The History of the Bikini - by Ericca M.

The first bikini was debuted on July 5, 1946, at the Piscine Molitor, a popular swimming pool in Paris. by French designer Louis Reard. Micheline Bernardini modeled the new fashion piece which Reard referred to as a “bikini.” The name was inspired by a U.S. atomic test that was conducted off the Bikini Atoll in the Pacific Ocean that very same week.

In planning the debut of his new swimsuit, Reard had trouble finding a professional model who was willing to wear the controversial two-piece. Being that he was in a bind, he turned to Micheline Bernardini, an exotic dancer at the Casino de Paris, who had no problem with wearing revealing clothing or appearing nearly nude in public. He printed newspaper type across the suit that he intended for Bernardini to model for the reveal. The bikini was a hit, specifically among men. Following the reveal, Bernardini received over 50,000 fan letters.

n 1946, Western Europeans were enjoying the first war-free summer in years and French designers made it their mission to come up with fashions to match the liberated mood of the people. Reard and Jacques Heim came up with competing prototypes of the bikini. Heim dubbed his the “atom” and advertised it as “the world’s smallest bathing suit.” Reard’s design, which was basically a bra top and two inverted triangles of cloth connected by string, was significantly smaller. Reard promoted his “bikini” as “smaller than the world’s smallest bathing suit.”

Before long, bikinis were causing a sensation among women along the Mediterranean coast who were bold enough to wear them. Spain and Italy initially passed measures prohibiting bikinis on public beaches but immediately changed their tune as the bikini’s popularity increased and the swimsuit grew into a mainstay of European beaches during the 1950s.

Pop singer Brian Hyland, composed a song in which he declared his love for women in bikinis. “Itsy Bitsy Teenie Weenie Yellow Polka-Dot Bikini” went on to became one of the biggest hits of the 1960’s, The bikini’s influence eventually crossed over into the world of film. Women wore bikinis in the teenage “beach blanket” movies of Annette Funicello and Frankie Avalon. The bikini was also massively celebrated by the California surfing culture and also by rock groups like the Beach Boys. Since then, the popularity of the bikini has only continued to grow and different iterations have since been created and released. Beautiful women continue to glide across the sand and into the deep blue waters wearing two pieces that show off all of their curves and leave little to the imagination.