Step One: Put on a bikini.

Step Two: That's it.

Yes, really.

Women are surrounded by images in the media that show "perfect bikini bodies." These pictures are edited, photoshopped, and so far from how women really look. Aerie is trying to change all that. With their campaign, Aerie Real, the company strives to photograph models with, "no retouching, body positivity, and girl power." Of course, there's always room for improvement, but one click through their website and you can see that they're making a step to strive for real change. Honestly, some of their models look more real than anything I've seen on my instagram feed. Comparing their models to that of Victoria Secret or other women's clothing sites, the difference is astounding. Neither set of models are better or prettier than the others, but Aerie recognizes that it's important to include models of all shapes and sizes because that's how real women are.

The most impactful part of Aerie's campaign is not the sizes of their models though, it's their refusal to use photo editing in their pictures. Some of their models have stretch marks and blemishes on their faces. Their hair isn't all shining and perfectly styled. These women genuinely look like normal people. Rather than exclusively, sexily laying in the sand, these models *gasp* sit in bathing suits, stomach rolls and all. These natural shots don't align with the standard of beauty, but they encourage women to be sexy in their own, unedited skin. Some may claim that the models' bodies have "imperfections," but Aerie does not. The campaign as a whole encourages women to be their natural, powerful, beautiful, sexy selves with no regards to their size or being "perfect."

So, take a pointer from Aerie and rock that bathing suit. Be the real you. Be #AerieREAL.

For examples of Aerie's campaign, see the following links.

Website: https://www.ae.com/featured-aeriereal/aerie/s-cms/...

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