Georgia May Jagger on Learning to Surf, Beach Style, and Volcom’s New Sustainable Swim Line

Georgia May Jagger might be the quintessential British cool girl, but her style isn’t solely restricted to modish dresses and Chelsea boots. As a newly appointed ambassador for Volcom, the model has found herself incorporating ski, skate, and surf apparel into her everyday wardrobe. And with the brand's launch of Simply Solid Swim, a sustainable swim collection that's made with ECONYL, a fabric spun from recycled fishing nets, she's working bathing suits into her look, too. “I was wearing the eco-swimsuit like a crop top the other day,” she says with a laugh.

As an environmentalist, the collection of bikinis and one-pieces really appealed to Jagger—she’s a member of Project 0, an ocean conservancy group—and as a model with covetable off-duty style and a bombshell body, the range of swimsuits can’t be beat. “My favorite swimsuit is probably the black one-piece,” she says. “If I’m going to swim—just swim—then I’ll wear a one-piece, but if I’m going to go and be in the sun, then I’ll wear a bikini. I’m probably more of a bikini girl, but I think the one-piece is coming back. I think that they’re really flattering actually.”

Becoming the face of a swimsuit collection isn’t just about posing for the camera, though. After shooting the campaign with a group of Volcom surfers in Hawaii, Jagger was keen to try out the sport herself. With the help of Volcom surfer Coco Ho, Jagger set out on the beaches of San Clemente, California. “I was quite nervous!” Jagger says. “I can sort of barely walk down the beach without falling.” Sea legs not withstanding, it seems the model is something of a natural on the board. “I was quite surprised because I got up the first time. I was like, Oh, my God I’m surfing right now,” she says, laughing. “After that, I was quite addicted. They had to, like, drag me out.”

While you won’t find Jagger surfing the England shores any time soon—“too cold!” she proclaims—you might see her in London hanging out with pro-surfer Ho. “She and I have been spending more time together; we sort of had a day of swapping what each other does. I took her out for a really rainy day in London and got her hair dyed purple, and she took me surfing on a beautiful sunny day, which didn't really feel like an equal trade,” says Jagger.

Still, the model admits you don’t need to be a pro to understand the appeal of Volcom’s sustainable new line. “I’ve told a lot of people about the collection already because I think it’s amazing,” she says. “I think it’s really commendable for Volcom to want to do something that’s actually a very good product and stylish—and also it’s good for the world. I think that’s something that more fashion companies need to be doing.”