#Fatkini hashtag inspires women of all shapes to post unashamed selfies

Posting selfies is quickly becoming a universal way for people to identify themselves as aligned to a particular idea or movement, and the newest selfie trend hopes to eliminate body-shaming. In doing so, women of all shapes are reshaping body-acceptance and the retail market.

The hashtag, #Fatkini, has been on the rise the past few months as more and more women on social media have gained the confidence they need to sport the revealing swimwear. Most popularly used on both Instagram and Tumblr, the hashtag has already produced thousands of selfies of plus-size women, and a following fiercely devoted toward their bravery and public acceptance.

The hashtag began within plus-size communities on social media, who seek to carve out a space for openness and support for plus-sized women. Later, these communities began to push for designers and retailers to open their market for more plus-size shapes. These communities widely attribute the hashtag's inception to a fashion journalism blog, Gabi Fresh, in which the author Gabi Gregg called upon women to wear whatever swimsuit they wanted without fear of shame and judgement.

The popular selfie trend is being noticed, and may be capable of influencing the fashion market. According to ColorLines, Forever 21 was one of the first retailers to acknowledge the trend, and have now begun producing a much larger swimsuit selection for bigger bodies.

What do you think of the new selfie trend? Let us know in the comments below.