Modesty - Let's get to the crotch of it.

Swimsuit 1915.  Image from "The Swimsuit" by S. Kennedy.

"Modesty: The gentle art of enhancing your charm by pretending not to be aware of it." 

by Oliver Herford.

Modesty...

Culturally this means different things in different countries. It also means different things to different ages groups.

The opposite to modesty is exposure.  Dressing immodesty is too much skin being shown.


If we look at the traditional dress of Indian woman. It is a Saree.  A Saree is a long piece of fabric wrapped around the body. It ranges from four to nine yards in length that is draped over the body in various styles. The most common style is for the sari to be wrapped around the waist, with one end then draped over the shoulder, baring the midriff. The sari is usually worn over a a petticoat with a blouse. The blouse has short sleeves and a low neck and is usually cropped at the midriff.

http://www.utsavfashion.com

Banarasi Sari

Woven out of fine silk and bearing elaborate golden embroidery either along the border or all over, the famous Varanasi sari made in the holy city of Banaras in Uttar Pradesh state since the ancient times is ranked among the finest traditional sarees of India. These saris are quite heavy due to its rich embroidery and are donned by Indian women only during special occasions like wedding, parties and festivities. Most ladies wear heavy gold jewellery to complement the Banarasi sari.

Back to Modesty...

Culturally it is okay to show the midriff in Inidan culture.  I personally find this to be too much skin or maybe I should say the wrong type of skin showing...  So I guess modesty is tied into our cultural, social, religious, family and personal beliefs, and what we deem to be beautiful and acceptable.

Here are some images of different modest swimsuit I came across.

The modestkini for young girls.
Looks very much like the swimsuits worn in 1915.

http://www.burkini.com