Malia Mills

THis review is for the «Nolita» store. The UES store has great people working there.
The suits are fantastic. VERY expensive. But they fit beautifully and the colors are gorgeous.
In the Nolita store, the girls who worked at the store while I was there were so dull and bored and not particularly helpful— they seem almost bothered to have someone there– even though there’s usually no one else in there.
The UES place is gorgeous and they were great and fun. Just what you’d hope for.

I received a gift certificate for 1 swimsuit from a friend before my honeymoon 2 years ago. I had a great time picking out my swim suit and mixing and matching sizes is a great feature. 2 years later I am realizing how amazing this swim suit is. I have a bag full of swim suits but this is always the one I choose. The color has not faded one bit and it looks brand new despite all my use. Of course I was a little shocked by the high prices (but lucky to have a gift certificate) though I now know the price must come with the quality. It’s worth it. I’ll be willing to shell out the big bucks for a suit once this one dies on me.

Great designs, great fabrics. Trouble is, I’m a pear and I couldn’t find one to fit. I’m only curvy on half my body (the lower half) and while they accommodated my curves, they didn’t do so in a way that I’d be super comfortable (like low-​rise, sure it fits and looks ok, but it still shows crack. I do not wish to show crack). I also wasn’t feeling like the tops for smaller shouldered/​breasted girls were all that flattering. I want something that’s going to be flattering not just fit, and that means playing up the top and playing down the bottoms. These were just a little too basic.
Friendly sales girls.
Pretty high price point.
Ended up finding the perfect one in SF, handmade at Zoe Bikini.

Sorry, this review is only for real women who have curves.
Shopping for a new bathing suit and you want to make sure you look hot in it? Skip ALL the department stores. Fuck Bloomingdales, fuck Lord and Taylor. Go straight to Malia Mills.
Malia has a great selection of mix and match suits and one pieces, and the best part is that they’re all designed to work with your body instead of against it. They have bikini/​tankini tops especially for women with big breasteces, but they also have tops that will flatter a smaller chest. The bottoms offer a range of coverage, from minimal to slightly more. This year, the trend is «pin up girl», so you’ll find a lot of side ties, ruching and skirts. The shopgirls seem pretty knowledgeable and can pick out a great suit for you, maybe in a style that you never thought you could wear before. My pick was a blue one piece with some ruching in the front, a criss cross back with adjustable straps, a deep V in the back, and… wait…no underwire! The secret is to adjust the straps in the back, which can be worn criss-​cross or straight, to get more lift for the girls. It looks fabulous and I can’t wait to traipse around the beach in it! And for the first time, I didn’t feel like a disfigured alien when trying on the suits. I felt completely beautiful. So Malia’s slogan is true: Love thy Differences.
This store is very much on the small side, but the shop girl was very helpful and patient with me. The fitting rooms are lovely, roomy, and the mirror is quite flattering.
At the end of the experience, you can fill out one of those «customer cards», but when you do, you can also apply to be a fit model and maybe get on their website. I did! I’ve never felt good enough in a bathing suit to go NEAR modeling it. One warning is that Malia suits are pretty expensive, but you are getting a great suit that looks great, will last and will make you feel like the million bucks you are!