On September 3, Kitty and Vibe, the size-inclusive swimsuit brand, announced a six-piece collaborative collection with plus-size model and activist Clémentine Desseaux — just in time for the last long weekend of summer.
Cameron Armstrong founded Kitty and Vibe in 2018 with a mission to alleviate the stress of swimsuit shopping for women. “From the product fit to the try-on experience, from the exclusive campaigns to overpriced products, I often heard — and also felt myself — how swimsuit shopping was agonizing for women,” she says. “I set out to develop a brand that felt like a friend.” To do so, she came up with an entirely new process that determines your size according to hip and butt measurements. She also features women of all sizes in Kitty and Vibe imagery, ensuring that every woman sees herself when shopping for a swimsuit. Now, Armstrong is adding Desseaux who, in addition to being a model, is the founder and CEO of the All Womxn Project, a nonprofit that supports womxn nationwide.
“I first saw Clémentine in an Outdoor Voices campaign when I was beginning to develop Kitty and Vibe,” Armstrong says. “I was struck by her fierceness, yet approachability, and I dreamed of collaborating with her one day. The dream was to create our first ‘vibe’ that was based off of a real human, so the product truly did feel like a friend. Clém was the perfect fit.” About Kitty and Vibe, Desseaux says that she’s always loved the brand’s dedication to body diversity and representation, “as well as their Photoshop-free policy,” she tells me. “It fits everything that I am standing for, so it made sense to collaborate with them and include The All Womxn Project as well.”
The collection, which is titled The Clém Vibes, includes six bikini silhouettes, each of which was designed in collaboration with Desseaux. Inspired by the jungles of Brazil, where Desseaux vacationed last year, the collection is full of vibrant colors and patterns. “The dueling vibes [of the two colorways] are supposed to feel like your sun and moon signs,” Armstrong says. “Sun (Soleil) being your outer appearance and how you present yourself to the world. Moon (Lune) being your more emotional, personal side, and who you are with yourself.” Each colorway is available in three top options — a bandeau top, an underwire top, and a plunge top, which are all priced at $50 — and three bottom options — in cheeky, high-hip, and high-waisted styles, which are each $45.
The Clém Vibes collection also marks Kitty and Vibe’s first-ever collection made using recycled materials. “I’ve been working with our manufacturer for a few years to find recycled fibers that would match the comfortability of normal fabric in touch, feel, and elasticity,” Armstrong says. Her next goal for the brand is to reduce its single-use plastic in packaging and “make all elements of your Kitty orders recyclable by 2022.”
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