Some months ago, I got this book as a wonderful birthday present from a friend. It was a great chance for me to start learning about designers and their particular style, about what influences a lingerie collection and the processes involved in the creating and making it. I was just starting the blog, and didn’t have much knowledge about the industry.

The cover – Made by Niki lingerie

So I thought that, instead of talking about the book, I could make something different. As the book talks about 30 brands, I decided to put together some of my favorite, together with a little excerpt of the book telling something nice about the brand. It was really hard to choose which ones I would talk about, because all of them are beautiful in some way.

As this is already going to be a long post, I am not putting any personal opinion, aside from my designer choices, that should be enough for you to understand a bit of my taste. The brands are in alphabetical order.

Bien Fée Pour Toi

Autumn 2009

“I have two key themes: freshness and fantasy. I’m inspired by the freshness and purity of nature (…) and then, bit by bit, I bring it together with the fantasy side”

“I think I design equally well for a passionate and very feminine woman as for a woman who is more discreet and romantic.”

Carol Malony

Summer 2009

“Lingerie gives you the permission to express yourself in another language. It can be beautifully done, it can be articulate, it can be poetic – it can be sexy!”

“It can start with a charm or even a bow and you just build it up. It’s much better to start with the materials and drape them on a stand so that they find their own dramatic style.”

Chantal Thomass

Winter 2012

“I prefer to design my ready-to-wear with inspiration taken from lingerie, such as broderie anglaise or corsets. I like the masculine/feminine element, the contrast between the suit, which is something I’m well-known for, and lingerie.”

“I like the transparency of lace, specially very fine Chantilly lace. I really like satin and the transparency of tulle. I like to visit the suppliers’ factories.”

Claire Pettibone

Heilroom collection

“There is an underlying femininity and romance in all of m work. I have developed quite a speciality for lace and embroideries, so there is a relationship there. (…) The goal is to make a woman look absolutely breathtaking.”

“All women are beautiful, and it’s my job to enhance that beauty with clothing. I see lingerie as an opportunity to step “out of time”, take a moment for oneself and perhaps share it with someone special”

Fifi Chachnil

Collaboration with Topshop, Winter 2008

“Girls inspire me – their differences and singularity are my inspiration; the shape of the body and the way girls from different countries behave. Creativity often comes out of necessity.”

“The idea was to make a lingerie collection that did not compromise on style. It was like fashion, but to wear underneath.”

Fleur of England

Jasmine collection

“It’s about beautiful, stunning lingerie that is almost a modern classic.Above all, the garment has to fit amazingly well. Fit is the most important thing. (…) Something that if your husband or boyfriend bought for you, you would think “Oh! How lovely, he’s bought me this pretty garment, he’s really thought about it!”

“Favourite design: my balcony bra: the fit is really good. It’s been in my collection since I started and it will never go.”

Gâtez-Moi

Summer 2008

“Fabrics and laces are the most important starting point for my designs. (…) I need to make the designs as beautiful as possible. I love fabrics that have a soft touch, very lightweight fabrics, frills, polka dots and layering lace over other fabrics.”

“I’m inspired by nature, such as as feeling for the seasons in Japan, the colour of the sky, sunrays from a cloud…’

Guia La Bruna

Touch of Gold pieces

“I think of a woman between 20 and 40, who is fashionable, quite romantic and feminine, in love with colours, prints, quality fabrics, with a slightly edgy taste. I guess someone like me”

“The inspiration: vintage-style lingerie, 1950s, divas mainly, all translated in luxurious fabrics. I wanted to create the lingerie set that I would love to have found in my grandmother’s drawer, with a retro look but modern at the same time.”

Marlies Dekkers

Exhibition in Rotterdam

“Women tend to have a different view of who they are; I try to create designs that allow women to accept themselves as they are and feel comfortable about this. I want to give them confidence and make them feel beautiful. That’s my mission!”

“I’m also very proud that I design underwear that women want to combine with outerwear. (…) I wanted to make them [the bras] so beautiful that women would want to show them off, and the buyers didn’t believe me. I’m very proud that years later I’ve been proven right and it’s something women like to show off.”

Miss Lala Presents

Summer 2009

“With lingerie, you never know who’s ging to buy what. You can think, for example, that pink gingham is for a certain age group, but you can have a fifty-year-old woman come in who adores it. Lingerie is the one place you can really experiment.”

“I’ll never stop loving polka dots. I’m obsessed with hearts. Ginghams I just adore, and also 1950s cotton stripes; I love the colours. I like a bit of bling – I like Swarovski crystals.”

Nuits de Satin Paris

Dita waspie with Dolly babydoll

“We take several vintage pieces and use one detail from one, another detail for from another – we don’t design on paper. Or we take a vintage design as a base and design around it.”

“I adore Chantilly lace, silk mousseline and silk satin, specially duchesse satin. (…) All the fabrics are French, including the silk, because I believe France has an unique savoir faire with regard to fine-quality fabrics and laces”

Pleasure State

Summer 2012

“We find today that colour is an evolution and it has little impact from the weather being hot or cold. We still refer to collections by their seasonal name, but for Pleasure State the influences are more likely to be around fashion seasons and events such a Christmas, Valentine’s Day and Mother’s Day.”

“I am very proud of our superbly fitting and comfortable bra cups, which are seamless, smooth, flattering and exquisitely beautiful.”

So, what did you think about those designers? Do you find one of them is your favourite?

I know Lingerie Fashion Week was happening this last week, but I was not able to be there. It’s quite a long and expensive trip for me, so I had to stay home. However, I will be making a post later with my favorite pictures and some words, as some great lingerie bloggers were able to do the coverage. 

Anyway, I could not let the opportunity of posting these pictures pass. Majo, the designer behind the Majo Rey brand, is launching her new collection in store and online. 

The uruguayan brand, with it’s commitment with high quality and good products to be worn inside and outside the bedroom, is probably one of the best representations of the south-american lingerie market. And I really like to state this, because I am south american and to see someone near me being responsible for this work makes me happy and even proud. 

The pieces follow the usual Majo Rey aesthetic, which I feel is positive, since I could easily recognize them just by seeing one. I haven’t been able to actually touch one of the garments, but it’s safe to say that they are well made and very beautiful.

