Plus size, perfect size and selfie assisting - our week in weird and wonderful lingerie

Perfect underwear - the Fifty Shades of Grey way

Our ears pricked up when we heard that plus size lingerie model Ashley Graham was planning to create her own line of bondage inspired underwear, based around Fifty Shades of Grey. It’s not that we’re not in favour of plus size lingerie, because we are. And we love to see lingerie designed by models, because few people know exactly what makes sexy underwear sexy, and comfortable, better than underwear models. It was her comment that she could, ‘… find sexy bras and I could find supportive bras, but it was never sexy and supportive together’  We couldn’t help wondering where she’d been looking! Because we’ve got some gorgeous and supportive lingerie in plus sizes … just compare our Rose Princess babydoll with the stylish lingerie being worn by Ashley herself in this picture - affordable, wearable and wonderful underwear from lingerie.co.uk!

Physically perfect women - the Greek way

We also noticed a story about the Golden Ratio which claimed that Scarlett Johansson is the closest living person to physical perfection according to the Greeks. So how does this Golden Ratio work?  It’s a comparison of the bust, waist and hip measurements against an ideal created by their philosophy of perfection. Scarlett’s score was 96.4% closeness to the ideal, which makes her the most physically perfect (famous) woman around. Kim Kardashian came second - with a 96.3% match to the ratio, whilst third was … Helen Mirren with 95.6%!

Are you wondering how you measure up? We’d really suggest that you’re gorgeous just as you are. Because any theory about beauty can only be that - a theory, and that’s not the same as living, breathing beauty. Also, we know one thing for certain … every woman lies about her vital statistics from time to time!

Selfie supporting bras - the Triumph way

Triumph, the bra company, has a research arm that spends its entire time designing bras that will never be on public sale. You might wonder why, but the reason is very simple - by pushing the boundaries of what lingerie can do, they find out more about the human body, and what women want from their underwear. As a result, they can make mass market bras that really work.

So what’s their latest invention, a bra and pantie set that lights up to emphasis your cleavage, gives you a little pep talk whenever you feel down and even packs a selfie stick (in the pantie pocket) to help you take perfect pics of yourself in your undies. it can also count the number of steps you take in a day and measure you heart rate.

A week of lingerie and masculinity - we’re all about the boy!

Sexy undies for guys

Yes, this week has been all about the boy. The first story that caught our attention was HommeMystere. This company has been around for a while, but has had a massive relaunch to target the growing market for lingerie for men.

Now, this may come as a surprise to you, given that we sell a lot of very sexy underwear for men, but HommeMystere do something a little different - their lingerie is like that made for women, but designed to fit men instead. As the company website puts it, “A growing number of guys are discovering the comfort of lightweight lingerie style underwear.”

It’s an interesting concept and we’re definitely keen on the men in our lives exploring their more feminine side in whatever way works for them, but we’re not sure that Homme Mystere is as on target as they think they are. Our experience is that one of the delights of wearing women’s underwear - for a guy - is that it is women’s underwear. What men want in sexy underwear is … sexiness! That’s why our stock includes the red hot (but actually bright pink) Robin thong by Sensualle - sexy, masculine and definitely lingerie!

Bahrain votes against lingerie displays

But the world is a highly varied place and over in Bahrain, lingerie is under scrutiny - or perhaps it’s not!

The Southern Governorate Municipal Council voted to change some lingerie rules recently. Based on some ‘complaints from the public’ about ‘inappropriate window displays’ they passed not one but two new regulations. First that scantily-clad mannequins be removed from shop windows because they were “unacceptable". According to the leader of the council, they have regularly asked for female mannequins to be removed, but been ignored. Now they have a rule - mannequins must be modestly dressed - no ‘provocative garments’ to be displayed. According to the leader of the council, “Everyone knows what women's lingerie and underwear shops are, so going full frontal is unacceptable.”

But that’s just half the story. The other half is that female customers have been made to feel embarrassed when buying underwear from male salesmen. this proposal was put by the Committee Chairman who stated that it was not a religious position, because that was clear but that the concern was, “… about the idea of men telling women they are not related to which nightgowns would look good on them”. As he went on to say, “There is an issue with a male staring at a woman's body to estimate her measurements.” Now we definitely agree there, although not in the moral sense - men are notoriously incapable of correctly estimating a woman’s size and shape! Still, Bahrain seems to be missing the point - the answer to the problem is simple - buy your sexy lingerie online!

No lingerie in Kansas, more in India and our top tips for a new spring look for your underwear drawer

Toto, I have a feeling we’re not in Kansas any more …

Kansas Governor Sam Brownback signed a bill this month that says what welfare recipients are not allowed to spend their benefits on. Yes, that’s right, in the USA you are not allowed to spend your benefits as you wish in 24 of the fifty states. Usually the rules ban expenditure on alcohol, gambling, and tobacco but Kansas has gone way further … tattoos, swimming pools and lingerie are outlawed too!

Now we struggle with this idea more than somewhat and we’re not alone. Many commentators, including opposition politicians, have described the legislation as “mean spirited” and “highly judgemental”. Our problem is that several of the rulings, such as not attending swimming pools and buying lingerie are likely to be counterproductive: physical health and self esteem both tend to start with a positive body image, and those with self esteem and good health are much more likely to seek work and be able to hold down jobs. If, as Brownback suggests, the legislation is mean to “Encourage people to get back into the marketplace, get back into the job market,” then we think they should insisting on lingerie, not banning it!

India goes undie crazy

A recent study  by a retail consultancy shows that in the next ten years, India’s demands for lingerie, denim and T-shirts will outstrip all other garment sales. Saris on the other hand, will drop in popularity.  Sari sales will grow around 6% whilst lingerie, jeans and T-shirts will increase around 15% each.

Why?  First, India has the youngest population in the world. And Indian youth is much more aware global trends than any previous generation. The taboos around sex and appearance are also less oppressive for them, as they are exposed to a wider range of influences than the notoriously modest bollywood films. Cost is a factor too - a sari can cost 50,000 rupees, whilst jeans are between 2,000 and 4,000 rupees and high quality lingerie starts round 80 rupees.

Spring in your lingerie

If, like us, you’ve just been chucking out those old dingy knickers and thinking about an underwear spring clean, we have three suggestions to spruce up your look:

1.     Playful playsuit - beautiful playsuits are just good fun! First, they are crossover garments, you can use them as a beach cover-up or as seductive lingerie, second they are usually generously cut so everybody looks and feels great in them and third, they are light-hearted, bringing a sense of springtime play and simple enjoyment to your life. Sweet Paula in blue is our fave for spring glamour!

2.     Cunningly comfortable nightie - the box set and Netflix have changed the way we dress for our evenings at home and the (relative) acceptance of onesies and pyjamas as streetwear (at least for students) has driven a new awareness of the nightie. Getting just the right nightie can be a boon - casual enough for an evening of curry and your favourite catch-up TV, but cute enough to fling into a weekend bag for a surprise trip away with your honey, this garment really earns its way. We love Lise Charmel’s boheme glamour for its springlike prints.

3.     Heavenly hold ups - much more practical than you may have thought, hold ups are the perfect spring lingerie. While they are undoubtedly sexy, they also have a fashion value - try pastel hold ups with Daisy Duke shorts for a fresh spring look, and if the weather turns chilly without warning as it so often does in spring, a pair of hold ups in your handbag can take you from chilly to cosy in a couple of seconds - and you’ll look great too! Le Bourget’s hold ups are called Essentials for a reason - once you’ve worn a pair of these alluring stockings you’ll know you need them forever!