ... unfair.

Damn, even the city of Venice is visibly turned on...

Thank you -- big Haley fan, love getting new pics!

Thanks! Big fan of Allie.

I don't know where you found all those lovely Elle SI outtakes, but thank you for sharing them. I don't think I'd ever seen any of them before.

My favorite things about this year: Lorena. She picks up where she left off a couple years ago. Happy to see Hailey again. Christen and Cindy are adorable, and I hope they come back a lot. Cindy looks a bit like a blend of Danielle Harrington and Raven Lyn. I think this is Jasmine's best year. My favorite search girl is Ashley. She's so striking.

Lorena Duran is my MVP of this issue. She looks glorious.

[small, scared voice] I think Kim Kardashian looks pretty good.

Holy shit. I wonder how long ago they booked Maye Musk.

I'm bummed not to see Haley Kalil in the mix.

Kathy AND Rachel were pregnant on their 1994 cover, but yes -- "visibly" is the key word. Kathy hid her belly with a well-placed forearm or garment throughout.

Look, I've probably been the biggest apologist for the swimsuit issue in history, but a pregnant model is truly baffling.

I keep searching LinkedIn for "Kelly Gale Bikini Bottom Adjuster," and there's just nothing.