A woman who wears a bikini has made a decision to put it out there. The garment gives her no choice. Bikinis, which began life as modest two piece bathing suits, have evolved into the tiniest of coverings–leaving, as the tabloids put it, “little to the imagination.” So it takes a degree of confidence to wear a bikini, confidence and the knowledge that, by wearing it, your body is making a statement,
Lately, attitudes toward the female body have begun to shift. While in the past, Americans were much more critical of a woman’s body type than, say, Europeans, body positivity is now a huge trend in social media, as well as in life generally. Women are urged by psychologists and influencers to accept and love themselves for how they are, not for what others think they should be. The mantra is, if a woman wants to wear a bikini, she should.
Ashley Ray Cushman, a 22 year old who’s spent years as a bikini model, is among the group of on-line influencers urging body positivity. Having studied health and exercise science, Ashley knows the body from the inside out. Plus, having been bullied herself, she’s aware to the kinds of shaming all women are potentially open to. Her private response to the hate was to “never let anyone’s opinion or comments affect what I do with my life or how I live.” Her public response was videos emphasizing to other women her positive lifestyle, passion for fitness, and insistence on remaining body-positive.
Not content with simply influencing, however, Ashley went on to found and run a business devoted exclusively to the designing and marketing of bikinis. How she got there at the tender age of 22 was due to a combination of long standing interest in swimwear and a serendipitous desire one day to find a bikini made from her favorite fabric, polished satin. Scouring the net, Ashley found nothing in this fabric that she liked. So she decided to make polished satin bikinis herself.
From this, CCXSWIMWEAR was born. In keeping with Ashley’s concurrent interests in physical and emotional well being, the company makes bikinis that are ideal for all body types while remaining stylish and comfort oriented. As she herself puts it, “Our swimwear is made with the finest finishings and highest quality fabrics that are meant to hold its astonishing value. All of our bikinis use a seamless, polished satin fabric made from 85% nylon and 15% spandex. I always encourage my buyers to mix and match the bikinis as well…” an ever-present option since the brand currently has 11 distinct color lines from which to choose.
To find Ashley’s swimwear, visit ccxswimwear.com, and to find Ashley herself, visit TikTok where this internet star has over 400,000 followers across all of her platforms. The followers are well earned. It’s one thing to have a good idea, another to invest the money and hard work essential to realizing that idea. Ashley Cushman, who left college early to pursue a career in modeling and influencing, and then found she had it in her to become an entrepreneur, is someone worth listening to as both a role model and influencer. At a relatively young age, Ashley’s already come a long way. We look forward with confidence to seeing where she goes from here.