The black, always present in their pieces, is one common characteristic of the brand that I appreciate, since I feel really nice wearing black lingerie. The orange that came in the Asimetria Perfecta garments is somewhat different, but in a very good way. I was once told by a friend that orange was a good color because “there is no sad orange, all of the shades are happy”. And this is how I feel about the orange in Majo Rey’s new collection.

Of course, she could not let the bodysuits out of this. Majo Rey is known for it’s bodysuits, and they are made to give a playful touch on any under or outerwear. This time, she offers two options: the colored one (which is reversible) and the velvet one. Since I am in a velvet mood, I’d choose this one, but to have a reversible bodysuit may seem a good option, as you can wear it on both sides and have two different outfits on the same garment.   

A new tie-dye pattern is available as well, mixing black and light pink in a nice cotton bodysuit, hand painted so that each piece is unique. This kind of thing is so nice to see in brands with affordable prices, because you feel special without spending too much. And I guess that’s what majo Rey is all about!

I really, really liked the pieces that are part of the Asimetria Perfecta collection, with the androgyn touch I recognize, creating a concept of sexiness that pleases me very much, proving that being satisfied with the pieces you are wearing does not mean you must dive into frills, bows and pastel colors. The aesthetic presented by Majo gives a whole new meaning to basic – mysterious, chic and not simple at all.

The collection can be found on her boutique in Montevideo or online, on Majo Rey’s website.

Last week, I was reading an old article I published called “(Don’t) Sex it up”, in which I tried to distance lingerie from sex to show that it was not the only relation, that lingerie can be related to beauty and empowerment. Then, I decided that I wanted to do the opposite. Because although I think is important to defend a movement for lingerie being seen as something other than pleasing someone else, is important to relate this to sex as well. Sex is important.

Since my early teenager years, sex was seen as a bad thing. Something I should not allow just any guy to have access too, something prohibited, dirty, wrong. And this is not because I was raised into a very conservative family -because they were not that extreme. Is just because media, friends and all the things we hear when we are growing up pass this message to us. It’s ironic, even, to see how women are sexualized on the media and how this passes the same message to girls: sex is wrong. Lindsay, from the blog that je ne sais quoi, put together some of her thoughts and great pictures about how she feels about sex, bondage and lingerie.

Lindsay with on of her harnesses. Picture by Lydia Hudgens.

When I was in 6th grade (I was 12), we had one trimester of reproduction and sex studies in science class. On the first day of the subject, the teacher asked us to write anonymous questions on papers and she would answer. One -or some, probably, I don’t remember exactly- asked if women could masturbate or discover their bodies as much as man. When I was 12, I actually never thought about it, and on the event of the class I was probably ashamed to be thinking about it, but now I look at it with sorrow. Basically, while 12-years-old boys were encouraged to have a penis, 12-years-old girls were encouraged to hide the fact that they were starting to grow breasts. Just take a look at how ridiculous this is.

Now that I’ve set the scene, we should talk about lingerie.

Underwear, as much as any fashion segment, has different brands with different views and objectives. Most of them (I’d say all, but let’s not generalize that much, I may not know everything about the market) focus on making women feel good, considering aspects such as comfort and aesthetic. And sexiness. Either this so called sexiness is portrayed in the usual please-your-cis-hetero-boyfriend way or in a please-yourself-first way, is an important aspect. Because when it comes to intimacy, to being close to your body and your private parts, it’s natural to be related to sex.

Gisele Bundchen is, as the image says… sexy. (at Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show 2006)

Before I continue, I’d like to state my opinion about the point above. I think it’s important, considering women’s self-esteem and view of themselves on today’s society, to focus on their pleasure before her partner’s. You see, by today we should have all realized that women are not only made to give pleasure but to feel good on relationships and sexual intercourse as well. Fair enough to remember that when lingerie shopping, right? Let’s forget the “Your boyfriend are going to love it” (oh, the heteronormativity.) and focus on the “You look so good! If you feel this confident and have a partner, i’m sure he/she are going to love your posture and your lingerie!”.

There are, however, different types of focus that can be found on lingerie, when talking to sex. Some prefer the classics, some prefer something more playful, some prefer vintage patterns and garments. And some prefer erotic clothing. Myself, as an admirer of good fashion and wearer of nice pieces (when I afford them), really like erotic-styled lingerie. The feeling of the prohibited, of the boundaries crossed, fills me with astonishment. And that’s why I find amazing when I see some brand -or store, like Coco de Mer- taking sexuality and erotica in such a natural and graceful way.

Lascivious 2013 campaign. Now that’s exciting.

Of course, some people don’t relate to this particular style because it seems a little too explicit, or even rough. This is very personal, and I respect every opinion and taste regarding to lingerie, fetish and sex. As long as it’s legal and consensual, of course. However, I must admit I feel great to see pieces, themes, campaigns, brands, pieces and etc. with such sexual freedom, specially if they are not focused, as I said, on the men/partner pleasure, but on the pleasure a woman can take from pleasing her partner.

Playfulness between a cis-hetero couple (assuming they are cis, as I can’t know but imagine this was the idea behind this Darkest Star campaign) can be seen as erotic without being degrading to any part.

Darkest Star, as the image above stated, is one brand I admire very much, although I don’t have any pieces by them. They make beautiful art focused on only one thing: bondage. This is interesting and I must say their belts are so beautiful that I wish I had one to use as outerwear. And underwear, when I feel like a bad girl.

Making fine, or luxury pieces with sexual themes -some of them being fetish related- is a good way to make sex distant from the “dirty, wrong” thing seen in our adolescence. Some cheap (and I don’t mean the price, here, but the quality and aspect) pieces, in my opinion, contribute to the shame women historically have of talking about their intimacy.

That’s why some lingerie stores choose not to expose their fetish garments and sex toys together with their usual lingerie pieces. This caught my attention in Etham, when I was in France. They had a little place really nice for women who wanted to buy this kind of items. It’s a nice idea, I reckon, because as I stated, is still complicated for some women to take sex as a natural and beautiful thing, some of them even get offended by it.

My favorite fetish-inspired piece and ultimate wishlist item: Bordelle’s Bondage Angela Dress

So, this idea seems pretty strange to some, but even if you consider yourself a submissive in sexual therms, there is empowerment on getting your Dominant/Master to deal with your submission. And that is sex, pure sex. Lingerie that follows this idea makes me happy, as much as any form of art that takes sex as a beautiful part of life.

