Ashley Graham is basically the reason the fashion industry had to wake up and realize that "curvy" wasn't a dirty word. She didn't just walk through the door; she kicked it down while wearing six-inch heels and a grin. Honestly, if you look at the trajectory of her career, the moments that really stuck were the ones where she was the most exposed. I'm talking about the shoots that forced people to look at a body they weren't used to seeing on a billboard. Specifically, seeing Ashley Graham in a thong or a "barely-there" bikini wasn't just about the clothes. It was a tactical strike against a decades-long obsession with being thin.
She’s a size 16. That’s the average American woman, yet for years, the industry treated that size like a rare, exotic creature that needed to be hidden under layers of shapewear. Ashley flipped that.
The Thong That Shook the Superbowl (Sorta)
Back in 2010, Ashley did a commercial for Lane Bryant. It was sexy. It was confident. It featured her in lingerie, looking incredible. But then, the networks—ABC and Fox—decided it was "too hot" for TV and restricted its airtime. Meanwhile, Victoria's Secret ads were playing on a loop. The double standard was so obvious it was almost funny.
Ashley didn’t hide. She did the opposite. She went on every news program that would have her and asked why her body was considered "obscene" while thinner bodies in the exact same outfits were considered "art." That was the moment she stopped being just a model and became a mogul.
By the time she appeared in the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue in 2016, the world was ready. Seeing Ashley Graham in a thong swimsuit on those pages—unretouched, showing her cellulite and her "pooch"—was a religious experience for millions of women. It told them that they didn't need to wait until they lost 20 pounds to go to the beach. You have a bikini body because you have a body and a bikini. Period.
✨ Don't miss: Dianna Agron: What Most People Get Wrong About Her Career
Why Exposure Matters
There’s this weird thing people do where they claim body positivity is "promoting obesity." It’s a tired argument. When Ashley posts a photo of herself in a thong or a sheer set of lingerie, she’s not giving a medical lecture. She’s showing up.
- Normalization: The more we see diverse bodies, the less "shocking" they become.
- The Motherhood Factor: After having her kids, Ashley was even more vocal about her "stretch marks like trees" and her changing shape.
- The Business of Confidence: She’s launched lines with Swimsuits for All and JCPenney because she knows women want to feel sexy, not just "covered up."
I remember her TEDx talk, "Plus Size? More Like My Size." She talked about looking in the mirror and literally telling her "back fat" and her "thick thighs" that she loved them. It sounds cheesy until you try doing it yourself after a lifetime of being told you're too much.
The "Unedited" Revolution
In 2017, Vogue Italia did something pretty wild. They shot Ashley in a series of black-and-white lingerie photos and didn't touch a single pixel. No smoothing of the hips. No erasing the dimples on her legs. Just Ashley.
When those photos hit Instagram, people lost it. It’s one thing to see Ashley Graham in a thong in a highly produced, airbrushed campaign. It is an entirely different thing to see the real texture of her skin. It felt human. It felt like something we could actually relate to. She often says that "sexy is a state of mind," and looking at those photos, you believe her. She isn't trying to hide the fact that she has a body; she's celebrating the fact that it works.
Key Moments in the Graham Timeline
- 2010: The Lane Bryant commercial ban that sparked a national conversation on body shaming.
- 2015: Her TEDx talk goes viral, cementing her as an activist.
- 2016: The historic Sports Illustrated cover—the first for a size 14+ model.
- 2018: Her "Power of the Journey" campaign with her mom, Linda Graham, proving confidence is ageless.
- 2024: Walking the Victoria’s Secret runway, finally closing the loop on that 2010 snub.
What Most People Get Wrong
People think Ashley Graham is "brave" for wearing a thong. Honestly? She probably thinks that’s a backhanded compliment. Calling a woman "brave" for showing her body usually implies there’s something wrong with that body in the first place. She’s not being brave; she’s being a model. She’s doing her job.
The real shift isn't in her—it’s in us. It’s in the way we’ve stopped gasping when a woman with a "lower pooch" (her words!) wears something revealing. We’ve started to realize that the "narrow mold" society built was actually a cage.
She once told InStyle that on days when she’s feeling less than stellar, she tells herself: "Whatever you decided that you don't like about yourself that morning, forget it. Because every other woman in the world has something they don't like." That’s the secret sauce. Even supermodels have "bad" days. The difference is that Ashley doesn't let a bad body image day stop her from getting paid.
The Actionable Side of Body Confidence
If you're looking at Ashley and wondering how to get that level of "I don't give a damn," it starts with small, somewhat awkward steps. You don't have to go out and buy a thong tomorrow if that's not your vibe. But you can start by:
Stop the Mirror Hate. When you see something you don't like, acknowledge it and move on. Don't linger. Ashley literally talks to her body parts. It sounds crazy, but calling your "pooch" cute actually changes your brain chemistry over time.
Curate Your Feed. If you’re following people who make you feel like garbage, hit unfollow. Fill your screen with people like Ashley, Paloma Elsesser, or Precious Lee. Surround yourself with reality.
Buy Clothes That Fit the Body You Have Now. Don't buy "goal" jeans. Buy the thong, the bikini, or the dress that makes you feel like a 10 today. Ashley’s collections are built on the idea that support and sexiness aren't mutually exclusive.
💡 You might also like: Joe Jonas Girlfriend: What Most People Get Wrong About His New Romance
Focus on Movement, Not Punishment. Ashley works out like an athlete. Not to "thin out," but because she likes being strong. Shift the goal from "losing" to "gaining" strength or flexibility.
Ashley Graham didn't just change the fashion industry; she changed the way we look at ourselves in the mirror. Seeing Ashley Graham in a thong isn't a scandal anymore—it’s just a Tuesday. And that, more than any magazine cover, is her real legacy.