The 2017 Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue is turning heads this year, not only for women representing the traditional or old-fashioned definition of sexy, but because they are allowing ads that show a woman with a body you don’t normally see in their magazine. An ad for Lane Bryant plus-sized swim wear shows a model flaunting an un-retouched body and stretch marks. Lane Bryant is committed to showing women in a real, positive light.
Lane Bryant’s Cacique swim line is being featured in Sports Illustrated’s swimsuit issue for the second year in a row. This year’s star in their ad is model Denise Bidot.
Denis explains what the ad means to her: “The fact that women will be able to pick up Sports Illustrated, which has forever been an issue where, sometimes unrealistic standards are met, and even the curvy girls are retouched — I’m so proud to be a part of this change in our industry.”
In the video below Denise explains how she finally came to embrace her stretch marks: “I was finally allowed freedom to be myself and to share my body the way it was, with the imperfections, with the cellulite, with the stretch marks. And – I dug it.”
In 2015, Sports Illustrated made waves for publishing an ad with a plus-sized model for the first time in its long history. Ashley Graham was the model and fans loved her so much that she became the cover model for the 2016 Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue.
It’s a breath of fresh air that media, including television, movies and magazines, are becoming more inclusive of women of different sizes and shapes. We are finally appreciating “real” bodies and allowing ourselves to celebrate our own bodies.
