The high cut one piece swimsuit was the go-to choice of swimwear for women in the 80s. The decade brought in a revolution of change in the fashion industry, and swimwear changed dramatically during that time for both men and women, just like all the other 80s fashion trends of the era.
With fashion trending in the 80s towards more revealing clothing, women’s bathing suits also got smaller. One of the most popular swimsuits of the decade featured a high-rise waistline with high-cut leg openings, and this was known as the “High Cut One Piece Swimsuit”.
The high cut one piece swimsuit was an 80s fashion essential for women, and all throughout the 1980s we saw fashion icons photographed in them while on vacation at some of the most beautiful places in the world.
So it’s no surprise that these types of swimsuits quickly caught on, as everyone wanted to be like their favorite celebrity.
High Cut One Piece Swimsuits In The 80s
Swimwear in the 1980s was still much more conservative than it is today. Typically most women opted for one piece bathing suits, and the bikini was still a fashion that was still in its infancy. However the high cut one piece swimsuit was still very edgy for the time.
We also still saw the impact of 80s fashion trends on one piece swimsuits styles of the day. You could find anything from bright neon fashion to even wild animal leopard prints, and when it came to swimwear in the 1980s, you still wanted to keep up with the latest trends.
Princess Diana’s Swimsuits
So many unique fashion trends grew in popularity throughout the 1980s as a result of Princess Diana. During the early 80s, before her untimely death, Princess Diana was well known for her choice of swimwear.
Though bikinis were getting smaller and more formfitting than ever before, they were still not as prevalent as the one piece swimsuit during the 1980s. One piece swimsuits still continued to remain popular throughout the decade, largely in part due to the celebrity women that wore them at the time.
It was not uncommon to see photos of Princess Diana wearing a high-cut swimsuit while on a luxury yacht in the south of France, and such photos kept the one piece swimsuit en vogue throughout the decade.
Jane Fonda’s Influence
Then of course there was Jane Fonda. While Fonda was filming The China Syndrome back in 1978, she broke her ankle. In order to rebuild the strength in her leg, and stay fit, she sought the help of Leni Cazden. Leni was already a very popular exercise instructor who had developed a very lengthy exercise regimen that was designed to help burn calories faster. After taking a class with Cazden, Jane Fonda quickly adopted the exercise style as her own.
In 1982, Fonda released a new video, but this one was not a theatrical movie. Instead, she sold her very first Jane Fonda’s Workout, which was available on VHS. Between 1982 and 1995, she had sold more than 17 million copies of her workout regimen. And, in almost every single video, she could be seen sporting a high-cut one-piece swimsuit with sheer leggings.
Women all over the country began to pick up on this fashion trend. It was not uncommon to see women on rollerskates on a warm summer day, wearing a similar high-cut bathing suit, with sheer leggings, and leg warmers. It was so popular in fact that most women and even teenagers often had a selection of bathing suits in a variety of different colors and patterns in their wardrobe.
The Iconic Red One Piece Swimsuit From Baywatch
By the end of the 1980s, the popularity of the high-cut one-piece bathing suit had peaked in popularity. This was a result of the debut of the popular Baywatch series. The series was first available on NBC, but it was canceled due to low ratings for its first season. Nevertheless, the show would reappear several years later and would run for 11 seasons.
One of the most popular actresses on Baywatch was none other than Pamela Anderson Lee. Pamela Anderson was well-known for sporting a high-cut one-piece bathing suit while out on the beach. She ended up appearing in a total of 77 episodes over the 11 seasons, and she is credited with continuing the popularity of the one piece swimsuit fashion trend well beyond the 1980s.
Are High Cut One Piece Swimsuits Still Popular?
While today more and more women gravitate towards bikinis, the high cut one piece swimsuit is still a popular fashion choice. Though not surprisingly it is favored by older women, who typically tend to be more conservative than the new generation of women.
The high cut one piece swimsuit is just one of those timeless fashion trends that we don’t expect to go anywhere anytime soon. It is one of those classic looks that when done well looks great, and undoubtedly will remain a popular choice for swimwear for women with more conservative leanings.