Lingerie, as I said before and will continue to say every time, must make you feel good. It will give you power if you want that, it will give you gracefulness if you want that. It will turn you into whatever kind of woman you feel like being – and any kind is ok, I swear, you don’t have to be like anyone says you should, you should just feel good in your skin.

Let’s celebrate our sexual freedom by wearing beautiful things and giving pleasure to ourselves, our partners or anyone else we feel like giving – because we have that right. Shall we?

Fraulein Kink is, as they say, made for pleasure. I agree.

What’s your opinion on this subject and these garments?

Jessie King is a freelance writer. She has a key interest in lingerie and kindly wrote about this subject for our guest post in the blog, today.

Image by Charlotte Downie

One size fits all, right? Wrong. Every woman is different, her body shape is unique and she looks great for it! Are we told this enough, potentially, but are we shown it?

The media, along with products sold on the high-street, form what is viewed as fashionable. From there, consumers are developing opinions that the right body shape is what moulds into these fashionable clothes, lingerie included.

Has the world around us subconsciously, maybe unintentionally, pressured women into believing they should look like whatever the ‘right’ body shape is?

Back when the Wonderbra was at its peak, women were rushing to Victoria’s Secret to get themselves their very own. Look even further back and Marilyn Monroe was the face for the perfect hour-glass figure. Maybe the look we all desire is whatever shape the current celebrities have, implying that this aids our perceptions of what we believe our own body shape should look like. But underwear was originally designed to serve a purpose. You could say that is still the case now. Women want to look and feel great and often need a ‘quick fix’ to help them get there.

The famous Wonderbra ad with Eva Herzigova

Whatever the reason, it’s interesting to see how the perceptions of the ‘perfect’ body shape have changed over time. Have a look at this Triactol graphic for an easy to understand timeline of how things have changed. It begs the question:  is lingerie going backwards in time?

With Spanx on the scene, women are doing whatever they can to ‘keep everything together’ – a bit of a change from the 1980s where lingerie was empowering women to love their body and show it off.

1980′s lingerie catalog

But how much of a change is it from the 50s? Then too, women were squeezing into lingerie (but this time corsets) to give the impression of a much tighter and more together shape. Is this just a reinvention, a more practical innovation, of products that have been around for years? To confuse things further, the 1920s saw the era of underwear in favour of the ‘boyish’ shape, but skip forward 40 years and the feminine shape was all the rage.

If you take a look at each era, it is clear that there are many dramatic shifts in what the ideal body shape looks like, so many in fact that it’s hard to keep up, establish a pattern or even fully determine where lingerie will take us next.  Aren’t the ever changing perceptions of the ‘right’ body shape an indication that actually there is no right? And with plus size models making their stamp on the world too – is this not further indication that we could be heading towards having two sets of the ‘right’ body shape in one era, highlighting that one ‘correct’ body shape no longer exists.

Plus sized lingerie by Hips and Curves

Truth is there is no right – merely fashion of the time which will soon change and grow just like it always has done. Underwear seems to just help you achieve the look you want at that time, never to actually alter your true body shape.

What do you think about the perceived ideas of the perfect body? Share in the comments.   

Lingerie bloggers of the whole world have united on a campaign called Diversity in Lingerie. Started by June from Braless in Brasil, the campaign aims to aware lingerie companies that there are loads of different bodies out there, and we would all love to be represented when buying products we love!

So, if you -even if not a lingerie blogger!- want to participate, please do! June gives the instructions:

“From now on, if you want to join me take a picture of yourself (can be with or without your face, in lingerie or clothes- whatever you feel comfortable with!) and somehow fit in the hashtag #DiversityInLingerie. You’re welcome to either post it on twitter with the hashtag or email me and I’ll put it up in  a post on my blog.

I’d encourage women of ALL walks of life and appearance to join in.  By participating you can show the lingerie industry that, yes, you’d buy lingerie from a diverse group of models, not just the ones currently shown.  I want to be clear that this is nothing against the body types currently shown and I don’t want to get into a “real women” debate. We’re all real women.  I just want a bigger pool of models so that ALL women can see someone like them and say “hey, she looks like me and that bra looks awesome on her, it could look awesome on me too!”.”

So, here’s my contribution! 

Lingerie by Agent Provocateur. Body by Mother Nature.

Although I feel fairly represented by the women on catalogs, considering I am white, young and thin, I really feel the lack of different bodies, skin tones and other particular characteristics, like tattoos (even though you cannot see in the picture, I have a tattoo on the ribs, on both wrists and plan to do a new one on the thigh soon), stretch marks, spots…

So, as we are not trying to compare which one of us is worst represented, we decided to share pictures, everyone. And, you see, even with the “magazine body” I’ve always been told I have, I am not what media considers perfect. I have scars on my legs, I have tattoos, I have hips that are not bones. These characteristics were considered wrong for a long time, but they should not be seen as imperfections. Our body is our history, and I am proud to have one. Why wouldn’t I buy lingerie from other women proud of their bodies as well?

I vote for lingerie industries to consider showing their products in tons of new women. The kind of body represented today (and although I know every women has a different body, we must agree that the bodies of lingerie models are very alike) is real, every woman is real, but there are so much more than what’s printed on magazines! How about we start moving for a better world where every woman can see and relate to someone in a magazine or catalog?

When it comes to bras and tops, you should get the best fit, I bet you know that, since I’ve talked about it before. We’ve always passed through those moments where we wished our breasts were different because the clothes were ill fitting. So when Nikki Hesford, creator of the British brand Made in Preston reached to me to talk about the products, I thought it was really interesting and worth sharing.

You see, the foundation is really important, and that is why Made in Preston cares for the bust sizing and holds sizes from 26DD – 38H on their bras, making them a brand for skinny-but-plus-sized-girls (which is just my case, since I found that I could be categorized on the DD/E cup sizes!). However, Nikki thought that bras were not enough, so she has lines of clothing made specifically for busted girls, trying to solve lots of problems about clothing fit. The sizes range from 6-16 and the bust sizes are categorized, in clothing, as fit, foxy and fab, which I think is really fun and inspiring, aiming on the women’s self-confidence. It’s always nice to be called one of those adjectives (I’m fit, by the way. Not very busted but just enough for me!). You can calculate that on this page, in a cute calculator.

They have swimwear too! Love the color!

If you are on the UK area, they have free shipping and return, but if you are internationally based, like me, their shipping cost is very low! And the pieces range from £18 – £45, so I could easily categorize it as affordable fashion!

