Albawaba.com:
The world’s first-ever Muslim 2-piece swimsuit, the ‘Burkini,’ was recently designed by Lebanon-born designer Aheda Zanetti.
Zanetti, who lives in Australia, designed the burkini after seeing a significant need for more modest beach ware in a country that prides itself on its beautiful beaches.
Though other Muslim swim ware exists, no one thus far has come up with the idea of a 2-piece bathing suit for practicing Muslim women. There was a ‘hole in the market that needed to be filled’ for more modest beachwear, said Zanetti.
The light-weight, head-to-ankle costumes are the first to be streamlined down to a 2-piece suit incorporating a head covering.
Zanetti came up with the idea after seeing her Hijab-wearing niece play netball, and realized that a large market would exists for such products. ‘And when I was looking at her playing sport with a two-piece veil and a skivvy (long-sleeved, high-necked shirt) and the pants and then her netball jersey on top and then her skirt, I thought, ‘Oh my god, there must be something better than this’,’ she said.
The burkini has become a part of the solution to some of Australia’s internal tension between Muslim and non-Muslim citizens.
As a result of the burkini’s popularity, Zanetti’s company Ahiida receives hundreds of requests from around the country and overseas for the quick-drying, polyester burkinis which cost between $125 to $156.
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