I continued with my research by looking through some books about the history of the swim suit. I found some fantastic images that helped me further in my design process.

I chose these three images because they all featured an interesting way of twisting the centre front and crossing over at the neck. I thought that for the time, they are all from 1945 - 1950, they are very contemporary and I like the way the fabric has been manipulated to flatter the female form.

These early images from the 1920's show that the move towards experimentation with women's swim wear was rapid.

I love these images from the '20's, so daring and fun.

I started to really focus on the swimming cap as a prominent feature in early women's swim wear. Nowadays it is merely used as a practical way of keeping your hair dry, and in racing to help the swimmer move through the water faster. Through my research i found that over time, the swimming cap was as much a fashion item as the swim suit itself. I knew I would like to include it in my design.

These three images are my favourites. They capture the essence of my theme; Annette Kellerman's original need for a simplictic and practical swimsuit that was to be later mixed with the golden age of '30's Hollywood.

I started sketching some simple ideas but they all seemed very generic and boring. I needed to think outside the square. I felt as though I should be going all out and over the top. My inspiration however, came from my muse in her earlier years, before heading to Hollywood. She was a no nonsense sort of a woman, and that practicality combined with a personal pride in her health and physique was at the core of where I wanted my design to be focused.