Birthday Girl Hailey Clauson’s Best Patterned SI Swimsuit Looks Over the Years

The SI Swimsuit legend turns 31 today, March 7, so we’re celebrating in style.

Hailey Clauson was photographed by James Macari in Turks and Caicos. | James Macari/Sports Illustrated

Happy birthday, Hailey Clauson! The SI Swimsuit legend turns 31 today, March 7, and to celebrate, we’re taking a look back at some of our favorite snapshots over the years.

Clauson first joined the SI Swimsuit family as a rookie in 2015. She was photographed by Yu Tsai in Hawai’i. That year, she also posed for a bodypaint feature in the U.S. Virgin Islands. Both were so captivating that the California native was invited back for a second year, and following her shoot in Turks and Caicos, which was captured by James Macari, Clauson earned her spot on the cover of the 2016 SI Swimsuit Issue.

In the years since, Clauson’s work with the brand has taken her to exotic locations like Finland, Indonesia, the Bahamas, Australia, Barbados and the Dominican Republic. And in 2024, Clauson was named a brand legend. She took part in a group photo shoot with fellow icons in Hollywood, Fla., which cemented her second SI Swimsuit cover to date.

Outside of her work with the franchise, Clauson has been featured in a number of notable brand campaigns throughout her career. Calvin Klein, Louis Vuitton and Versace are just a few designer brands whom she has collaborated with, while she’s also appeared on the covers of publications like Marie Claire, Italian Glamour and Vogue Germany.

In addition to modeling in front of the camera, Clauson is creating change behind the scenes, too. She is the co-owner and creative director of a Los Angeles-based boutique modeling agency, Margaux the Agency, where she hopes to make the industry more inclusive.

“ ... I got this opportunity to become a partner of an agency and I thought it was a really unique opportunity, coming from somebody that’s been in the model’s shoes, using all my good and bad experiences with modeling agencies and being a model, kind of bringing that to the agency,” she told SI Swimsuit in 2023. “I really feel like I’m taking my power back in the industry, really making the change that I want to see.”

She later added, “My role is mentoring these models and teaching them how to take advantage of [their] opportunities. This is really a stepping stone to so many more things, so I really want these boys and girls and people to know that they have so much more to offer.”

Below, in honor of Clauson’s big day, we’re throwing it back to a few of our favorite patterned swimsuits—from colorblocking to animal print—that she’s worn on location in recent years.

Hailey Clauson was photographed by James Macari in the Dominican Republic. Swimsuit by HAUS OF PINKLEMONAID. Bracelets by Alexis Bittar. | James Macari/Sports Illustrated

Hailey Clauson was photographed by James Macari in the Dominican Republic. Swimsuit by Matthew Bruch. | James Macari/Sports Illustrated

Hailey Clauson was photographed by James Macari in the Dominican Republic. Swimsuit by Mara Hoffman. | James Macari/Sports Illustrated

Hailey Clauson was photographed by Josie Clough on Kangaroo Island, South Australia. Swimsuit by I.AM.GIA. | Josie Clough/Sports Illustrated

Hailey Clauson was photographed by Ben Watts in the Bahamas. Swimsuit by Ola Vida. | Ben Watts/Sports Illustrated

Hailey Clauson was photograped by Josie Clough on Kangaroo Island, South Australia. Swimsuit by I.AM.GIA | Josie Clough/Sports Illustrated