SWIMWEAR Two-piece suits sizzle at beaches this season

Flashy colors, jewels and intricate details accent hot, new swimwear.
KNIGHT RIDDER NEWSPAPERS
MIAMI -- Some things never change. Skin is still in.
So when you gals set out on your shopping excursion for this summer's hottest bathing suits, chuck the pareo.
"The two-piece is really taking over," says Rod Beattie, the Los Angeles-based designer of celeb-heavy swimwear lines La Blanca and edgier Playa by La Blanca (which debuted this year). The forerunners: string bikinis, tankinis (bikini bottoms worn with a tank top) and low-rise, boy-leg shorts paired with any top -- bandeau, halter, sash -- you see fit.
Believe it or not, this is cause for celebration. Boy shorts can nicely hide problem UTLC (upper-thigh/lower-cheek) zones; tankinis are often constructed with built-in bra support. As for the string bikinis, you're on your own there.
Another trend, is that pieces are sold as separates so you can go on mixing-and-matching frenzies -- and give the illusion of owning more suits than you actually do. Plus, no one has to know if the top is a size 6 and the bottom a 10 (Anne Cole at department stores and J. Crew, www.jcrew.com, are just two of many companies that let you buy differently sized separates).
As for the maillot, it isn't exactly dead, just no longer NC-17. Peek-a-boo cut-outs bare tummies, flash sides and do wonders for cleavage.
Attract attention
This summer, it's anything to get noticed. Get it?
Colors follow the cue. You'll see a zippy rainbow of a palette -- from honeydew greens, punchy yellows, fire-engine reds and -- like spring and summer fashions -- pink, pink, pink.
"Pink is blowing out the door," acknowledges Jodi Randolph, head designer for Venus USA swimwear in Jacksonville, Fla. "Every single hue of it is out there -- from bubble-gum pink to pastel pink and hot fuchsia."
To balance out the hottest shade since black, pink is being paired up with neutrals like chocolate and camel. "You wouldn't think at first that the two go together," says Randolph, "but it's very fresh and bright."
And "edgy," agrees Beattie, who is quite proud of his Psychedelic Shack Pucci-esque print. Other hip graphics include quarter-size polka dots, rugby stripes, preppy paisleys and landscape scenes with hibiscus flowers and an object we can all relate to: palm trees.
Something else you might like -- the most sizzling color of them all: orange.
Says Beattie: "Orange is hot! I just bought an Audi TT orange car."
Your boyfriend might have even noticed the trend in February's Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue. Daniela Pestova was shot in "the" summer suit -- a papaya Playa By La Blanca Cruise 2004 triangle halter top and hipster military-style belted bikini bottom with grommets.
Eye-catching details
Talk about doable. Some suits out right now are so fancy they don't even look like they should come within an inch of a grain of sand.
Banana Republic is selling a Sunkist-y bikini bottom with a ruched-keyhole tube top, which could easily be worn with jeans post-beach. Michael Kors recently sent a young lovely down the runway in an orange one-piece with clear elastic criss-cross straps, gold detailing and a studded belt that could have just as easily been around the waist of an Academy Award nominee's gown.
Excitement has arrived in the form of belts, rings and hardware.
The recently opened Raleigh Boutique in Miami carries one- and two-piecers by such high-end labels as Eres, Versace Sport and Ashley Paige. But Missoni suits jazzed up with cool trinkets is what the shoppers are most going crazy for, says sales associate Francine Cadogan. Topping the hot list: the Cadice, a wildly colorful swirling print bikini whose drop bottom is held together with tortoise-shell discs and the Panarea, a pinkish cutout suit adorned with sequins.
Venus USA came out with an always-looks-amazing-with-a-tan white, scoop-topped two-piece that gets its glitter from Swarovski crystals.