bikinis

>> With swimwear on our mind, we rounded up our favorite bikinis of the season. Think marbled prints from Seventh Wonderland, sexy string renditions from Missoni, a chic nautical creation from By Malene Birger . . . and more two-piece swim inspiration in the slideshow!

We always find an excuse to invest in a fantastic bikini every Summer, and this season, H&M has given us a load of cute options to make our yearly expenditure a little more guilt-free. With swimwear ranging around $15 per piece, there's enough wiggle room in your wallet show to show off more than one option on the beach. We're contemplating nabbing this exotic print bikini, and even a sexy, solid one-piece confection. Click the slideshow to check out all of H&M's offerings, then head to the nearest location near you and start trying on!

We love the curves and gap-toothed beauty of Lara Stone, so we're thrilled to see her modeling the season's swim in this sexy, glowing story shot by Mario Testino for Vogue. It's filled with luscious swimsuits, a couple of hot guy model cameos, a sunny Rio de Janeiro backdrop, and references to Brigitte Bardot's sex kitten appeal. If you weren't psyched for Summer already, click through these pictures and we promise you will be.

>> It's a day like today — which requires trudging through slush — when our minds are driven to dream of someplace warmer. Mara Hoffman's swimwear, with its cool prints and genius cuts, isn't quelling those thoughts. For Spring 2011, the designer drew influence from Africa, using mud-cloth and batik prints to create a colorful display of bikinis, swimsuits, and cover-ups. Check out the complete lookbook, which includes new silhouettes like a ruffle bustier bikini and beaded string bikini, for more warm weather musings.

Outside a heavy wet snow fell, but inside American Eagle's New York showroom it felt like a beach in Costa Rica, complete with cute guys serving breakfast burritos. AE debuted its Summer collection with the theme "Take the new path," which we interpreted to mean the shortest path to the beach in some faraway place. It was a global-minded collection of casual, beachy separates and ethnic-inspired accessories. Embroidered peasant tops, baja knits, and sundresses are meant to be thrown over your bikini and layered with beaded necklaces, while your brightly woven bag will be filled with a wide-brim hat and a cute pair of espadrilles with a floral tie. We love the recurring global theme for Spring! Mark your calendars: the collection will hit stores beginning in April.

Ask me what I just spent the last hour doing? Flipping through the submissions for Roxy's Design a Bikini Contest that I'm helping judge. It's a tough life. Here are a bunch of submits I can see myself surfing, volleyballing, and chilling in at the beach. There's still time to enter your own designs — the contest ends July 31 — so get bikini designing! Check out all the fun entries, but this one, titled Cool Caribbean, had me at the sexy cutouts, and I like how the designer made a print out of the Roxy emblem. Neon surf! Flip through for more Roxy prospects . . .