DIY Cheeky Bikini Bottoms

Okay my Florida people; it’s that time of the year! The sun is out, the weather is warming up, the beaches are getting packed, and social networks are being blown up with pictures of people under the sun in their bikinis! Although I love the cold weather because my hair stays perfect and my makeup actually stays on my face, however I also love lying under the sun, getting tan and cooling off in the salty ocean waves. While browsing Pinterest, as I so often do, I came across another DIY project that I just HAD to do. I know I’m not the only girl who hates those big, baggy, saggy granny panty bikini bottoms that create the ugliest tan lines of mankind, and if you try to buy “cheeky” bikini bottoms, or thongs even if you’re shameless, they’re pretty pricy ($30+). Not to mention the fact that I’m Brazilian and in Rio de Janeiro EVERYBODY walks around in thongs, speedos, even naked! I would never do any of that here in America, so I’ll do the next best thing: cheeky bikini bottoms! So here’s a simple solution: DIY Bikini Ruching. If I would’ve done it right the first time, the whole process would have only taken 15 minutes. But, that wasn’t the case for me. To start you will need a pair of bikini bottoms of your preference, a needle, thread the same color as the bottoms, a pen and scissors. The first time I attempted this, I only used one thread and it broke instantly. The second time, I used 2 threads and it lasted up until I tried them on and adjusted them, and then SNAP! That broke too…..so the third times a charm! I tediously fit THREE pieces of thread through that itty bitty needle hole (successfully) and start my sewing. Before I add any extra details, let me tell you the step by step process:

Just underneath the tag, make a tiny dot with your pen about ¼ of an inch away from the top seam. Continue drawing little dots straight down the middle a ¼ inch spaced between each dot. This is so you know where to put your needle. You can make the dots thinner or wider apart if you’d like depending on what you want it to look like. (The longer the distance, the bigger the ruch.)

Put your 3 threads (or 1 thick piece of thread if you have any [about 10” in length]) through the needle and tie a knot at the bottom.

Starting from the INSIDE of the bottoms, poke the needle through the top seam so the needle comes out on the outside. Then poke it back through down to the next dot. Do this consecutively until it’s at your desired ruch size. You can test this by pulling the threads to see how much up they will go, then pull the bottoms back to continue if needed. If it’s too much ruched, take out a dot or two. If it’s not enough, continue the process by poking through more dots.

When finished, cut the thread AT THE VERY END BY THE NEEDLE so you have plenty of string to use to tie the end knot. After you cut the thread by the needle grab three threads in each hand and tie 3 good, tight knots to secure the ruch. Cut the excess thread and viola, you have brand new cheeky bikini bottoms! FOR FREE (: