Wednesday 31 December 2014

New Year’s Lingerie Resolutions - keep it safe, keep it clean and how to deal with unwanted Christmas underwear!

Lingerie needs security in China

The story of how one Chinese underwear nabber was foiled by the sheer volume of lingerie he’d pilfered might look like a surprising one-off, but we know better! This particular knicker thief, named only as Tan, lives in the Guangxi region. He used a master key to break into neighbouring flats and steal underwear which he then stashed under the acoustic tiles in corridors and stairways in the building he inhabited. Eventually there were so many items in his hoard that a ceiling tile collapsed, strewing underwear sets down a stairway, and leading to the police being involved. The cache was so huge that police officers carried it downstairs and laid it out on the pavement outside the building … more than 2,000 sets of women’s underwear were extracted from the building’s ceiling areas.

The man concerned has admitted that he may have a mental illness and says he cannot recall when his obsession with stealing underwear began. But he’s not an isolated incident. In Hubei a man has been charged with stealing women’s lingerie to wear himself and in Zhejiang province a man was arrested for stealing 17 pairs of women’s knickers in a single day!

Dirty undies taken to a whole new level

Undercover reporters in New Jersey, USA, have been investigating what major stores do with returned underwear. And it’s not nice! The team bought lingerie from Bloomingdale’s, Macy’s Marshalls, Nordstrom, The Gap, Victoria’s Secret and Wal-Mart, then removed all the tags that suggested the garment was unworn and put tiny black dots on the manufacturer’s labels so they could identify items they’d previously purchased. They then returned the garments to the stores. And …

Bloomingdale’s and Macy’s, Nordstrom and The Gap made the returned goods vanish - they simply didn't reappear on the shop floor. But at Marshall’s and Victoria’s Secret underwear and swimsuits that had been purchased had new tags put on them and were put straight back on the shop floor. What’s even worse is that the swimsuit had its protective liner removed, making it completely clear that the item was not brand new. Still the Marshall’s staff put it back out for sale. And at Wal-Mart, even though one of the sales team actually questioned whether the underwear should be redisplayed, it was! The companies went on to admit their failings and said they would re-educate their staff.

How to deal with the wrong lingerie!

It’s such a disappointment when we’ve dropped all those hints and yet we get given something … unfortunate, for Christmas. Lingerie in the wrong size, the wrong colour or just inappropriate for our personalities - most women have had experience of this at one time or another. So how do you deal with it? First, don’t drop hints! We got quite explicit with our lingerie lists this year - one of us even bookmarked the Shirley of Hollywood black corset she wanted on her partner’s laptop.

Stuck with something unsuitable, our suggestion is to be honest but tactful and to ask about exchange policies. For example, “Darling, that basque is lovely but it’s just a bit too big/small/shows under my favourite dress - does the retailer have an exchange policy? I’d just love to get something that fits better/
works with the dress you bought me last year/looks right under that low cut top you love so much.”

The truth is that nobody is going to look or feel great underwear that doesn’t fit or feels uncomfortable, and your partner didn’t intend to get you something that doesn’t work for you, so a frank but loving question, followed by a swift exchange of garments, is the best possible result. We have a generous and clear returns policy for this very reason … and it’s one reason our clients come back to us time and again.



But suppose the item isn’t returnable or exchangeable for some reason? One of the lingerie.co.uk team has the best story, although it takes quite a bit of nerve to carry it off. Given a rather scratchy and too tight thong by her then fiancee, and discovering it couldn’t be exchanged, she went out for lunch with him at a posh restaurant. “Guess what I’m wearing,” she whispered to him, and then told him. Just before their desserts arrived, she went to the ladies and when she returned, whispered again … “Guess what I’m not wearing any more…” Sure enough, her thrilled partner guessed she was not sporting the thong and when they got home and he found out for sure that she was naked under her dress, he was so delighted by her naughtiness that her apology, a couple of weeks later, that she must have dropped the thong from her bag after taking it off, more than made up for never seeing the offending garment again!

Sunday 28 December 2014

Winter Solstice lingerie news …

Partnerships to look forward to in 2015

Rita Von Teese and Christian Louboutin - a lingerie link up that we can’t wait to see. The lingerie line, designed by Dita is labelled XXXtian in homage to Christian’s signature Xtian. This is the first time the French shoe designer has entered the lingerie market so it’s going to be an interesting departure for him. Dita’s capsule connection is a seven piece, including bra, suspenders and kimono and the price starts at £68.00 per item.

Wearing your Christmas lingerie like a pro

If you’ve ever watched those lingerie models in TV adverts and wondered how they manage to look so effortlessly sexy, we’ve got some tips to help you wear Christmas present underwear as naturally, and sexily, as they do.

1.    Start with your regular daywear - of course your lover wants to see you in your scanties, but you need to feel comfortable too and that means that you need to choose outwear that you feel happy and confident in. Blouses and stretchy skirts are easy to get in and out of, whilst tight trousers/leggings and huge jumpers can look ungainly as you try to strip them off.
2.    Make a scene - if you’re modelling your Xmas presents at home, set the mood by choosing music, lighting candles (closing the curtains so nobody gets a sneak peek!) and making sure the room is warm and your partner has somewhere to recline and watch you. If you’ve been given a sexy fancy dress outfit, like our super-cute playing doctors dressup set, consider adding a few props to your display, like cocktails served in test tubes or bandages to tie your lover to the bed in a little light bondage scenario.
3.    Don’t drink too much - Dutch courage rarely works the way we want it to. Whilst a single drink can be a great mood booster, more than a couple of tipples will leave you adrift from the moment and, in the worst of scenarios, shaky, clumsy or even throwing up! So keep the rest of the booze till after your little ‘show and tell’ and reward yourself with a second glass once the excitement is over.
4.    Take your time - dress as slowly as you’ll undress, that gives you a chance to experience your new undies for yourself and to get into the right mood to give a lovely experience to your loved one. Listen to your favourite music, take a little time to pamper yourself, and relax.
5.    Have fun - if what you’ve been given doesn’t make you feel good, there’s no need to wear it. You are bound to have something sexy and confidence building in your drawer or cupboard that you can wear and look and feel great in. The point of this experience is for you both to enjoy it and if your new lingerie doesn’t contribute to the mood, dump the gift and go for the tried and trusted garment that delivers. Once New Year’s over you can decide whether to tackle your lover about an exchange of items or just let the undies slip to the back of the drawer …

Lingerie hotel



If you’re thinking of a quick and dirty break between Christmas and New Year, our new fave haunt is Hotel Vice Versa, Paris. Kitted out entirely by lingerie designer Chantal Thomass on the theme of the Seven Deadly Sins (lust, envy, sloth, gluttony, pride, greed or wrath) the rich and elegant interiors are designed to provoke at atmosphere of luxurious thrill-seeking romance… it’s absurdly easy to get sexy in this environment!