Momma Told Me: The #AerieReal Campaign Challenges Modern Women To Be Boldly Confident

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The #AerieReal Campaign Challenges Modern Women To Be Boldly Confident

I received an Aerie gift card as part of my relationship with the Quality Blue community. All opinions expressed are my own.
The #AerieReal campaign challenges modern women to feel boldly confident in their own skin, by omitting re-touched photos from their advertising campaigns.
Momma Told Me: Beauty is 99% in your head.

"I'm not a model." As a blogger I hear it all the time when I ask family or friends to take a photo for my blog. Yes, even in this freelance form of media, blogging, people have a perception that photos should represent an ideal. But there in lies the problem, that 'ideal' which the modern media has perpetuated for countless years. Archeological research has shown even the first form of media communication, cave drawings, used exaggeration and editorial liberties to communicate traits such as power and strength. Our brains have been trained to respond to perfected stimuli, and as a consequence many modern women and men feel less sufficient when staring at themselves in the mirror.
The #AerieReal campaign challenges modern women to feel boldly confident in their own skin, by omitting re-touched photos from their advertising campaigns.
If there's one category of marketing I prefer to skip all-together it's the lingerie division. Entire brands have alienated me with their continuously uniform campaigns of women with smooth abs and perk chests. In fact, there have long been several labels I would admire from mall windows, yet never step foot in for embarrassment that I didn't meet some secret customer 'model.' As a tall and curvy woman my body meets several fashion roadblocks from size 12 women's footwear to modest yet flirty tops that don't overexpose. But the most important aspect of fashion, comfort, comes in two parts; comfort of the clothing and materials itself, and comfort wearing the clothes in one's own skin. This is a concept Aerie, the lingerie and clothing division of American Eagle has moved to embrace with their recent #AerieReal campaign.
Boldly announcing they would no longer feature 'photo retouched' models in their Aerie (specifically lingerie and sleepwear) ads, American Eagle has made waves through media publications worldwide. If you're cynical like me you probably figure anyone who is a model most likely does not need retouching anyway; so what's the big deal? We've been conditioned to see smooth stomachs and bronzed legs so much we can't even detect these alterations in modern media. The truth is real women, in any size, have folds and lines that aren't typically considered flattering. In reality, nothing is more 'real' and beautiful than the natural movement of the human body and the emotion it conveys when twisting and turning.
The #AerieReal campaign challenges modern women to feel boldly confident in their own skin, by omitting re-touched photos from their advertising campaigns.
The unique Aerie campaign challenges real women across the nation to snap a photo of themselves in Aerie clothing and upload their images with the hashtag #AerieReal. All images submitted will make an appearance on the Aerie website showcasing true beauty in all shapes and sizes. With some new found inspiration I decided to showcase some of my favorite Aerie pieces in untouched photos of my own. I went a step further and selected some more candid photos from the shoot that aren't necessarily from the better 'angles' but show a real picture of me. And guess what? I feel confident and beautiful looking at them! I may have pale legs and curves around my waist, and my hair day may not have been the best but I felt confident in my skin and confidence really is the best accessory anyone can wear.
The #AerieReal campaign challenges modern women to feel boldly confident in their own skin, by omitting re-touched photos from their advertising campaigns.
In partnership with their #AerieReal initiative, Aerie has also released a new comprehensive bra guide to help online shoppers find the right fit online or in store. Of course you'll find plenty of inspiring 'untouched' images of their models to help you along the way. Seeing a campaign like this is very refreshing, but we are still a long way from transparency in modern fashion marketing and media. It's my hope, some day, every woman can stand confident and feel like they could be a 'model.'

What Daughter Says: Take that confidence striking poses in the bathroom mirror and rock your body in the real world. You are a model.

10 comments:

  1. Oh My goodness I love that they don't airbrush the girls. Thank you for letting me know where I should be buying my clothes.

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  2. Thank You for bringing up good "real body" point. Have been very concerned with self-image for years and just yesterday that kind of a conversation

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  3. I love this initiative. I would much rather see a natural beauty than someone who has been retouched.

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  4. Great campaign, and their clothes are pretty too!

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  5. It's good that they don't airbrush anymore

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  6. You are adorable, but I already told you that:) This initiative is wonderful for people to see women as they actually are!

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  7. If they don't hire you as one of their models they are idiots. So beautiful. I wish I could take pictures like YOU!

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  8. That last photo of you is so cute! I am so happy to hear about this new approach from Aerie. All companies should follow their lead. I used to live in New York and bump into models from time to time and saw that they were not perfect. Everyone should be able to see this.

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  9. What a great company! Heck model don't even look like models so why are we subjected to some man's version of perfect.

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  10. I think this is a wonderful approach. Too many young women today aspire to impossible ideals without realizing that they aren't real.

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