Model and Entrepreneur Lori Harvey to Appear in 2024 SI Swimsuit Issue
Model and entrepreneur Lori Harvey is a mogul in the making. Mere months after launching her own swimsuit and resort wear brand,
Yevrah Swim, with Revolve, she found herself on location with the SI Swimsuit team in Mexico, where she had the incredible opportunity to model some pieces from her own line for the 2024 issue.
“Lori Harvey embodies the essence of empowerment with her unwavering authenticity,” says editor in chief, MJ Day. “A trailblazer in both fashion and beauty, she exudes confidence, proving that dedication, creativity and fearlessness are the driving force behind building an extraordinary legacy. We couldn’t be more excited to announce Lori as a rookie for the 60th anniversary issue contributing to the ongoing evolution of our brand as we continue to leave an indelible mark on the world of fashion and media. We remain unwavering in our commitment to delivering the milestone issue in May."
Harvey, who started modeling when she was 3, was featured on the January/February 2023 cover of Essence, and has collaborated with notable companies like Valentino, Burberry and Chanel as a brand ambassador. In May, she’ll make her SI Swimsuit magazine debut.
The 27-year-old charted her way to the forthcoming 60th anniversary publication by writing down her goal of working with the SI Swimsuit franchise and picturing it with the help of a vision board. After she traveled to Mexico with photographer Yu Tsai for her rookie feature, the SKN by LH founder chatted about all things swimwear, her photo shoot and more.
“It was definitely a dream come true”
After getting only four hours of sleep, Harvey was up at 4:30 a.m. to head to hair and makeup, arriving on set just in time to see the sun rise. She describes feeling a little anxious when she first woke up, but as soon as she walked on set, Harvey says those jitters instantly turned into elation over what was to come.
“I just immediately got so excited and was smiling from ear to ear,” she explains. “I was ready to get in the first look, and the first look that we shot in actually was Yevrah Swim, so it really just set the tone for the day.”
Harvey wore her brand’s
Ibiza Wrap Bikini Top($59) and matching
Ibiza Wrap Bikini Bottom($63) for her initial shots. Outside of her own pieces, Harvey says her favorite looks included a silver Dolce & Gabbana bikini and a baby-blue GCDS two-piece.
“It was definitely a dream come true,” Harvey says of her experience on set. “I would say the three words that I would use to describe it would be manifested, surreal and perfection because it was literally a moment that I manifested. It was a very surreal moment for me, and the entire shoot was just perfection from top to bottom ... [and] once I got on set, it was just magical.”
As it turns out, this wasn’t the first time she had collaborated with Yu Tsai, whose work has been a staple in the Swimsuit Issue since 2014.
“It was such a full-circle moment,” Harvey says of their reunion. “The first time I shot with Yu Tsai, I was super young, had braces ... and I was shooting with my family. So being able to connect with him again for something as major as this was really, really special.”
“I’m all about body positivity and inclusion”
Harvey says that when she was creating the Yevrah Swim brand, she was dreaming of posing for the SI Swimsuit Issue in her own line. She made her goal a quick reality, as she launched the brand last August and traveled to Mexico to pose for the annual magazine just four months later.
“I get to see and experience so many different cultures, and see so many beautiful women with all different skin tones and body types,” Harvey says of her frequent travels. “And so I drew a lot of inspiration from that, and also different shapes and designs from different fashion pieces that make me feel good and confident and sexy. All those things kind of helped me bring Yevrah Swim to life.”
Harvey launched her five-step everyday skincare brand, SKN by LH, in October 2021. The line, which she created to address her own struggles with rosacea, sold out immediately. Creating a swim brand of her own was always in the cards, Harvey says, due to her love of the water, fashion and travel.
“I created this brand from the ground up by myself, I designed everything myself, I picked the fabric, I picked the colorway,” Harvey says of Yevrah Swim. “I’m all about body positivity and inclusion, and I really wanted that to translate when I was creating the brand.”
While Yevrah Swim’s initial collection is currently
available at Revolve, Harvey is hard at work on her next line, which will drop this spring on her brand’s official website.
“With each collection, each one will feel new and different from the last and it’ll really showcase where I’m at creatively in that moment,” she explains. “But inclusivity will always be embedded through every collection.”
“Look in the mirror and tell yourself how beautiful you are”
Harvey notes that since the SI Swimsuit brand is known for being inclusive and empowering, working with the franchise was in perfect alignment with her own values.
“I hope [others] feel empowered, I hope they feel confident, I hope they feel comfortable in their skin,” Harvey says of how she aspires to influence others through her 2024 SI Swimsuit Issue feature. “I hope my message and what I stand for about inclusion and body positivity and just being your own woman and going after your dreams and manifestation and prayer [is evident]. All of that is real, and I hope they feel that and see that when they see my images.”
And for anyone who is currently struggling to feel comfortable in their own skin, Harvey has a message to share.
“Look in the mirror and tell yourself how beautiful you are, how much you love yourself. … [I am] mindful about how I speak to myself and how I think about myself,” Harvey shares. “I think a lot of times we can kind of get caught up in nitpicking little things about ourselves, whether it’s how our hair looks or maybe you have a pimple that day or maybe you’re bloated or whatever it is or a stretch mark, and we’ll kind of nitpick at that and talk about it in a negative sense. Our words are so powerful and so just speaking about yourself positively, even if you don’t necessarily feel that in that moment, the more you do it, the more you’ll start to feel it and believe it and really embody that confidence and just carry that with you throughout the day and throughout life.”