Hey Gang! I hope everyone is enjoying the long weekend. I couldn’t let the season end without doing an EveryBODY Matters swimwear edit with my bestie Amanda. Fun fact, Summer isn’t technically over until September 21st, but folks love closure and Labor Day weekend usually gives the Summer haters (aka lovers of all things Fall/Winter) closure. A debate on the change of the seasons isn’t why we’re here. It’s all but the swimsuits. This year we’re in Good American Swimsuits.
EVERYBODY MATTERS- GOOD AMERICAN SWIMWEAR EDITION
As you can imagine finding a flattering swimsuit, that we both loved or liked a enough to be photographed in was a challenge. I heard Good American had a plus size line so I decided to test them out. Yes I’m keenly aware this is Khloe Kardashian’s brand and none of them need anymore of our money than they already have. But I wanted to see if the brand lived up to the hype. Short story I wasn’t disappointed but I wasn’t impressed either. Before I get into the critique of the swimsuits, we need to discuss the shoot location.
CHASING WATERFALLS
Amanda wanted to do something “different” for this year’s swimsuit edit, she wanted to do the photoshoot at a waterfall. Queue TLC’s Don’t Go Chasing Waterfalls. Since going to the rainforest of Costa Rica was out of the question, I found a local waterfall at Scott’s Run Preserve in McLean, VA. With very little time to scout the location (fresh off my Grecian vacation) I had no idea what to expect. However from the little research I did do, it seemed easy enough to get to, a 1.5 mile walk to the falls, EASY. However we didn’t take that path. For reasons I can’t explain, we decided to just follow the people walking up the stairs. I never follow the crowd but this time I figured why not; big mistake!
ASK FOR DIRECTIONS
Word to the wise or the over confident read the directions and ask questions before hiking unexplored trails in Crocs and slides. Yes we were ill-prepared and over-groomed (a full face of make-up) for a hike through the woods. Had we asked for directions or looked for any signage we probably would not have taken what had to be the expert trail to the falls, clearly we were a group of amateurs. To be fair there was very little signage if any. Because I care for you all and if you every choose to visit, the way to the Falls is simple.
LOOK FOR THE SIGNS
If you park in the Georgetown Pike lot along the stream, go straight to the back of the parking lot and keep walking. The Falls are at the end of the that trail, literally a straight shot. If you don’t see the stream the entire time you’re going down the wrong path. If you walk up the stairs you’ll find the falls but you’ll be taking the scenic route, which include sheer bluffs, SUPER rocky paths, and downed trees; we took this path. Don’t take this path unless you fully intend on going on a robust hike. My body hurt for a full week, no exaggeration.
Eventually we did find the waterfall. That was interesting as well. The rocks are SUPER slippery, largely due to the algae we were almost assuredly destroying by getting into the water but we weren’t alone. There was a gang of people in water and on the shore. I should add wading and/or swimming at the Falls is strictly prohibited, to the tune of a $200 fine. A fun fact I wasn’t fully aware of until we got there. Park rangers would actually need to be around to enforce the rules but there were none to be found. But there was absolutely no way I wasn’t getting my waterfall shot after all we’d been through.
WE’RE GETTING THE SHOT
I failed to mention the “WE” on this little adventure actually included both our oldest daughter’s, Laila and Mackenzie. They were suppose to be our production assistants for the day, they did an ok job. They held the bags and served as anchors but Laila lead us to steepest cliff she could find, that resulted in two slip and falls and a scrapped elbow. This may or may not have been payback for not being paid, we’ll never really know. Why did we follow Laila? I’m not entirely sure. Maybe because we had been walking for a good little while and we could hear running water in the same direction, so yeah it was exhaustion and desperation, that’s why we followed. But the end result was well worth it.
The Look
As I said finding flattering swimsuits for all involved was a challenge. I actually loved my suit. It was simple but stylish. It pulled my mid-section nicely due to it’s compressive material. I enjoyed the ruching on the side, the straps were adjustable as well. Full coverage at the butt, you couldn’t ask for more. Well the “plus size” version wasn’t doing the same thing for Amanda.
It wasn’t giving the same level of compression, in fact Amanda had to supplement with shapewear just get the smoothing effect we wanted for the photoshoot. So Good American gets an “A” for the “average size” swimsuit and a “C-” in the “plus size” category. Simply because we needed the swimsuits to do the same thing in both sizes and they just didn’t. I’d recommend a swimsuit purchase for my “average size” ladies but for my plus size babes it maybe hit or miss, it really depends on your shape.
Hats- Eric Javits Bey
Swimwear- Good American Shine Ruched One-piece
Until next time…
XOXO
-Andrea