Will You Wear the Super-Sexy Bay-kini This Summer?

Sexy. One-piece. Swim companies have been trying to reconcile those two words for years. They’d been a natural pairing for a few early-century decades, all through pinup calendars and flapper vacations. But it seems they broke up in the ’40s, around the time when Sexy ran off with the bright young Bikini.

The sexiness has tried to be restored to the one-piece, often unsuccessfully, which is where we got all those cutout and lace-up iterations, that either were basically bikinis with a strip of cloth down the navel—otherwise known as the monokini—or they were backless unitards with the scoop-out tie-off deep dip down to the navel, as seen here and at late-aughts spring breaks everywhere, and on pretty much all the Kardashian-Jenners.

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Less confusing is the new one-piece trend that’s trying its damnedest to reunite “sexy” with “one-piece.” It’s the plunging-neck, nearly backless, wincingly high-cut Baywatch-style one-piece. Or as I’m calling it for purposes of this piece, the Bay-kini.

It works because it’s recognizable. First, it’s recognizable as the suit that sling-shot Pamela Anderson beyond fame and straight into fantasy on Baywatch, where it seemed like the suits were custom-made for the women and standard issue for men. But it’s also recognizable in the fact that you can see the general lines and curves of your mom’s L.L. Bean water aerobics tank in it. The angles are there, they’re just exaggerated. To an almost un-pull-off-able degree.

But those currently capable of showing us exactly how it’s done have proved it’s possible to bring sex back to the one-piece. Kylie Jenner put hers—the same Body Glove style Mama Kris wore in Acapulco in 1989—with modern Bo Derek braids (an homage to another slow beach-runner), combining a few historic seaside moments into one neon pink money shot for waiting paparazzi. Selena Gomez tried a more subtle route in black, but there’s no toning down the deep armholes (all the better to show off your tiny tattoos with) and achingly high-cut bottoms. And Modern Family star Ariel Winter was spotted in the Bahamas earlier this month in a Pam-worthy suit from Private Party. It might not be the most approachable style, but it’s all the rage—online purveyors like Nasty Gal are awash in Bay-kini styles of all colors.

The Bay-kini (“bae-kini,” to the ‘gram set) works well when paired with insane confidence. There’s no fighting it—hips will look wider; that’s nonnegotiable. Luckily, that’s a desirable effect nowadays, especially for Instagram stars and actual celebrities (but who can tell the difference anymore?) So, shimmy on in—the water’s fine. Fair warning: Book a wax a few days before your suit arrives. You’ve got to have nothing to hide because there’s nowhere to hide.