The Bikini
Today, we celebrate the anniversary of the bikini being introduced to the world. It has a checkered and interesting history.
In France in 1946, Louis Reard, an engineer who was running his mother's lingerie store, introduced the bikini and billed it as "the smallest bikini in the world." As the first bathing suit to9 expose the navel, the bikini was considered so risque, that Reard could only get strippers to model them. Needless to say, the modern bikini was not an immediate financial success for Reard, so he went back to selling less revealing clothing and undergarments.
By the 1950s, the bikini had gradually become wildly popular. Life Magazine had done several spreads of wholesome women wearing bikinis and Hollywood actresses like Ester Williams, Brigitte Bardot, Betty Grable and of course Marilyn Monroe.
Save for some anti-kini sentiment in the 1970s by some feminist groups, the bikini has since sailed smoothly into our culture and our wardrobes.
Grab Your Bikini and Work it!
No comments:
Post a Comment