Drawing clothes is hard. Drawing swimwear is weirder. Most people think they can just sketch a couple of triangles and call it a day, but that’s how you end up with a drawing that looks like the character is wearing cardboard. If you want to know how to draw a bathing suit that actually looks like it’s reacting to a human body and water, you’ve gotta think about tension.
Fabric doesn't just sit there. It pulls. It bunches. It stretches over the hip bone and dips into the small of the back.
Honestly, the biggest mistake beginners make is ignoring the "wrap." A swimsuit is basically a second skin, but a tight one. If you don't show the way the elastic digs—just a tiny bit—into the skin, the suit looks like it’s floating. It looks fake. Real bodies have give. Real fabric has physics.
The Secret Physics of Swimwear
Think about spandex. It’s a high-tension material. When you’re figuring out how to draw a bathing suit, you have to identify the anchor points. For a bikini, the anchors are usually the neck, the back tie, and the hips. For a one-piece, the tension runs vertically from the shoulders to the crotch.
Draw the body first. Always. If you try to draw the suit without the anatomy underneath, you’ll lose the perspective.
Once the torso is there, map out where the fabric is being pulled. In a standard one-piece, you’ll see "tension lines" or small stress folds radiating from the hip bones toward the center of the stomach. These aren't big, baggy folds like you'd see on a hoodie. They are thin, sharp lines.
I’ve noticed that people often forget the thickness of the hems. Even the thinnest Lycra has an edge. If you draw a single, razor-thin line for the leg opening, it looks unfinished. Add a secondary line just a millimeter away to represent the folded hem or the elastic casing. It makes a world of difference.
Two-Piece vs. One-Piece Dynamics
A bikini is all about the "pinch." Because the top is usually tied, the skin around the ribs or the back of the neck will be slightly compressed. You can show this by making the line of the body slightly concave where the strap hits.
One-pieces are a different beast entirely. They are basically a tube of compression. The main thing to watch out for here is the "scoop." The way the fabric curves around the chest or the "leg hole" needs to follow the 3D contour of the cylinder that is the human torso. If you draw a straight line across the chest, you kill the illusion of depth. It needs to be a curve that wraps around the side of the body.
Getting the Texture and Highlights Right
Wet fabric is a whole other game. If your character just jumped out of a pool, the suit isn't going to look matte. It’s going to be darker in some spots and have sharp, bright highlights where the sun hits the water droplets clinging to the fibers.
- Matte vs. Shine: Most modern suits are a nylon-spandex blend. This has a soft sheen.
- Wet Look: To make a suit look wet, increase the contrast. Make the shadows deeper and the highlights much brighter and smaller.
- The "Cling" Factor: Wet fabric sticks to the skin. It will reveal more of the underlying anatomy, like the navel or the ribcage, than dry fabric would.
If you’re working digitally, use a hard-edged brush for these highlights. Soft airbrushing makes swimwear look like it’s made of fog. You want it to look like it has a physical presence.
Why Most Drawings Look Stiff
It’s usually the straps. Straps are not straight lines. They follow the curve of the trapezius muscle over the shoulder and then disappear behind the neck. If you draw them like two parallel sticks, the character loses their "weight."
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Also, consider the "gravity" of the chest. Swimwear is functional. It’s designed to hold things in place. If you’re drawing a bikini top, the bottom of the triangle shouldn't be a perfect horizontal line. It should sag slightly under the weight it’s supporting. This adds a level of realism that sets professional illustrators apart from hobbyists.
Choosing the Right Style for the Design
The "how" of how to draw a bathing suit changes depending on the era you’re aiming for. A 1950s high-waisted bottom has a lot more structure and boning than a 2020s thong-style suit.
- Vintage Styles: These often have ruching (pleated fabric) on the sides. This is great for hiding anatomy mistakes, actually. The folds are dense and horizontal.
- Athletic Suits: Think Speedo. These are all about streamlining. There are almost no folds here. The focus is on the "seam lines" that follow the muscle groups.
- Modern Fashion Suits: These have weird cut-outs and strings everywhere. The challenge here is making sure the "empty space" still follows the curve of the body.
If you look at the work of fashion illustrators like David Downton, you’ll see that they don’t draw every single detail. They focus on the silhouette and the most important tension points. Sometimes, less is more. One well-placed fold at the waist is better than twenty random lines that don't mean anything.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Don't forget the "gusset." That’s the wider part at the crotch. A lot of people draw it too narrow, which makes the suit look like it’s defying the laws of physics or becoming quite uncomfortable for the wearer.
Also, watch the "apex." That’s the highest point of the bust. The seams of the swimsuit should generally point toward or radiate from this area. If the seams are pointing in random directions, the garment will look like it was sewn incorrectly.
Practical Steps to Master Swimwear Drawing
Start with a "croquis," which is just a fancy word for a quick figure sketch.
Then, use a different color pencil or a lower-opacity layer to "drape" the suit over the form. Start with the outlines of the leg holes and the neckline. Once those are locked in, connect them with the side seams.
Add your tension lines last. Think about where the body is moving. If the character is twisting, the folds will be diagonal. If they are standing still, the folds will be minimal and mostly located at the narrowest part of the waist.
Next Steps for Your Art
Go look at a real swimsuit. Not a photo—an actual suit. Pull the fabric. See how it changes color when it's stretched thin? Notice how the light reflects off the elastic?
Once you understand the material, try sketching three different types of suits: a classic racing one-piece, a ruffled bikini, and a structured vintage piece. Focus entirely on how the fabric "grips" the body differently in each one. Pay attention to the way the shadows pool in the ruffles versus the smooth, long highlights on the athletic suit. This observational practice is what actually builds the "muscle memory" needed to draw clothes that feel real.