Here at Family.me, we are all about family memories. But what did our past family members do for summer? While the times have changed and the way families communicate has shifted, one thing is certain… they celebrated the summer with family beach days.
Here’s a little glimpse of what family beach days looked like in summers past:
Late 1800s:
Starting back in the late 1800s, your great, great grandparents were wading at the shoreline in full-coverage bathing suits difficult to distinguish from normal everyday clothing.
Early 1900s
More than 100 years ago, short-sleeve bathing suits became a trendy new way to soak up the sun. A family lounging on the shores of Martha’s Vineyard in 1905 sported these “newer” designs.
1920s:
In the roaring 1920s, your great grandma and her girlfriends headed to the beach decked out in Hollywood-inspired bathing suits and suits like those pictured above.
1940s:
Family beach days in 1942 started to look a little more like they do today! Women still sported one-pieces and the men showed more leg than the women! The “Bikini” was designed and coined in this decade, but the revealing two-piece was slow to be adopted.
1950s:
Beach day picnics were a popular pastime. Shorts were a little longer for the men and women’s suits start taking a little more shape.
1960s Beach games:
Teenagers and surfing culture took over the beaches. Bikinis are widely adopted and men’s trunks got smaller and tighter! The sandy beach parties from this decade are widely popularized in movies and television.
1980s:
Neon-colors, high-waist bikinis and bright sunglasses were all the rage. Who can forget the highly popular colored Zinc oxide stripes on the face?
2000 and beyond:
In 2015, bikinis and trunks still rule the beaches, sometimes with throwbacks to vintage styles such as the high-waisted, pin-up look and the classic wayfarer sunglasses. One-pieces with fancy cutouts are also getting widely popular. Men generally stick with larger swimming trunks, but the length is slowly beginning to creep up the leg again!
One can only wonder what our great, great grandchildren will be wearing to their family beach days. With the dangers of sun exposure perhaps the trend will go back to fully-clothed? Who knows!