I’ll be honest – I found F**K by accident, half-rolling my eyes at the name. An Italian beachwear label with a rude acronym and a lot of loud prints? I braced myself for style over substance. Then I actually went through the range properly, the way I do before I recommend anything to you, and I ended up buying two pieces for my own summer. So let me save you the scrolling and the second-guessing.
Here’s the thing about beachwear brands. Most of them either do women’s swim beautifully and ignore the men, or they nail the men’s shorts and treat the bikinis as an afterthought. F**K, annoyingly for my scepticism, does both – plus the dresses, shirts and little straw bags that turn a swimsuit into an actual outfit. If you want to browse along as we go, open the full F**K collection here and keep this tab beside it.
The 30-second version
Want bold, printed, unashamedly Italian swim that photographs brilliantly? This is your brand. The prints are the whole personality – lean in, don’t fight them.
Buy early in the season (the best prints vanish), size up if you’re between two, and don’t skip the men’s shorts or the straw accessories – they’re quietly the strongest part of the range.
So who actually are F**K?
Quick context, because the name tells you almost nothing. F**K is an Italian beachwear and streetwear label, and beachwear is clearly where its heart is. Think Riviera colour, confident prints, and cuts designed for people who want to be seen a little. It’s not quiet, minimalist, Scandi swim. It’s the opposite of that, and it knows it.
Why does that matter for you? Because it sets your expectations correctly. You don’t come here for a plain black triangle you’ll wear for a decade. You come for the piece that makes a photo, the one someone asks about on the beach. Once I reframed it that way, the whole range clicked. Have a look at what’s live in the collection right now and you’ll see what I mean instantly.
That last point is the one people miss. A lot of swim brands sell you a bikini and stop. F**K sells you the whole day – the swimsuit, the thing you throw over it, the bag you carry, the shirt he wears to the beach bar. That’s a real advantage when you’re packing light and want everything to talk to each other.
The women’s swim, decoded
Let’s start where most of you will. The women’s range splits, roughly, into three moods: the classic bikini (mix-and-match tops and bottoms), the monokini (a one-piece that still shows plenty of skin through cut-outs), and the fuller-coverage one-piece. They’re not interchangeable, and picking the right family first saves you a lot of faff.
My honest steer? If you’re torn, the monokini is the one I’d send most people toward first. It flatters more body shapes than a triangle bikini, it stays put when you actually swim, and the prints get room to breathe across one continuous piece. The bikinis are lovely too – especially the adjustable and underwire tops if you need real support. Compare the cuts side by side on the F**K women’s swim page before you commit to a family.
| Style | Coverage | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Triangle bikini | Minimal, adjustable | Tanning, a relaxed fit, mixing sizes top to bottom |
| Underwire bikini | Minimal, supportive | Fuller busts who want a bikini that actually holds |
| Monokini | Medium, cut-outs | Swimming, print lovers, a flattering all-rounder |
| Full one-piece | Higher | Active days, boat trips, easy confidence |
One small thing I appreciated: the prints repeat across the range, so you can match a bikini to a cover-up or a pareo without it looking like a costume. That’s a designer’s touch you don’t always get at this price. Ready to pick your print? Start with the women’s swim here.
The men’s side is quietly the best bit
Here’s where F**K genuinely surprised me. The men’s swim shorts are the deepest part of the whole catalogue, and they’re good – proper fabrics, an adjustable waist, lengths that actually differ (there’s a shorter cut and a mid-length, not just one shape in ten colours). If you’ve ever bought your other half a pair of trunks that turned out see-through or shapeless, you’ll get why this matters.
Want the fun answer or the safe one? The printed shorts are the fun answer – bold, holiday-ready, and they pair with the women’s prints for a matching-couple moment if that’s your thing. Browse the printed cuts on the men’s swim shorts page and pick your loudness level.
Prefer something he’ll wear without a second thought? The plain shorts are the safe answer, and they’re just as well made. A clean white or a military green goes with everything, dries fast, and doesn’t scream for attention. That’s the pair that survives past the holiday and becomes a default.
Beyond swimwear – the pieces that surprised me
This is the part I didn’t expect to enjoy. Once you’re past the swim, the range opens into cover-ups, long beach dresses, men’s bowling shirts, pareos and little straw bags – and this is where a swimsuit becomes an outfit. A printed maxi dress over your bikini takes you from the sand to a seafront lunch without a change of clothes.
The men aren’t left out either. A short-sleeve bowling shirt in a matching print is the easiest way for him to look put-together at a beach bar without trying. And the accessories – the straw clutch, the nylon sack, the little wash bags – are the details that make the whole thing feel considered. Swipe through a few of my picks below, then grab yours from the full F**K range.
Swipe to browse the beach pieces →
A swimsuit gets you to the water. The dress, the shirt and the little straw bag are what turn it into an outfit you’ll actually photograph.
Sizing – read this before you buy
Let me save you a return. This is Italian sizing, and Italian swim tends to run a touch smaller and cut a little higher than UK high-street. If you’re between two sizes, or you want fuller coverage on the bottoms, size up – you lose nothing and you gain comfort. The underwire bikini tops are the exception worth getting exactly right, so check the measurements on the product page rather than trusting your usual number.
For the men’s shorts, the adjustable waist gives you some forgiveness, but the length genuinely varies between the short and mid cuts – so read which one you’re adding to basket. And a practical note: swimwear is often non-returnable once worn for hygiene reasons, so get the size decision right the first time. When you’re ready, head to the collection and check the size guides while the range is full.
The honest verdict
What I loved
A genuinely complete beach range for him and her, prints that photograph beautifully, a deep and well-made men’s shorts line, and coordinating cover-ups and bags that make packing easy.
The one catch
The best prints are made in small runs and sell through fast – and the bold aesthetic won’t suit you if you want quiet, minimalist swim. Buy early, and lean into the colour.
So where did I land? I walked in ready to write it off as all name and no substance, and I walked out having bought a monokini and talked myself into a matching pareo. That’s about as honest an endorsement as I give. It’s not the brand for you if your swim taste is understated – the whole point is that it isn’t. But if you want an Italian summer in your suitcase, it delivers exactly that.
My advice: don’t overthink it, but don’t dawdle either. Pick the print that makes you smile, size up if you’re unsure, and get the accessories that pull the look together. The season’s fresh and the range is as full as it gets right now. Start at the F**K collection here and build yourself a summer you’ll actually want to photograph.
