[!marianne-mccrea-mcclain-canadiana-fabric-modeled-by-yvonne-de-carlo-ca-1945.jpgPhoto: Allan Collier Collection](http://canadiandesignresource.ca/wp-content/uploads/2009/02/marianne-mccrea-mcclain-canadiana-fabric-modeled-by-yvonne-de-carlo-ca-1945.jpg) In the 1930s, when bathing suits were made of heavy water-absorbing wool, Rose Marie Reid famously cut up a water-resistant ‘duck coat’ and invented the modern swim suit. By 1946, Reid’s suits accounted for half of all swimsuit sales in Canada. The flattering fit of her suits soon attracted Hollywood starlets such as Rita Hayworth and Marilyn Monroe, making Reid a household name (prompting her to move the company to California in 1951). Designed in the Vancouver days, this suit features [“Canadiana” fabric, designed by fellow Vancouver designer Marianne McCrea McClain](http://canadiandesignresource.ca/?p=5896) and is modeled by Yvonne de Carlo (also of Vancouver).