Fashion news 2010: Underwear with an urge to be seen: Sometimes, it’s the underpinnings that prove to be the crux of a look – the bandaged breasts of flappers, the waspie waists of the Fifties – and never more so than this season. Peekaboo sheer blouses, racy, lacy dresses and dangerously curvy Fifties-inspired pieces shine the spotlight on undergarments, begging the question: “What should the fashionable gal have in her top drawer?”
To my mind, one of the most joyous things about the return of the full, A-line dirndl skirt is that, for once, one’s underwear doesn’t have to be seamless, hideous, hearing-aid beige. The knickers with bows that looked lumpily bizarre under body-con dresses can come out of the drawer, as can previously purposeless petticoats, peeking cheekily from the swirling hems of skirts. Having gone for so long trying to make underwear invisible and discreet, it’s refreshing for those of us who don’t bound along bra-less like a Brazilian supermodel to be able to show lacy snippets and pretty straps.
Designers are wholeheartedly in agreement. Dolce & Gabbana have long been advocates of large pants and extra-curricular bra straps under a cocktail dress, while Jean Paul Gaultier, creator of Madonna’s cone bra, is renowned for his underwear-ish outerwear, and styles his collections by layering négligées visibly beneath a frock or trench. He has now turned his hand to actual knickers and bras with a collection for La Perla, out in November.
There are plenty of lingerie elements that will make this season’s penchant for all things sheer translate into real life. A lace dress is the perfect showcase for a delicate slip, such as La Senza’s lacy nude styles or Topshop’s vintage-looking ones, while a pair of luxurious silk shorts is begging to be teamed with a bright camisole. Meanwhile, a sheer pussy-bow blouse gets decidedly less bookish when worn over a decadent silk bustier (top of the range is Carine Gilson’s Thème Céres version, £650, net-a-porter.com).
The cruel irony, though, is that your unmentionables must be considered for both form and function. Let’s face it, your sexiest clothes have never permitted you to wear your sexiest underwear. But, hurrah of hurrahs, hideous second-skin shape-wear can take a back-seat as tummies relax under flattering folds of fabric. The new silhouette (think Christina Hendricks) requires more of a wasp waist than a board-flat stomach, so something along the lines of a waspie shaves an inch off your waist and gives a delicious hourglass shape. For a modern equivalent, check out Annette’s Power Curves waist-cincher (£41, figleaves.com).
If you need a little extra help fitting in those hip-hugging pencil skirts, there are more comely versions of shape-wear. Spanx Haute Contour is the prettier, lacy version (£125, figleaves.com) of its famed cycling-shorts style, and the Made by Niki Fresh Foundations line of slips (from £81.50, madebyniki.co.uk) look more Helmut Newton than Nora Batty. To smooth bra-flab and waistlines, Yummie Tummie’s Tummie Control lace-trimmed cami (£75, figleaves.com) will do its job and peek out cheerfully from under a cardigan or blouse. For those who still love bust-to-knee slimming, invest in Roland Mouret’s Powermesh slip (£265, net-a-porter.com) which is made from the magical sucking-in fabric with which he lines his famous Hollywood-glam dresses.
There’s nothing worse than an expanse of unsexy, functional, moulded cup slipping out of a blouse. My favourite kind of bra is the balconette because it turns your cleavage into a fabulous shelf, the sort described as “heaving” in historical novels and possessed by foxtrels like Brigitte Bardot. Chantelle and La Perla make wonderful lacy balconettes with beautiful straps suitable for showing off and Mimi Holliday’s black-and-white Minuit bra (£43, at John Lewis, 0845 604 9049) would cheer up a plain dress. For those over a D cup, Panache’s Sienna balconette basque (£40, 0845 270 6222) would look magnificent worn solo with a big swishy skirt and cardie.
Like the owner of a delicious yet delicate fragrance, gorgeous underwear is usually imperceptible except to those within kissing distance. For this season, however, kissing distance has a markedly larger radius, so choose your drawers with as much care as your dresses because equal attention will be paid to both.
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