I find it nice to know someone is making the best possible for one specific type of woman to have well-fitting bras and clothes. We should expect more news from Made in Preston soon, so you can check out their website until then!

This last week, I was with my mother at a shopping mall near home and we passed through a lingerie store. Is one of the few brazilian lingerie stores that offers what they call the perfect size, which stands for nothing more that back and cup sizing. Like it normally happens, I asked to go inside and try some bras, even though I knew I was not going to buy anything (Some of you may not know, but brazilian store vendors usually have their payment based on how much they sold, individually. So they sometimes seem angry if you ask to try things on without the intention to buy. Not that I care, to be honest, since if I try, I may go there later and buy the product, but I get embarassed, sometimes).

When I asked to try the smallest size (a 32) with a D cup, the lady told me I had small breasts and shouldn’t get a D. You see, I am aware of the size of my breasts, but I know that I must wear a size D because of the wire sizing. This seemed a little complicated to me, but when I was at DMU last summer, we talked about the dept of the cups and it’s importance to the bra construction. So, I figured out that I had shallow breasts with wide roots.

Via: r/ABraThatFits

Ths subreddit A Bra That Fits has a accurate explanation about this specific breast type, and I found really interesting things that I related to even when I didn’t know I was a shallow-breasted lady.

However, I live in a place where most of the bras still don’t have cup sizing, specially the ones with reasonable pricing. I travel usually once or twice a year, but I needed to know which bras should I focus when shopping outside Brazil – and the ones I should give a try when online shopping as well! I had the opportunity to ask on twitter and look on the thread above to find out some examples, besides the ones I’ve already tried, and make a quick list here:

Agent Provocateur

Agent Provocateur Fifi bra

Although the prices are a little higher that what I usually pay for lingerie, Agent Provocateur fits me really good. The cups are not too deep and I really like the designs. They don’t carry larger bust sizes and that makes sense, since their bras don’t seem to be able to hold and give support to big breasts. However, the 32D fits me nicely and whenever I know that there is a sale and I’m in Europe/US, I get there (their reduced prices are really good!).

Tutti Rouge

Picture featured at Bravissimo’s website

I’ve never tried Tutti Rouge, but I really love their designs. The Liliana bra is known for being good for shallow breasts, and you can find it in Tutti Rouge’s online store in three different colors, apart from all the other amazing designs. The bra goes up to a J cup, and it seems to be a very nice option for those with bigger breasts. Here’s a Review by That Bra Does not Fit Her, on The Lingerie Lesbian’s website! The little details seem to be part of the fun, too, and this is something I appreciate on lingerie pieces!

Victoria’s Secret PINK

Although I am not very fond of blue leopard print, I really love Chanel Iman’s face.

This is tricky, because they does not have a big size range and you can easily get misled to buy the wrong sized one. When I can find 32Ds I get them, even though a 30 band would fit me better, just because I think they are super comfortable, the price is good and yes – they are often pretty cute. At the moment, I only own one PINK bra, in plain black, and with some padding. Ok, kind of too much padding, but I really like it, so that’s not a problem.

Cleo by Panache

Lucy bra in a really basic-but-cute color!

Living in Brazil, with all the importing taxes problems, I’ve never tried Cleo by Panache. However, since I am going to Florida by the end of the year, it might just be on my wishlist! The size range is from 28D to 38J, which is really good, and it seems to work really well for full busted and plus sized girls. I’ve been told that the Lucy and the Marcie bras work the best for shallow breasts, so I’ll try them on to see which one looks gorgeous on me!

I didn’t want to make this a really long list, but I will probably be working on a second part! It will be really fun to see which ones are going to work well for me and then try them on to really review and see how they feel on my boobs. It’s really important to know the shape of your breasts to understand why bras fit you or don’t (for example: Marks & Spencer padded cups are a little too big on me, even though I wear it sometimes. Just by analyzing my breast shape that I could realize why this happens!).

Do you know any other bras for this shape? What bras work better for your shape?

Disclaimer: This post is connected to my last post in portuguese. It shows the results and comments of three girls I helped with my article. All of them feel more comfortable with new bras, even if some of them don’t fit perfectly. It’s extremely important to try on the bra you’re about to buy, but sometimes this is impossible (specially when shopping online from another country). 

Por conta da minha última postagem em português, aquela que ensina a achar o sutiã certo, recebi mensagens de mulheres que decidiram trocar seus sutiãs por uma versão do tamanho certo. É muito importante entender que as mulheres brasileiras não têm o exemplo diário do uso de sutiã com duas medidas, por isso muitas vezes é difícil compreender a importância ou se adaptar. É preciso manter suas medidas sempre atualizadas e buscar sempre juntar o conforto com a beleza. Foi isso que as três mulheres que aceitaram dividir suas histórias comigo fizeram.

Thai Miranda

Eu usava tamanho 40, 42 ou até mesmo 44 dos modelos das lojas Marisa e C&A. Eles deixavam meus seios tortos, deformados ou até mesmo sobrava espaço no bojo. Tanto sentia isso que me sentia desprotegida, não dava pra correr, por exemplo. 

 

Há alguns dias atrás eu fui pela primeira vez na Loungerie, provei cerca de 20 sutiãs tamanho 42B (ou 32B US) e estou muito feliz com o resultado! Finalmente o nome que minha mãe dá aos sutiãs faz sentido, eu amo meus novos segura-teta! 

 

Comentários: Você pode ter reconhecido essa imagem do nosso Guest Post, onde Thays contou sobre sua cinta liga da Kiss me Deadly!  O sutiã, a outra aquisição dela, também é lindo. Pela foto, fica um pouco difícil analisar precisamente, mas tenho minhas dúvidas quanto ao tamanho da taça. Acho que poderia ser um número maior, já que o aro parece estar terminando ainda no tecido dos seios dela. De qualquer forma, ela se sente confortável nesse, e isso é muito importante. De lado, conseguimos ver que os seios não são comprimidos dentro do sutiã, dando um formato muito bonito para eles.

 

Larissa Magdaleno

Demorei muito tempo pra me encontrar no mundo dos sutiãs. Eu sempre tentava me encaixar nas formas e tamanhos das lojas mas nunca funcionou muito, pois além de ter muito peito, minhas costas são largas. As taças nunca susentavam direito, o sutiã ficava subindo nas minhas costas, era um desconforto só.

