Australian beaches are a sea of bums.

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We need to talk about the humble tog. Because in 2025, it's looking a little different.

In case you missed it, the ultra-tiny bikini trend has positively exploded in recent years, with micro and 'naked' designs popping up everywhere on Australian beaches.

It seems everyone has an opinion about the micro-bikini trend. Specifically, G-string bikini bottoms.

Watch: We tried... *those* bikini bottoms and it went almost exactly as you'd expect. Post continues below.

As seen on runways around the world, swimwear designers are embracing everything Y2K fashion (spaghetti straps! crochet everything! flower-shaped rosettes! visible g-strings!), and solidifying one very clear mantra: "less is more."

We're talking about those 'minimal' ultra-tiny cossies that show off everything from bums to underboobs.

The micro bikini trend is all about feeling confident in your own skin. More freedom. Less f**ks.

Because Gen Z doesn't care what you think. As a wise woman (*cough* Florence Pugh) once said, "How can my nipples offend you that much?"

And really, it's 2025, you should be able to wear whatever the hell you want.

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A post shared by ABBIE CHATFIELD (@abbiechatfield)

Do micro bikinis fare against dumping waves? Unsure.

What about the sand? Cannot confirm.

Are they popular? Hell yeah.

So popular, in fact, Australian beaches are now a sea of bums (and those viral cabanas). But some people want to put a stop to it.

Yes! Truly.

Because apparently, we're still policing what women wear.

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A post shared by Tammy Zukowski 🐚 (@tammyhembrow)

Earlier this year, a local council came under fire for its stance on what's considered 'inappropriate' swimwear at its swim centres.

Blue Mountains Leisure Centres (BMLC), part of Blue Mountains City Council, shared the conditions of entry to various swim centres, including Katoomba Sports and Aquatic Centre, Springwood Aquatic and Fitness Centre, Blackheath Pool and Glenbrook Swim Centre.

The posters featured images of swimwear, outlining what would be considered appropriate.

After confusion from visitors, BMLC confirmed in a since-deleted Facebook post: "Thongs and G-string swimwear is not acceptable for males or females when visiting our leisure centres," adding that "bikinis are acceptable and considered recognised swimwear".

Cue: National outrage.

Image: Blue Mountains Leisure Centres (BMLC) Facebook page.

Australian model Jess King slammed the council's decision, sharing on Instagram Stories, "Such a ban implies that the human body – specifically the bum, (which we all have!!) – is inherently inappropriate or sexualised, reinforcing shame rather than promoting acceptance."

Hear, hear.

Speaking of Jess King, check out her episode on You Beauty's The Formula. Post continues below.

The hosts of The Project also shared their thoughts on the controversial call, with Sarah Harris and Georgie Tunny agreeing the ban was ridiculous.

"I just don't care what people are wearing," Tunny said.

"If they feel confident enough to wear that, then I am happy for them to do it."

Harris shared: "I wish I could wear them. My bum looks like a garbage bag filled with cottage cheese. If you've got it, flaunt it."

Honestly, same.

Commenting on the now-deleted Facebook post, people slammed the council's condition of entry, calling it "disgusting" and outrageous".

One person wrote: "So long as practicality and safety are considered, it shouldn't be anyone else's business what I'm comfortable swimming in."

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A post shared by Frankies (@frankiesbikinis)

Early last year, a Gold Coast man ignited a similar debate, calling for a ban on G-string bikinis on Australian beaches, with people branding his comments "shocking" and "sexist".

Ian Grace, the founder of a youth charity, called for Gold Coast Mayor Tom Tate to put a stop to women wearing revealing swimwear in a letter published by the Gold Coast Bulletin.

The 2022 Gold Coast Volunteer of the Year said the bikini trend made him feel "uncomfortable", claiming that women are "sending the wrong message".

"While any man would enjoy 'the view', I believe women are very much demeaning and cheapening themselves, portraying themselves as sex objects, then decrying it when men see them that way," Grace wrote.

"Bare bums can be seen to be every bit as erotic if not more so, than women’s bare breasts — so would it not make sense they are banned identically? If not banned at the beach, very definitely banned the moment they are off the beach.

"This certainly should not be allowed in public pools or theme/water parks which are very much more family-oriented. Young kids don’t need to see women’s bums."

Itsy bitsy is in. Image: Instagram/karinairby.

According to The Project, Mayor Tate has responded to the ban on G-strings, rejecting the notion of restricting women's fashion choices.

"Ian is a brave man messing with women's fashion," he said. "One thing I've learnt about fashion over the years is that if you try to ban something, or restrict it, that's a certain recipe to see it double in popularity."

So, why exactly are we all so obsessed with G-strings? Academics have a few different theories.

As dress and design historian Amber Butchart put it: "Swimwear's close relationship with the body means it reflects changing attitudes to modesty, morality and public display."

Butchart curated an exhibition of swimming and style at the Design Museum in London earlier this year, saying swimwear has long been used as an excuse to police women's bodies.

"This has ranged from arresting women for wearing too little in 1910s and 20s America, to fining women for wearing too much with the 'burkini ban' in France from 2016," she said.

Elsewhere, she added: "From the 18th century, bathing machines were used to protect sea dippers from prying eyes. But throughout the 20th century, a number of boundary-pushing designs challenged previous ideas of decency while also courting controversy."

Butchart isn't alone in her thinking.

"It reflects changing attitudes to modesty, morality and public display." Image: Getty.

Speaking to The Guardian, University of Southampton fashion associate professor Shaun Cole suggested we've all moved into another age of body consciousness that's more expressive.

"People are saying: 'It's my body and I can show it off in ways that I choose to, and if that involves wearing clothing that is sometimes deemed socially unacceptable, then I'm going to do that'," he said.

Cole also offered another explanation, saying more people choosing to wear less could be linked to what's been called "the 'pornification' of culture and style", citing an idea put forward by fashion historian Pamela Church Gibson.

"There's an acceptance of that style without people really realising where it originated," Cole said, referencing the popularity of shows such as Love Island.

We're in a more expressive age of body consciousness, Cole says. Image: Getty.

Meanwhile, historian Natalia Mehlman Petrzela, author of Fit Nation, suggested the popularity of G-string bikinis could be linked to a societal desire to show off efforts at the gym.

"A kind of exhibitionist creep in which the butt is one of the last frontiers that had remained mostly covered in public, and a greater cultural acceptance of a range of different body types," she told the publication.

"The low-slung jeans of the early 2000s were certainly correlated with the age when flat abs workouts were all the rage."

What are your thoughts on the call to ban G-string bikinis? Share your thoughts with us in the comment section below.

Feature image: Getty.

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