The New Perfection

You would have to have had pretty bad internet connection all year round to not know about the world famous "thigh gap". It's the desire of teenage girls everywhere who feel the need to change their body shapes in order to conform with what we as a society now consider to be "beautiful". An expanse of negative matter between the thighs that is entirely unattainable for, yet remains on the wishlists of, various females brainwashed with help from Tumblr and Twitter. But it seems that the days of the thigh gap may be coming to a close or perhaps will be gaining a partner in the form of 2014's new "body trend" - The Bikini Bridge. Yes, it is as ridiculous as it sounds. 

Apparently, the new take on body perfection is having a small waist along with hip bones that are prominent enough for bikini bottoms to be suspended between them. 

Various pictures, including those shown above, have been making waves throughout the internet. The reactions have been a mixture of lust and disgust. I was the later of the two. Whilst researching #bikinibridge on twitter since I only found out about such a thing today, I stumbled upon perhaps the most ludicrous picture I have ever seen: 

Ignoring the suggestion that to be considered a man you need to work within the construction industry, equally as ridiculous is the idea that to avoid being artificial you must have a bridge. This quote comes in joint first place with my hatred of "real women have curves". After expressing my thoughts on the image I was further disgusted by the response I received. 

"It's the truth babe, I understand that you're jealous though, Hun ;)" were the words of one twitter user, who has now been removed from the site. I'll also add, she was a grown woman. In response to her I simply stated "Firstly, I have nothing against those with a "bikini bridge" but I don't think it defines whether a woman is "real". Secondly, I don't comprehend how you know whether or not I have one and as a consequence know whether I could be jealous. And finally, I would like to thank you for attempting (and failing) to make me feel bad about my body." I feel as though that summarises my thoughts on the matter fairly accurately. 

I have to say that I'm thankful for the thick skin that I have grown regarding negative comments aimed towards my body. If I had been like many other beautiful girls my age and was full of insecurities, that tweet could have been truly damaging. Don't misunderstand me, I have nothing at all against those who do have a bikini bridge. For lots of women it's a completely attainable target or even their natural shape, so I appreciate that they are embracing it. However, what I don't appreciate and find absolutely vile is the thought that to be feminine and beautiful, it's a necessity. Some women just won't have the ability to healthily achieve such a figure. I can only imagine the negative thoughts this would put into the minds of self-conscious females. Even more so, I dread to consider the actions that could follow such thoughts. 

Perhaps that's what gets me the most about these body trends - the lack of thought by people that should know better, supporting images that are unattainable for many women and can lead to a deeply rooted self-hatred.

So, I will finish with this: To every girls that has a bikini bridge, you are beautiful. To every girl that doesn't have a bikini bridge, you are beautiful. To every girl that has a thigh gap, doesn't have a thigh gap, is size 4, is size 20, has small boobs, has big boobs and does or does not have a body in keeping with society's current idea of perfection, you are all beautiful.

Bethany Paige X