We list side seam measurements in inches for every swim skirt we cut. Learning how we measure from the top of the waistband down to the hem edge helps you know where the fabric will hit your leg before you order. Rise height and your natural torso length decide the rest.
Our pattern table takes the skirt length along the finished side seam. We lay the garment flat without pulling the stretch fabric out of square. The tape starts at the very top edge of the folded waistband and follows the stitch line down to the lower hem. Our core swim skirts measure between 18.1 and 20.2 inches along this line, depending on the tagged size. Across every bottom we cut, that line runs from 10 inches on the shortest swim short to 20.2 inches on the longest skirt. That number gives you the true vertical drop of the shell fabric.
A high waistband changes where that length lands on your leg. Because our swim skirts sit at the natural waist above the navel, the measurement begins higher on your body than a pair of standard low cut shorts. An 18 inch side seam on a high waist garment will finish closer to the knee than the same 18 inches would on a low rise bottom. You have to account for where the band rests before calculating the lower edge. The sewn in brief underneath anchors the skirt at your hip line, so the outer panel stays anchored while you swim.
Your dress size does not determine where a hem stops. Your vertical bone structure does. A tall person with a long pelvis will find an 18 inch skirt hits around mid thigh. A shorter person with a compact waist to hip distance will find that same 18 inch hem reaches the top of the knee cap. We scale our lengths up slightly across sizes to match wider hip circumferences, but vertical proportions still control the landing point. Measure your own body from the natural waist down the outside of your hip to see how many inches of drop you actually require.
You can test our measurements against a garment you already wear. Take a fabric tape measure and place the metal tip at your belly button or slightly above where you prefer a swim waist to rest. Let the tape drop straight down your hip. Note the inch mark where you want the hem to finish, whether that is mid thigh or right above the knee. Compare that number to the size table on our product pages. Doing this removes the guesswork from numbers on a screen. A quick check of your own frame prevents surprises in coverage.
Our skirts use an eighty-twenty nylon and spandex knit with a full polyester brief sewn inside. The stretch recovery of the knit keeps the side seam true to the flat pattern length when dry. When the fabric gets wet in the pool, the weight of the water adds a fractional pull to the lower hem. We cut the panels wide enough so the skirt does not bind against the thigh during movement. The flat, wide waistband keeps the garment anchored on your waist without rolling down, so your side seam length remains stable in the water.
Match your tape measure against our side seam charts before choosing a size. A tall torso or short rise will shift where the fabric rests by an inch or two. The wide waistband holds the top edge steady, so your dry side seam measurement stays reliable in the water.
The four with the most notes behind them, one per listing.
We cut our swim bottoms across three distinct constructions. A skirt with an attached brief, a skort with an inner short, and a standalone swim short perform differently in water and on dry.
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A tankini top creeps upward when the body panel lacks the vertical length to clear the bust line and anchor over the hip bone.
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Buying a two piece suit comes down to how your measurements align with our charts. A matched set gives you a coordinated cut in a single order.
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