Head to a beach this summer and you might see a bunch of women walking around with their nipples on show. But, before you drop your ice-cream cone on the floor and gawk, know that all may not be as it first seems. The women may very well be sporting the new TaTa Top – a bikini top with two pink nipples emblazoned onto the cups. At first glance the top may seem like some hilarious prank, but dig slightly below the surface and its creators have a distinctly more feminist agenda.

While men are free to walk shirtless as they please, being topless if you’re a woman is illegal in many places around the world. With that in mind the bizarrely realistic garment has been created in order to tackle the lack of gender equality when it comes to bearing all.

On their website, the makers of the bikini, artist and designer team Robyn Graves and Michelle Lytle, write:

“Why can’t girls be topless? If you really think about it, what’s the difference between a man’s nipples and a woman’s? Is it really just the extra breast tissue? Is it the fact that women’s nipples are paired with a vagina? Is it the presence of a real and true female nipple bare to the world that is so offensive, that is so horrid that it must be kept covered? Who is this law protecting and what are they protecting them from? What message does it send to young women about their bodies? That they should be ashamed and keep them covered?”

Although not directly associated, the bikini hits (online) shelves in the wake of the #FreeTheNipple movement. The campaign – originally started by filmmaker Lina Esco – has seen hundreds of women parade topless around New York to end gender-specific double standards.

The TaTa Top will allow women to support the campaign in a way that’s completely legal (and brilliantly sneaky).

“You look topless…but you aren’t, and therefore, are not breaking any laws,” the website reiterates. If the sight of uncovered nipples makes you shudder in fear or pop off in anger, then game on and may the breast girl win.”

Happy customers have already been wearing the top with pride and posting some utterly fabulous snaps on Instagram…

The statement bikini is currently only available for light skin tones, but according to the group’s Instagram account, more skin tones are in production. The TaTa Top is on sale for $28 (£16) with $5 from every purchase going to breast cancer charity the Lynn Sage Cancer Research Foundation.

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