Anne Cole, the California-based swimsuit designer, admits that there are "worse things in life than fitting rooms - I just can't think of what they are."

In parting, I thought about what Anne Cole tells her customers before they go bathing suit shopping: "I suggest a dry martini."

His first designs, produced in 1980, were the ultimate in minimalism: sleek swimsuits for Anne Cole in Los Angeles.

"Everybody wants to get into the act - it's a fun business," said Anne Cole, who was born into it: her father founded Cole of California.

"We started this year to put soft cups back into our suits," said Anne Cole, whose suits have been unconstructed.

Anne Cole began building her reputation as a producer of elegant swimsuits when she opened her business in 1982.

(The Cole name has been associated with swimsuits since Cole of California was founded in 1925 by Anne Cole's father, Fred.)

The other shows were considerably more modest, in line with what Anne Cole called her austerity program.

In 1910, he fell in love with Anne Cole, a distant relative by marriage, and the following year married her.

Last month it bought three other sepia-tinted names in swimwear: Catalina, Cole, and Anne Cole.