 

Uma das maiores frustrações de ter seios grandes é que é difícil encontrar um sutiã em lojas mais em conta que sirvam e que não sejam de amamentação… mas enfim. Fui de loja em loja, gastei muito dinheiro à toa, mas agora finalmente aprendi como comprar o sutiã perfeito pra mim. Não adianta um meia-taça, nem muito fraquinho. Tem que sustentar, a taça tem que ser maior mesmo.

 

Eu tenho dois métodos pessoais pra comprar sutiã que vão além do olhar-tocar-medir-experimentar. Eu gosto de andar pela loja com o sutiã, correr e pular com ele. Se ele faz com que meus peitos pulem pra fora com o menor movimento, eu não compro. Pareço doida dentro da loja, mas ajuda bastante!

 

Esse sutiã rosa é da Miz couture, mas eu comprei numa loja física. É um dos mais bonitos que eu tenho, porque infelizmente é complicado comprar sutiãs lindos e maravilhosos pro meu tamanho (que varia entre o 48 e o 50D)  num preço que caiba no meu bolso. 

 

Comentários: A Larissa me enviou algumas outras fotos com um sutiã da Triumph que ela julgava mais confortável, mas com um tamanho errado. Mesmo esse rosa tem alguns “errinhos”. Para começar, o tamanho da taça é menor do que deveria, acredito que ela se sentiria mais segura e confortável em um tamanho maior. Como mencionei no sutiã da Thai, uma mulher com seios grandes deve, ao procurar por sustentação, tentar encontrar costuras horizontais e verticais, esse sutiã da Larissa tem somente a costura horizontal. Porém, só podemos avaliar a sustentação ao usá-lo, e acredito que pular pela loja seja realmente uma boa maneira de testar! Ainda assim, sugiro que a Larissa -ou qualquer outra mulher com um corpo parecido- procure em sites como o que a Thai encontrou, ou o Sophisticated Pair, onde sutiãs plus size/full bust são bastante encontrados!

 

Muitas vezes, pequenos erros são comuns. Mas mesmo assim, podemos entender que a possibilidade de encontrar um sutiã que caiba é muito boa e faz com que as mulheres se sintam melhor com seus corpos. É muito importante lembrar que não existe um tipo de corpo errado, que a roupa deve se acomodar em sua pele, não o contrário. Um sutiã bom pode mudar seu dia e fazer você amar seu corpo ainda mais!

Yesterday night I had a big surprise, since my Karolina Laskowska harness from her indiegogo campaign arrived. The good thing about living in a place where international packages take about a month to arrive is that you forget about it and it ends up coming a a surprise. It’s so nice!

Me in my new harness, it’s so pretty!

I really love the quality and the details, like the little velvet bow in the middle, or how the straps look on my ribcage. So I posted this photo on my personal instagram. Soon, I had friends saying they wanted one too! Then I decided it was time to post some harnesses that I loved, for my friends to have references or buy! And, of course, for me to remember which ones I am going to buy next. Just click on the image to be redirected to the store website!

Pentagram harness by Hopeless Lingerie

This has to be my favorite harness available. I really love the aesthetic and how it must look under a shirt. My first item on the harness wishlist.

Maja harness by Hopeless Lingerie

Inspired by the ocean and it’s creatures, the Maja harness is, in my opinion, the best item of Hopeless latest collection.

Kordelia harness by Karolina Laskowska

I am able, now, to say that Karolina’s products have an amazing quality and are definitely worth the price. This item looks like the one I got in the mail, so I would definitely recommend it.

These three styles by Esty Lingerie

I really like the choker straps by Esty. The options in different colors are good for the ones who try to escape from the black, but the Triple Chocker has to be my favorite! Although they are not exactly harnesses since they just strap around the neck, they are lovely accessories that couldn’t be out of my list!

Voyeur harness by Bordelle

This item is a little more… hardcore. A heavier look, for me, seems pretty nice, sometimes, so I couldn’t finish this list without a Bordelle accessory. The amount of rings and straps in this design is lovely, and I would love to style it with some jeans and a white shirt, or a little black dress, for a beautiful night outfit!

I love harnesses, and with this being my first one, I have intentions to buy lots of new ones. Would you buy one of these? Which one?

With this post I officially start the part of the blog which is about to be in Portuguese. Any news from brazilian brands or issues that I may find important, specially concerning fit, I will write for my brazilian readers to fully understand, until I can find a way to install a plugin to have both texts.

A marca de lingeries La Rouge Belle, de Lala Rudge, abriu sua primeira loja física em São Paulo, no dia 29/8. Situada no Shopping Iguatemi, a loja pretende criar um ambiente confortável e acolhedor para que as mulheres se sintam confortáveis (a loja tem carpete em toda a sua extensão!) em experimentar, escolher e comprar as peças, rodeadas de paredes cor de rosa e detalhes comuns da estética normalmente associada ao feminino.

Foto: Vogue Brasil

Segundo a marca, o objetivo das peças é conceituar a underwear como feminina, chique, atemporal, confortável e sexy, sempre com qualidade. Os produtos são divididos em seis linhas diferentes:

Essentiel: a roupa de baixo do dia a dia, mas com muita graça.

Mademoiselle: Linha mais jovem, com apelo divertido e descontraído.

Noir: Linha mais sofisticada, com seda, tules e cetim.

Bouquet: Uma linha toda em branco, destinada a noivas.

Chez Moi: Loungewear confortável para se sentir linda em casa.

Couture: Linha de lingeries feita somente com rendas francesas e seda.

Ainda não tive a possibilidade de conhecer ao vivo as peças, portanto não posso opinar no que diz respeito à qualidade e ao toque das peças. De qualquer forma, o design é diferente da maioria das marcas brasileiras, o que me agrada bastante (embora o tamanho dos sutiãs ainda se mantenha como o resto das marcas, eu sei da dificuldade de uma marca pequena se focar nisso por aqui). Quando tiver a possibilidade, pretendo conhecer a marca mais de perto, tirando fotos e dizendo o que achei das peças de verdade. Por enquanto, posso garantir que as fotos são lindas!

