Handmade Doesn’t Have to be Expensive

Image Courtesy: Instagram

I’ve always been a beach girl. As far as I can remember, my summers consisted of beach days and endless hours in the ocean. When I moved to Florida, I fully immersed myself into the surfer girly/beach junkie lifestyle, and I found myself wearing swimsuits more days than I wore normal clothes.  

Here’s the problem: the swimsuit market is robbing us blind.

I found myself constantly wanting new bikinis but was unable to afford them. However, when I could afford them, I had to deal with the massive guilt that came after spending hundreds of dollars on a bathing suit from a corporate company with disappointing quality. Then, I met Lexie.

Lexie Johns is a local Boca Raton resident who owns and operates her bathing suit company, ‘Soul Creations.’ She started ‘Soul Creations’ a little over a year ago, feeling the same way I did.

“I couldn’t afford bathing suits anymore, and finding a bathing suit that would actually stay on after being in the water was impossible,” Johns said. “I was looking at the price of bathing suits, and I had an idea. For the price of a bathing suit, I could buy a sewing machine and learn how to make my own bathing suits!”

From there, Lexie’s bathing suits started to gain popularity. Friends were asking her to make ones for themselves, and more people continued to ask if she would start selling them, so she did. Lexie’s bathing suits go for around $65 a set (significantly cheaper than most of the market), depending on the style and design. Each bathing suit is fully reversible and handmade from start to finish.

“It drives me crazy what these companies charge for bikinis, especially now that I’m in the business and know what the costs are like,” says Johns. “If people were to know the actual price of what it costs to make those bathing suits versus how much the companies are making, they would be astonished. You’re pretty much just getting robbed, not to mention supporting companies who may use unethical or unsustainable labor practices.”

Not only are Lexie’s products cost friendly, but they are also handmade and sustainably sourced. Lexie does all the shopping, design, manufacturing, and marketing herself. Even the models she uses are local girls with a similar passion.

“I keep my costs so low because, in my heart, I take the price cut of making an abundance of money off of this just so I can provide reasonably priced things—I know there are people out there experiencing the same thing I did and not being able to afford new bathing suits, so I want to be able to give people that option of buying something they can actually afford,” says Johns. “I’m not in it to become a millionaire,” she added, “just because I can charge more doesn’t mean I want to.”

Lexie’s bathing suits come in a wide variety, from modest to minimal coverage bikinis, one piece, and my favorite: surf sets. As a surfer herself, Lexie wanted to create suits that were cute, comfortable, and durable in the water. Her designs offer a unique and refreshing addition to your beach essentials.

“I try not to follow the trends because when you do that, you become just like every other bikini company,” says Lexie. “I always try to stay authentic and true to myself. When I go pick out fabrics and patterns, I don’t look for what’s trending or what everybody else likes. I look for uniqueness.”

“It’s hard, and it can get lonely,” Lexie said when asked how she manages running a business by herself while balancing her personal life. “Having the sense of freedom to work when I want keeps me going. It’s hard to even call it work because I love what I do.”

A big part of what Lexie loves so much about her company is the involvement with the local community.

“Markets and going out in your local community is where you will get the most support from. Going to markets is probably my favorite thing about all of this, I love meeting everybody, and the feedback I receive makes me smile all day.”

If you’re sick of paying ridiculous prices for cute bikinis, be sure to check out Soul Creations. Even if you’re not shopping for yourself, her bikinis make a great gift for the surfer girl or beach lover in your life.

You can find Lexie’s creations on her website and on her Instagram @s0ulcreati0ns

Lexie will also be at these upcoming markets:

Feb. 5th Coco Market, Veterans Park in Delray

Feb. 10th District Art Walk, Design District in Delray

Feb. 25th The Seed pop up, Yamato location Boca Raton

Feb 26th Kindness Matters Wellness Fest, Old times square in Delray

Strike out,

Haley Dockendorff 

Strike Magazine Boca

Haley Dockendorff is a Content Writer for Strike Magazine Boca. Loud and proud, this Virgo loves writing just about anything that will cause a bit of commotion. If you can’t find her, she’s probably somewhere on a beach with a camera in hand. 

You can reach her at haleydockendorff143@gmail.com