Thanks ladies. I bought a tankini and two swim skirts. I don't expect to wear them often. I'm not a beach person and am not into swimming, I just wanted something for occasional visits to a pool or beach and for canoeing and maybe trying kayaking. (I realize you're not supposed to get wet when you're in a canoe or kayak but of course sometimes you do anyway.) For now I want to wash everything before I wear it the first time, especially the tankini because I was probably not the only person to try it on in the store. I think I will do that in the washing machine. I have a top-loading machine; I'll put them in last because the clothes on top get agitated less.

I have some tri-tops that I wear for summer cycling because they're made with nice airy mesh fabric. I figured I could wear one with a swim skirt for paddle sports. I currently wash all my cycling clothes with cold water in the washing machine and air dry them, and they don't seem to have suffered for it.

I don't think I saw any suits that were lined in the back. Some bottoms that I saw were lined in the front. And of course they all had padding in the chest, some with molded cups, some with underwires, some with removable padding, some with padding that was not removable but not sewn into place so it moved to the wrong spot when you put the top on. This made the search for a top that fit very difficult -- several fit perfectly except the non-removable molded cups were too big. When I finally found one that fit, in royal blue and orange, there was no bottom to match. I had to go to a different store to get a royal blue skort. It was on sale for a great price and I liked the fit, which was why I bought a second one in navy.