É sempre bom ver marcas novas e o esforço da comunidade de moda brasileira para dar à mulher mais oportunidades de se sentir bonita mesmo por baixo das roupas! Espero acompanhar o crescimento dos designs e descobrir cada vez mais coisas lindas da La Rouge Belle

I love panties. I could spend lots of time looking at my panties drawer and back to the mirror, trying to choose what I’m about to wear. It sound crazy, sometimes, but I know that when I’m wearing good underwear, my day turns a little better. 

However, there are days that I know I couldn’t wear thongs or any kind of panties that would make me slightly uncomfortable. It can be because I’m moody, it can be sadness, it can be growing hair or just the desire to feel as comfortable as possible. On those days, I look at my drawer and am absolutely thankful for my comfortable panties, specially the beautiful ones, because I really like the idea of feeling good without the sacrifice of wearing dull undergarments.

So, I thought I should share with you some of these, because I know you are crazy about panties too, and well… why not? We all have those days when we need a cup of tea/hot chocolate, a hug and pretty but comfortable panties. And just as a reminder: click on the image to get on the website!

Gap

I have one exactly like this. I find it very cute.

I bought these by accident (kind of). Searching for a sleeping shirt at a gap store, they were at sale and I am a lingerie freak. So I bought three. And I can assure you, I will buy more when I get to a Gap store again, because they are the most wonderful things. I find that lace give a nice touch to undergarments, I feel cute and sexy when wearing and I don’t even remember that I have panties on. Besides, the range of colors and models is really big so you can choose which one to wear, matching or mismatching a bra or your outerwear, in the style you feel more comfortable.

Victoria’s Secret PINK

Yes, I do love when they have funny things written. I bought one recently that looks like Wonder Woman’s underwear and I’m amazed by it.

Victoria’s Secret have a lot of issues, is not news to anyone that knows a little about lingerie. I feel no shame to admit, however, that I do like some of their stuff, specially the PINK ones. My drawer is full of their panties, because they are really, really comfortable. May not be the sexiest thing ever, so I don’t exactly wear them on a night out or when I wanna feel like a burlesque queen, but yes, I do love to have funny things written in my bum, or bright colors under my jeans. Whenever I travel outside Brazil, I know it’s time to change some of my panties, so I take advantage of the cheap price on these and buy some (at least 5, to be honest, since buying 5 is cheaper than buying 3!).

Miss Crofton

Miss Crofton offers high-waisted options, so if you like this style, I would highly recommend trying the brand.

I am a student, so low budget is an item I take in account when buying panties. I have been given the opportunity to try a Miss Crofton set and I definitely put it in my beautiful-and-comfortable list, but I couldn’t buy more to say I have a collection. I can completely agree that the price is worth, since they are all handmade and I thing we should be buying more from independent designers. Anyway, Georgia’s garments are lovely, the bras being as comfortable as the panties and the styles absolutely beautiful. 

Topshop

Kittens! I have one with birds and one with colored dots. They are all so cute.

I am a Topshop lover. When it comes to panties, this is no different, since they are cheap and the nicest thing ever. The prints make me more amazed, and the price -even when shopping in Brazil’s Topshop!- is really nice, absolutely compatible to the garment they offer. Having tons of styles, models and prints, I am always caught by the chiffon ones. The lace brazilians are amazing, too, but not as comfortable as this. Hint: I buy it one size bigger so it’s even better!

I hope you find my tips really useful, since, as I stated above, I understand the need of comfortable things, but can’t cope with ugly ones. Do you have your own favorite brand for these panties? How do you feel about this situation and what do you have in your panties drawer to get through these days?

Last and next weekend, here in Rio de Janeiro, we are having a huge event: one of the biggest music festivals in the world, Rock in Rio, is back to the city. The first and most emblematic edition was in 1985 -with Freddie Mercury singing Love of My Life along with the public- and since then, we had five editions in Rio de Janeiro, five in Lisbon and three in Madrid. Nowadays, the festival celebrates all kinds of music, giving space not only to Rock and Roll but to Pop music, Electronic, Metal and many others, including the energetic brazilian Axé.

Freddie Mercury at the Rock in Rio festival in 1985

Since I’ve been to two days of the festival, with the main attractions Beyoncé and Justin Timberlake, I decided it was a good day to start the “Inspirations” posts! I should remember that this is not literal, and by that I mean that I would not wear none of the lingerie shown here at any music festival (a tip for festivals where you are about to dance and get covered in sweat at hot weather for 12 hours is to wear underwear you don’t like that much. I have some old, badly fitted bras that I save for this kind of thing). I guess I just love appreciation posts and is always a good time for looking at beautiful pieces that reminds me of music and the artists passing through Rock in Rio festival 2013!

Chantal Thomass starlette – winter 2013

This line by Chantal Thomass reminds me of a grunge chic aesthetic, with this tartan print and the bits of black lace. Made is satin, it’s still a luxury, even with a touch of casual. It has a “cool” style, very beautiful, and a good option for the ones trying to run from the sweet garments and pastel tones.

Oriental Bird line by Beautiful Bottoms

One of the attractions playing at the festival was Florence + the Machine, and I think this robe could be related to the style I imagine to be coordinated to her songs. Birds are my favorite, and this line by Beautiful Bottoms have a beautiful color and seems to be very, very light – just like Florence’s movements on the stage.

Claudette dessous bras

When I have my mind on pop songs, i think about color. It may be because I relate it to fun and dancing, but Claudette’s ‘dessous’ bras are available in so many different colors and color combinations that I am sure that I could dance to a thousand different songs in front of the mirror, each in a different bra. 

What do you think about my options? Do you have any other piece you would like to relate to some special song, band or style?

Karolina Laskoska is launching her new collection, the one she designed and produced with the help of the indiegogo campaign. Her lookbook is ready and she shared with us the beautiful images of her pieces.

This collection is split in two. With couture French lace with the elastics -a signature of her brand-, the first half of it comes in black and ivory, with different styles and new things. The elastics give an edgy feeling, but the delicate lace, along with bows all over the garments, makes it delicate and suitable even for the most classically feminine woman.

The second part of the collection has another focus: upcycling. The handpicked kimono silks, making unique deisngs in modern inspired silhouettes. Each piece is different form the other and it features mini knickers, high-waisted briefs, waspies and lovely nipple pasties with Swarovski crystals.

I really loved the images and how she adapted the new fabrics in her style! Her work always impresses me, in quality and style. The old designs are available on her website, in the new Classics section. All her pieces are available there, too, to order. 

