Kendall Jenner Starts Her Own Summer Swimwear Trend in a Tiny String Bikini and Beach-Worthy Wrap

The model and reality television star is rejecting the tankini comeback and choosing her own sunbathing look.

Model Kendall Jenner attends the 2024 Met Gala Celebrating "Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion" at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 06, 2024 in New York City.
(Image credit: Getty Images)

Model and reality star Kendall Jenner doesn't always follow the most up-to-date trend. Instead, she decides to set them.

On Saturday, June 15, the famous member of the Jenner-Kardashian clan posted a series of black-and-white photos to her Instagram, highlighting a recent trip to Mallorca featuring her apparent 2024 summertime, swimwear look.

Instead of leaning all the way into the recent resurgence of the tankini—a somewhat surprising fashion comeback that, according to stylist Mickey Freeman was arguably started by Carmen Electra in the ‘90s—Jenner appeared to kick off her own trend, wearing a barely-there string bikini paired with an equally tiny, beach-worthy wrap tied at the lower waist.

Jenner completed the laid-back by giving in a retro twist, wearing a vintage hair scarf and a pair of sunglasses.

Jenner's string bikini was reminiscent of other two-piece suits she has worn in earlier Instagram posts, including one in May featuring a bright-green string bikini. The model paired the reasonably priced and yet stunning Calzedonia removable padding triangle top and bikini bottoms with a simple gold Mega Round Coba bracelet, proving that the minimalist summer girl uniform is beach-friendly, too.

Even in January, long before swimsuit season, Jenner was making a case for the classic string bikini, sharing a carousel of pictures on Instagram featuring the model in a coral Deparel Micro Knitkini, leaving very little to the imagination.

The same month, Jenner shared more photos featuring the model lounging beachside in another handmade Deparel Knitkini, this time in lime green.

While Jenner seems to singlehandedly be setting her own 2024 swimwear trend, the tankini comeback is certainly here to stay.

According to Freeman, who spoke to Marie Claire previously, the tankini has "many positive qualities for women with larger busts, accommodating more top-heavy physiques."

"They also provide extra all-over coverage thanks to their longer tank silhouette and covered bottom, consisting of a brief, pair of shorts, or a skirt," Freeman added at the time. "A considerable draw for people not keen on revealing swimwear."

Everything from minimalist tankinis, to mid-rise, patterned and one-shoulder tankinis, there are a slew of cuts and fabrics to choose from...and as Jenner has shown, the same is true for the iconic string bikini.

Danielle Campoamor
Weekend Editor

Danielle Campoamor is Marie Claire's weekend editor covering all things news, celebrity, politics, culture, live events, and more. In addition, she is an award-winning freelance writer and former NBC journalist with over a decade of digital media experience covering mental health, reproductive justice, abortion access, maternal mortality, gun violence, climate change, politics, celebrity news, culture, online trends, wellness, gender-based violence and other feminist issues. You can find her work in The New York Times, Washington Post, TIME, New York Magazine, CNN, MSNBC, NBC, TODAY, Vogue, Vanity Fair, Harper's Bazaar, Marie Claire, InStyle, Playboy, Teen Vogue, Glamour, The Daily Beast, Mother Jones, Prism, Newsweek, Slate, HuffPost and more. She currently lives in Brooklyn, New York with her husband and their two feral sons. When she is not writing, editing or doom scrolling she enjoys reading, cooking, debating current events and politics, traveling to Seattle to see her dear friends and losing Pokémon battles against her ruthless offspring. You can find her on X, Instagram, Threads, Facebook and all the places.