Sustainable swimwear: Get ready for summer with these eco-friendly swimmers

By Katie Wright

If you’re worried about your fashion footprint and want to make more sustainable shopping choices, summer swimwear is a great place to start.

This season, brands big and small have used innovative techniques to create beachwear ranges with impressive environmental credentials.

And they look great, too. Whether you’re swimming, catching rays or a bit of both, here’s our pick of the best eco-friendly bathing suits for summer…

 

Nike Women’s Colour-Block Midkini Top and High-Waisted Swimming Bottoms

Nike’s new Icon range of men’s and women’s swimwear is made with recycled polyester and nylon. This sporty pink and black bikini comes with a handy detachable zip-up pocket.

 

Rixo Alice Top and Bottoms

Venturing into sustainable fashion, celeb favourite Rixo has created a line of chic bikinis and swimsuits with Q-Nova, a nylon fabric produced from regenerated sea waste in a process that doesn’t use chemicals. We love the Alice halterneck bikini, which comes in two contrasting prints.

 

H&M Conscious Padded Bandeau Bikini Top and Conscious Brazilian Bikini Bottoms

Eco and budget-friendly, H&M’s Conscious collection swimwear is ideal for those who prefer a more minimal aesthetic, with lots of plain black piece in simple shapes, like this bandeau bikini.

 

Tropic of C Praia Bikini Top and Bottoms

Trust Victoria’s Secret model Candice Swanepoel to come up with the season’s sexiest swim range. A collaboration with Tropic of C, the itsy-bitsy bikinis and strappy swimsuits are made with textiles recycled from things like fishing nets and plastic bottles, and also feature upcycled labels and bamboo hang tags.

 

Asket The Swim Shorts

The latest addition to slow fashion brand Asket’s permanent collection, The Swim Shorts are made entirely with a fabric derived from waste plastics collected from the Mediterranean Sea. The mesh-lined drawstring shorts come in three classic colours: blue, green and navy.

 

Quiksilver Echo Beach Arch 18″ Board Shorts for Men

Made with Repreve, a textile manufactured from recycled water bottles, these surfer-style shorts are based on a 1969 design from the Quiksilver archive. With a chequered side panel, they’re available in four colours.