Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Fashion & Style

The Manual may earn a commission when you buy through links on our site.

Summer 2015’s Best Swimwear

Tim Yap
By

Ah, swimwear. We all know it as the one summer staple that’s as indispensable as it easily forgotten when it comes to updating our wardrobe for the warmer months. Lucky for you, brands have made it easier than ever to replace your assortment. Need sophisticated style, stretch, and water-resistance all in one place? You’ve got it. Some even look, feel, and function like tailored, everyday shorts with zippered pockets and other fine details, so you can go from the beach to the city without having to change. How best to approach the widest variety in years? Think about purchasing more than one new piece for the season, for the man about town (or the one who aspires to be him and make an impression) always has an arsenal of great-looking swimwear. Brands too are offering a variety of lengths you can play with, as well as an array of fits that would even look good on dad bods. And while you can’t go wrong with a solid or colorblocked option, what’s true is that the new prints are hard to resist and now designed less to shout than add some dash to your look. Here, our picks for the summer, favored for their originality, impressive versatility, and new streamlined edge.

Main image: Bamboo box swim short with side pockets, shown with matching shirt, Original Penguin, $65.

Recommended Videos

White-burgundy printed cotton-blend swim short with side slant pockets, COS x Mr Porter, $59.

Redwoods-inspired printed board short in Portuguese polyester with laser-cut back pocket, Isaora, $79.

“Into the Galaxy” printed short with side pockets and water-resistant wallet, shown with matching short for sons, Vilebrequin, $250.

“Palm Print Ibiza” swim short with side and back pockets, 2xist, $75. (Photo courtesy: 2xist.com)

“Rex Cobalt” swim short with on-seam side pockets and concealed zippers, KoMocean, $195.

Pacific stripe “Calder” 7.5” chino-cut short with zip-fly, Onia, $175.

Cotton-nylon “tapestry” trunks with double-needle construction and back thigh pocket, Mollusk, $66.

Alex Maclean “Escapade” aerial print mid-length swim short with side fasteners and zip-fly, Orlebar Brown, $345.

“Reef Norte” short with set-on back pocket and SPF 30 sun protection, Reef, $62.

Peach skin Retro Vans yellow short with elastic waist, Retromarine, $135.

“Ready to Flamingo” board short with side pocket, Sperry, $54.50.

Ultrasuede grey-white board short, Thaddeus O’Neil, $275.

Related: Retromarine Gives Men’s Swimwear A Vintage Makeover

(All photo sources: brands)  

Tim Yap
Tim Yap
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Contributing writer Tim Yap was born in Kuala Lumpur and lived in Hong Kong, Singapore, Vancouver and Toronto prior to moving…
Get up to $130 off Tom Ford colognes in this rare sale
Someone spraying a Tom Ford cologne on themselves.

Jomashop has some fantastic cologne deals with up to $310 off select Tom Ford colognes. Whether you’re buying your favorite fragrance, looking for a gift for someone, or want to try something new, there are great options here. As always with such huge sales, it’s a smart move to check it all out for yourself. Do so by tapping the button below. However, if you want some insight into what we recommend, keep reading and we’ll take you through our favorites. In all cases, don’t count on stock staying this price for very long.

What to shop for in the Jomashop Tom Ford cologne sale
With some of the best colognes around, Tom Ford colognes are well worth checking out. One highlight is the which is down to $144 from $295. It has top notes of rosewood, cardamom, and Chinese pepper, while there are heart notes of Oud, sandalwood, and vetiver. For the base notes, expect the delights of Tonka bean, vanilla, and amber. One of Tom Ford’s older colognes, it has a timeless quality to it.

Read more
Burberry sale: Jackets, shirts, belts, and more, from $200
Burberry Kensington

Burberry is one of the most recognizable and popular brands in the world with their tailored apparel, luxurious accessories and of course, their famous checkered print. If you don't already own at least one piece of apparel or an accessory from this coveted brand, now is the perfect opportunity to find something that suits your needs.

Gilt is offering a huge sale on over 150 different Burberry styles including shirts, belts, sunglasses, wallets, footwear, sweaters, sweatshirts, jackets and more. You can find apparel for as low as $200 and accessories or cologne for as low as $30. Click the button below to start shopping all of these Burberry products before time runs out.

Read more
Steven Kurutz and American Giant endeavor to create a flannel 100% American made
Follow American Giant to bring flannel back to the USA
man in flannel holding a book

What makes the flannel shirt something that stays with us here in America? Is it the quintessential garment of the American worker? Does it make us feel as though we are driving horses across the plains in the old American West? How about working the day away, clearing logs from the Pacific Northwest to supply the entire country with the lumber needed to build houses, decks, and shop fronts? Or maybe we don't have to reach back as far to imagine the flannel renaissance of the 1990s bringing us the nostalgia of our childhood imitating Kurt Cobain on stage. Either way, the flannel is a staple of Americana, and American fashion brand American Giant has spent years attempting to bring that garment back home.

What started out as an article in the New York Times blossomed into a half-decade journey for author Steven Kurutz to chronicle AG's desire to bring flannel-making back to the shores of the United States and to save factory jobs in his new book, American Flannel. As a native of a small town in Pennsylvania, Kurutz has watched his town wither away as factory jobs were shipped overseas. For him, the book was more than a story of American determination; it was a personal connection to a quest to save his own hometown and others like it.
American Flannel spotlights the brands bringing garments back home

Read more