As you all may know, Fleur of England is one of my favorite luxury brands. Their particular style pleases me very much, making me sigh at the glimpse of every image I get to see. With the new collections, this was no different.

Belle de Nuit is my new favorite

With bespoke designs, this season has it’s five main designs representing one important aspect in the brand’s opinion, the moods of the woman who wears Fleur of England. In the words of Fleur, “this season is all about being spoilt, loved and treasured”. Their unique designs and craftsmanship make the garments fascinating and very desirable.

Flirtation

Truffle, which we talked about here before, is the Romantic mood, with the new shapes of the belted kimono and the camisole, along with the French eyelash lace and the satin.

Flirtation, the Playful mood, combines pink eyelash lace with transparent midnight lace. The result is fun and teasing, adding luxuries to everyday or to some special moments. The classic Fleur shapes, renewed by the pink touch, look gorgeously cute, with lots of personality.

Flirtation

Geisha represents the Luxurious mood, with Italian lace and bespoke fabrics. The artisan collection features push up plunges, focusing on the cleavage, and the classics kimono and babydoll – items much loved.

Emerald, the Powerful mood, make in impression with jewel-toned silk and lace, modern shapes on the suspenders and plunge bra. The elastics have 24 carat gold details, making it even more brilliant and marvelous, full of sex appeal.

Emerald

Then comes Belle de Nuit, my favorite. I could imagine it would be my preference when it was described with the mood Fiercely Feminine, but I could never imagine that I would love it so much. The guipure embroidery -my personal favorite detail from Fleur of England- comes in black and it’s designed in-house, making it even more exclusive. Full of tulle and silk-satin, the silhouettes are dark and powerful, featuring new shapes such as the push-up plunge and the baroque body and lovely details, like the covered buttons.

the baroque bodypiece

Overall, the new collections follow the style proposed by the brand, and the decision to separate each line by a different mood is smart and helpful, since lingerie deals with, among other things, the imagination. Belle de Nuit, as I stated, is my favorite part, the black guipure lace together with the tulle in different shapes made me put it on my luxury wishlist. By choosing to work with the best fabrics and different shapes, Fleur of England keeps us amazed, full of desire for every piece they make.

The Autumn Winter 13 collections are available at their website and the retailers, ready to adorn powerful bodies who want the best in luxury undergarments.

Belle de Nuit. This brief will be mine, I swear it will.

The Naked Princess website is up.

When I found out about them, last week, I really liked the pieces and images. Besides the great name (I would like to be a naked princess, if the concept of princess includes staying the whole day laid in silk sheets eating the sweets presented on the Marie Antoinette film), the brand demonstrate a great concept on comfort and lounge – it’s a lifestyle brand after all.

Their focus is on the confidence of the wearer, by highlighting the figure and adding romanticism with high-quality products made from great materials, including chantilly lace, cashmere and silk charmeuse.

Besides the range of undergarments and loungewear pieces, they feature body and lip products, trying to ensure that the skin wearing the pieces is absolutely well-treated. This is something I like to see in lingerie stores, because I feel comfortable with it, I feel the desire to take care of my body and feel even better when wearing the pieces.

The lipglosses are made to be non-irritable and have a little lip plump, with nice and sweet shades. In addition to them, there is a body soufflé and what I guess it’s my favorite item on the beauty section: massage candles. The ones you can use to enlighten the boudoir, leaving it with a great smell, and use for… sensual movements, later. I guess this fits perfectly the proposal of the brand.

I really love discovering new brands and getting in touch with them, specially when I get to share informations with all of you. I hope to see more and more of Naked Princess in the future and will definitely try to be in contact with some of their pieces when I get to visit the US (you will probably see them on my Miami Wishlist, soon). Maybe the candles? Maybe some nightgown? Maybe it all? You can find the products (and where to find them if you are willing to buy on a real store) on the website.

Autumn and Spring are different seasons. Usually, in Autumn people are experiencing the cold weather starting to come, and in Spring, the hot weather coming with the sun. When children, we learn the difference between yellow leaves falling, pumpkins and cozy sweaters, and bright colors, flowers growing and nice printed dresses.

But I live in a place where the weather does not get colder than 13C (around 55F) and can go up to 42C in January (that would be more than 100F). So, basically, since we usually have weather around 20~30C, Fall and Spring have… quite the same weather. Of course, when it gets closer to Winter or to Summer, we can spot the difference, but it’s not much.

I decided to thin about nightwear, since I can’t decide if I want to be in warm pijamas or in sexy camisoles. But hey – it’s my lingerie blog, I can just pretend I afford everything of my wishlist and tell you all the night and loungewear I would like to have on my body in this middle seasons.

Belle de Nuit by Fleur of England

Have I told you before that Belle de Nuit is my new favorite Fleur of England collection? I know I did, but I could tell you all over again, because it really is so much beauty that I find hard to deal with it. Anyway, I will find a way to get this silk babydoll, I really am. It would fit every season i could possibly imagine and it’s my ultimate desire in nightwear right now.

The lovely Mosh wears Dottie’s Delights Frou Frou Robe

This robe by Dottie’s Delights is another item I’ve wanted for a long time, now. It would definitely make me warm enough to walk around the house in style, write in style, eat midnight snacks in style… ok, you got the idea. I just think about how many items I could combine this with… so many beautiful things…

Gold Hawk Floral Lace Shorts

Shorts are  good option for someone who -like me- loves to sleep wrapped in blankets. This one, by Gold Hawk, is so lovely and seems super comfortable. I can feel how much my body wants this amount of nice fabric in it… it’s so adorable! And the colors are very close to a Fall color pallet, which would be nice all year round!

Betty Blue’s Loungerie Nell Robe

Luxury.So much luxury. This could be combined with every black thing in my wardrobe, or red, or just… wore alone. It’s available in Frou Frou Fashionista and I want one, really do! Not exactly the kind of thing I wear on an everyday basis, but could I resist it?

This graphic, along with this introduction, was written by Jessie King as a contribution to the blog! The graphic was written, at first, to the Triactol website, which is no longer online. Jessie allowed me to share it, as I think it’s very interesting.

Are you still wearing the same kind of bras for all activities? Do you know as women, our bodies have different requirements at different stages of life, and even for lingerie?

One of the most important reasons we wear bras are to get the right support. It’s not only when you have just started to develop breasts that you need a different bra. During pregnancy and nursing, when doing sports, after surgery, and even when you are reaching a certain age, your breasts would need bras with different shapes, materials and designs so as to get the right support. More importantly, it will make you feel more comfortable and confident as well!

