SWIM STYLE | 2016

A fter a few years of not having bought swimming trunks (speedos, beach-briefs, budgie-smugglers; whatever you want to call them), mainly because I thought that after turning 26 I should gracefully leave them to younger guys, I've fallen back in love with this Euro-Latin swimwear favourite.

Cool, design-driven brands like D.Hedral, Aronik and Sluggers have re-invigorated the appeal of a neat, slimline brief you can wear on the beach and feel confident, masculine and well...supported! Of course, the secret to looking good in trunks is having your body in check - that doesn't mean ripped to shreds, but nothing is left to the imagination when you're wearing briefs so I tend to be more discerning when deciding whether my body is in good enough shape to wear trunks or not. I'll be sampling the new lines from Aronik, Sluggers and others this year as well as maintaining a collection of tailored swim-shorts which have been my chic go-to beachwear choice for the last few years.

Tailored swim-shorts from the likes of Orlebar Brown and J.Lindeberg are much more forgiving than trunks if you're not feeling in tip-top condition. They're also a man's best choice to take you from pool to bar; throw on a t-shirt, a tank-top or just a pair of flip flops and you'll look smart but you'll still ready to jump in the pool if banter arises. On the other hand trunks can really only be worn with sunglasses and nothing else. Even slipping on your sandals while wearing trunks will make you look like you've been caught with your pants down.

Here's the swimwear I packed on my travels in 2016