The curious case of the bizarre facekini strikes again! In case you don’t remember, it’s a nylon mask that covers the entire head, leaving holes only for the eyes, nostrils and mouth. The Chinese invention is meant to be used as beachwear, protecting wearers (mostly women) from sunburns and jellyfish stings. It first made an appearance in 2006, and the present “fourth-generation”avatar has managed to enter new levels of weirdness!

　　碉堡的“脸基尼”又来了!要是你忘了那是什么，先来科普一下：脸基尼是一种把头部全包起来的尼龙面罩，只在眼睛、鼻孔、嘴巴处留几个小洞。这种中国发明旨在用于沙滩穿戴，防止戴面罩者(大多数是女性)被太阳晒伤或被海蜇刺伤。它于2006年问世，如今推出“第四代”产品，终于又怪出了新境界!

　　Although it has been around for almost a decade, the facekini gained popularity in the past few years, especially among middle-aged Chinese women. Fair skin is highly coveted in China: they even have an old saying that translates as “white skin covers up a hundred flaws”. Women apparently follow elaborate beauty routines to ensure that their skin does not get tanned, so their obsession with the facekini is rather understandable. Some women even go as far as wearing full-body swimsuits and useparasols while walking outdoors.

　　尽管脸基尼已经有近十年历史，过去几年它还是相当流行，尤其为中国大妈所爱。白皙的皮肤在中国备受推崇：他们甚至有句俗语“一白遮百丑”。女人们会遵循详尽的美容程序以确保皮肤不会晒黑，所以她们如此迷恋脸基尼也就不足为奇了。有的女人甚至会穿全身泳衣，在户外行走时还会打太阳伞。

　　The latest version of the beach accessory was released by designer Zhang Shifan at the 13th International Marine Fair and Boat Show in Shandong province last week. She explained that the craftsmanship of the first-generation facekini was rather rough and did not fit the face too well. The second version fit better, while the third generation had a triangle design at the top to make it more comfortable. The current facekini has been created by optimising the design of Beijing Opera masks, giving it a ‘Chinese-style’flare and fine triangle-tailoring.

　　上个星期，脸基尼设计师张式范在山东青岛第十三届国际航海博览会上发布了这款最新版海滩配饰。她解释说第一代脸基尼做工比较粗糙，贴合性不好;第二代贴合性好一些;第三代采用了头顶三角形剪裁，穿戴起来更舒适;现在的脸基尼则优化了京剧脸谱设计，融入了“中国风”元素，并运用了细致的三角剪裁。

　　According to Zhang, the latest, greatest facekini is in its trial run, and will be mass produced in July. Would you like to try one?

　　张式范说，最新一代也是最好的一代脸基尼目前还在试用阶段，将于七月批量生产。你想不想来一副呢?

（编辑：何莹莹）