Are you thinking about doing your first ever bikini competition, but have read over and over that it’s so expensive? Have you competed before and found it expensive and are curious about how to cut down the costs? You don’t have to spend hundreds and hundreds of pounds to step on stage and look good! So if you’re looking for some smart tips on how to compete on a budget, you’re in the right place!

Bikini Suit

Buying a bikini will probably be one of the biggest expenses in competing. However, there are several tips we have to be way more cost-effective! 

Number one is creating two looks with the same bikini. You can do this by buying one top and two bottoms. As an example, one with connectors and one without is a great way to make a noticeable difference! 

Secondly, lots of companies will sell you a plain bikini suit. These can still be made to your measurements but cost massively less and mean you can put the crystals on yourself. This is time-consuming, but can make a huge difference in price!

OR consider getting a rental if you know your measurements is another great way to keep the costs down.

Here are some visuals from our pals at Black Ice Bikinis and Georgia Rose Bikinis (who also do rental hires).

Don’t forget that we have our KOMPAK Marketplace where you can pick up quality second-hand bikinis and posing shoes. Lastly, re-use your bikinis ladies! I know we all love the saying “I only wear things once”, but seriously when you’ve spent that much money sometimes you’ve just got to wear the same one again!

Competiton Tan

Getting your tan done for a show will mean having multiple coats, most often the day before. If your show isn’t local to you this can mean you need to book a room in order to make both visits! Applying your own base coat, then doing just the top coat at the venue will save you money on your tan and also mean you won’t have to book a hotel the night before (even more money saved!). This method too means that any mishaps in the night can be fixed by the tanners on the day, so you won’t need to stress about it on show day.

Show Planning/Logistics

While it isn’t always possible, try and find shows as local as possible to you. This means less money spent on travel and hotels, and you may even find it a lot less stressful!

If you need to book a hotel share a hotel room with a friend. Another option is to reach out to someone who you know is competing at that show, especially if you’re competing abroad!

Finishing Touches (shoes, jewellery, make-up and false nails)

If you’re doing multiple shows and you want to change up your look but not your bikini, you can easily change your look with jewellery, hair and make-up. This is a great way to feel different every time without having to spend much more money. 

Jewellery is a great way to tie a whole look together, but if you’re trying to be smart with your pennies then try and go for minimal by selecting the absolute basics (we would recommend earrings, a ring, and a bracelet). It can, however, be a fun way of looking different by buying different jewellery for different shows, which again will be much cheaper in the scheme of things rather than changing a bikini!

Stay away from diamanté shoes if you’re on a budget. that’s easily £30-40 you can be spending elsewhere, it’s an amazing bonus, but it’s not essential, and if you really want some sparkle either go for glitter or slight diamanté style instead!

Doing your own makeup can be a great route to go down. The best thing to do is to head down to a good makeup store and pick up a small tester pot of foundation in a dark shade. This way you don’t buy a whole bottle of orange foundation that you’ll only use a handful of times, and you’ll have a good base to match your skin once your tans on! Have a look at the kind of makeup that you typically see on stage (it’s heavy!!) and practice recreating it on yourself! We would only recommend doing this if you feel 100% confident in doing stage make-up.

False nails are not essential! Not everyone goes all out with nails (me included!). A nice coat of nail varnish will do, which you can apply yourself from home for next to nothing!

There are expenses that you will be able to justify and expenses that you just can't. There will be some aspects you feel comfortable doing yourself and other aspects where you don’t and will want to spend that money. This is something you have to decide on your own. In the end you have to feel great on stage. Just by being more aware and smart about what is essential for you and a reasonable budget for you, might help make the whole process a little less stressful.