Have a look at the graphic below to help you understand why we need different bras, as well as which ones to choose accordingly:

If you follow me on twitter, you probably heard me talking about my “corset course”. I am writing about it once a month to Stitched Up, Corsetry facebook group, too!

I’ve engaged in a new pattern cutting and sewing course, this time about corselettes and corsets.  Although these pieces are very different from bras, they are by no means easier to make. I have a nice tutor and she helps me through every step of the process. I’ve only made one corselette until now (she told me we could not call that a corset because of some differences on the sewing process, and the boning could be made in plastic, but I decided to do it in steel).

For my first piece, I wanted something very classical, so I bought all the materials to do a black denim underbust!

I drew a pattern based on my body measurements!

After lots of cutting, understanding aspects of the pattern, sewing together, finding out I did something wrong, cutting the stitches, sewing again and lots of other small parts of the process, I could visualize my corselette coming together. The best part of designing or sewing, in my opinion, is the time we get excited to see the piece ready.

A lot of pattern pieces together – and it didn’t look like an underbust at all by this point.

But soon I did a bit of ironing and more sewing and it looked so beautiful!

So, it finally turned out to be something very, very beautiful!

That’s me!

My waist is usually 63cm and I turned it into about 58cm. It’s a bit too much for someone not used to waist reductions, but I really like it! I am going to wear to a party this weekend, with a beautiful black dress, I am so excited! I really loved to share those pictures with you, so you can all see how my process on making lingerie items is going!

I am already designing my new underbust one. It’s gonna be a bit different this tim,e but you will have to wait a bit more to see how it goes!

Fleur of England released another great collection, this week.

photo courtesy of Fleur of England

I always get excited when this happens, because they are one of my favorite luxury brands. The Geisha line is somewhat different from many of the things they have, but still carries an aura of sophistication and luxury. Lace, combined with the amazing bespoke print -it’s a photographic print based on Fleur’s garden!- come together in beautiful pieces like silk pyjama trousers and camisoles and a push up bra to add extra cleavage (these are my favorite bras!).

Babydolls, panties… Fleur of England keeps the good work by presenting another lovely collection! Fleur, the designer and owner, seems to be very close to every process of the making, adding personal touches and leading a great group towards success – always. That is the reason I was crazy about the idea of asking her a few questions! Personally, as a Fashion Design student, I admire her work very much, so I decided to do a quick interview and she promptly answered everything, making me appreciate her designs and work even more! I hope you like her answers as much as I did:

photo courtesy of Fleur of England

Under the Unders: Lingerie may seem simple when we wear, but I know the process of designing and producing these pieces is hard. What is the hardest thing about it and what part do you think that brings the most pleasure?

Fleur: I love so many part of the process-  finding colours and doing the initial moodboards.  I love lace! So I specifically love doing lace placements and experimenting with how the fabrics can work together.  I absolutely love when the first samples come in – it is so exciting to see all the work come to life in luxurious silk and lace lingerie! The most difficult part is having to decide if there are any pieces we are not going to include in the collection.  Sometimes a piece just doesn’t sit as well as the others so we take it out.  That is sad as so much love and care has gone into its design.  Each product has a story to tell.

photo courtesy of Fleur of England

Under the Unders: Fleur of England is a luxury brand that carries plenty of different collections, each one with it’s particular style and details. Who is the Fleur of England woman? Considering there are many styles, there are, too, many different women portrayed in the collections? Or just one woman, able to fit many styles and personalities?

Fleur: The Fleur of England woman is stylish, confident and knows what she wants.  We design under five moods – romantic, powerful, playful, luxurious and fiercely feminine. I think one woman could have all of these traits.  So these designer lingerie collections can suit her every mood – any time of day.

We also have a lot of men buying on the site – we have a great guide to explain how to buy her the perfect lingerie as a luxury gift.

photo courtesy of Fleur of England

Under the Unders: Since we are talking about women, who is your greatest female inspiration? Who would you love to dress?

Fleur: My greatest female style inspirations are Coco Chanel and Audrey Hepburn – they are just so perfectly classic. I really respect Stella McCartney in terms of design. I think my true greatest inspiration is The Queen of England – she is just incredible – her tenacity and devotion to our country.

As a brand we would love to dress Lady Gaga to make her something completely unique.

photo courtesy of Fleur of England

I am a feminist.

More than anything, Under the Unders is a way to celebrate being a woman myself and the existence of all the other women in the world. Being a woman may be hard sometimes, but by feeling good with ourselves is an important step to achieving place in this society ruled by men. Some ladies, through history, became icons because they were brave and talented enough to break these social barriers of gender, and ended up being famous for it.

Image courtesy of Blackbird Underpinnings. Photo by Kelly Puleio.

Blackbird Underpinnings is launching their debut line. The aim of it is to “celebrate the unique beauty in every woman by promoting self­‐expression and authenticity.”, according to designer and co­‐founder Marin Camille Hood. When I found out about it, I got so excited! The world definitely need more pieces celebrating the beauty in our bodies, the vintage-inspired ones made by Blackbird were a great contribution.

The MAVEN collection is inspired by five iconic women: Édit Piaf, Anaïs Nin, Josephine Baker, Marlene Dietrich and Coco Chanel. Just like those women, the undergarments represent confidence, creativity, and authenticity as key elements, and are very, very beautiful!

Image courtesy of Blackbird Underpinnings. Photo by Kelly Puleio.

However, the collection may not be completed without our help. As many other small lingerie brands, Blackbird Underpinnings have to struggle with huge costs of production and other things related to designing and selling. So, for the collection to be released, they have started a Kickstarter campaign, offering lots of rewards for the ones who are willing to contribute. Some of those are pieces from the new collection: the Édit crushed velvet knickers, the Anaïs silk charmeuse bralette, the Josephine silk charmeuse bloomers, the Marlene silk charmeuse camisole and my favorite: the Coco silk charmeuse romper. All in classic colors and luxurious fabrics, as you can see in the pictures.

Image courtesy of Blackbird Underpinnings. Photo by Kelly Puleio.

Image courtesy of Blackbird Underpinnings. Photo by Kelly Puleio.

Image courtesy of Blackbird Underpinnings. Photo by Kelly Puleio.