Capitalism has struck again, doing what it does best: exploiting women’s insecurities for profit. And at the helm of its latest trap? None other than the queen of beauty standards herself: Kim Kardashian. Kim, founder of SKIMS and inventor of face shapewear and the “nipple bra,” has outdone herself again. Her latest drop, the Faux Hair Micro String Thong, for all intents and purposes is just a pube wig attached to panties.
And while the visual of matted fur glued to a mesh thong is horrifying enough, this feels like a major betrayal of women. It’s the latest turn in a long, exhausting cycle — one where women are shamed for our natural bodies, only to have those same insecurities sold back to us later, repackaged as “empowerment” or “boldness.” Kim’s pube thong is simply the next step on the wheel that brought us “tired girl” makeup, freckle pens, and faux dark circles.
Here’s how it works: first, a natural feature that women were never concerned about — body hair, curves, wrinkles, dark circles — gets branded as “gross” or “unacceptable.” Women scramble to fix it. Whole industries boom off our self-hatred. Then, once the trend shifts or the taboo loses its sting, capitalism swoops back in to “reclaim” the same thing it demonized. Suddenly, the “imperfection” becomes aspirational — but only if it’s performed in the right way, with the right product.
Think freckles. For decades, makeup ads told women to cover them up with full-coverage foundation. Now, we’re buying freckle pens to draw fake ones on. Or remember when having a big butt was a punchline? Once the Kardashians realized it could be profitable, BBLs became a billion-dollar business — until, of course, they reversed course and started promoting the thin look again. Sure the Kardashians have the money and resources to BBL-on and BBL-off themselves, but for the women that spent thousands of dollars they could barely afford for a surgery that’s notoriously dangerous? They’re left feeling like the rug was pulled from under them.
It’s the same with body hair. We were told to wax, shave, laser, and bleach it out of existence. I too have fallen victim to the patriarchy and get monthly Brazilian waxes just to “feel clean.” Now, we’re being sold fake pubes as high fashion. The only thing more consistent than a beauty trend is the guarantee that a woman will pay for it — whether to hide it or to perform it.
Beauty — one of the biggest players in the U.S. economy — is a $130 billion industry that runs on shame. Shame that was introduced to us before we can even spell the word. Shame that tells little girls their eyebrows are too bushy, their thighs too big, their skin too textured. The same shame that convinces grown women that the only way to feel confident is to buy confidence.
Every few months, we get a new form of “empowerment” that looks suspiciously like a new shopping cart. Remember when dark circles were “ugly”? Now “tired girl makeup” teaches you how to spend $200 to look exhausted on purpose. Being burnt out has become a beauty trend. We’re literally glamorizing symptoms of overwork — and paying for it.
And the Faux Hair Micro String Thong — $32 a pop, sold out in every color — fits perfectly into that lineage. It’s marketed as cheeky and bold, a wink at “natural femininity.” But what it really sells is nostalgia for the freedom we were never allowed to have in the first place.
As much as I want to find every woman who went to the SKIMS site, added that thong to her cart, entered her card info, and scream, “JUST GROW YOUR OWN PUBES,” I can’t. Because I get it. These are the same women who were told for years that hair down there was “gross” or “unfeminine.” Many probably lasered it off in their 20s because beauty magazines and men told them it was the “clean” thing to do… and actually can’t grow it again even if they tried.
They’re not clueless — they’re just trapped in the same abusive relationship we all have with the beauty industry. One that manipulates us, gaslights us, and calls it self-care. The industry has cracked the code to eternal relevance: remind women that no matter what they do, they will never be enough. Then sell them something new to close the gap. As soon as it’s bought, the gap reopens.
And while celebrities can’t take all the blame for the beauty world’s toxic relationship with women, they’ve done more than their fair share to keep the machine running. They’ve turned self-consciousness into an aesthetic and monetized every phase of the female experience — from puberty to post-partum. Whether it’s Kylie turning lip insecurity into a billion-dollar brand or Khloé turning body dysmorphia into “Revenge Body,” the message stays the same: self-acceptance is only attractive once it’s profitable.
So no, the SKIMS “pube thong” isn’t just a really fucking weird new product. It’s a symptom of a bigger disease — one where the line between shame and self-expression keeps getting blurred, and women keep footing the bill.
