There is some serious body love going down on Instagram right now.
A new account, @LoveYourLines, is a photo project that posts beautiful photos of women’s stretch marks. The account was created by two East Coast moms after a conversation about how their bodies have changed after pregnancy. It was an instant success, gaining over 24,000 followers in just eight days.
Each black and white photo is a close-up of a different woman’s body, and a brief quote or backstory. Many of the women refer to their stretchies as “love lines” in their stories, which is about the cutest re-branding I’ve ever heard in my life.
Of course, you don’t have to be pregnant to get stretch marks. In fact, they occur in about 80% of all women, regardless of size. If they’re so common, why are we told that they’re ugly, that we have to cover them up? Like many of the women on this account, I got love lines at around thirteen years old, and was a little freaked out and embarrassed by them. This project is so important for just that reason—girls and women everywhere need to know that stretch marks are natural and nothing to be ashamed of.
Once you’ve embraced your lovely love lines, it’s time to throw on a bikini and go to the beach! Instagram users have been flooding the hashtag #fatkini with images of themselves in swimsuits that scream “I love my body! Look at all the fricks I give!” (Hint: it’s none.)
These photos not only provide some much-needed good feels in a social media environment otherwise rife with body negativity, but they also deliver a healthy dose of beach fashion inspiration. I’m totally coveting all of these suits and sunnies.
I encourage you, in these last delicious days of August, to rid yourself of self doubt and flaunt your awesome shape, lines, curves and edges. And if you have an Instagram account, make sure you post plenty of pictures, so the whole world can see how awesome you are and how much fun you’re having.
