Because you can't have depths without surfaces.
Linda Grant, thinking about clothes, books and other matters.
Pure Collection Ltd.
Net-a-porter UK

Tuesday 18 December 2007

Poll: Lingerie


Some women will spend the earth for fabulous lingerie, even if only they know it's there. Others regard it as underpinnings, bring on the Spanx!

Go and cast your vote, to the right.

18 comments:

Elizabeth said...

I have a really inexpensive cotton thong ($5) that I bought in a trendy teen-age store. I love it. I have a Cosabella lace thong I bought in Nordstrom ($23). I love it.

I guess it doesn't matter how much it was, as long as it works for you.

Susan B said...

If the lingerie is to be worn under clothing, then functionality and comfort take the day. If not, well.... ;-)

Linda Grant said...

But that surely is the nub of the problem. You want lingerie to wear to make your clothes look better and lingerie to wear when you take the clothing off.

Anonymous said...

Before baby number one - gorgeous lingerie at any cost. Now, after baby number five, I am just happy when I can find a $4 cotton thong in the laundry pile in order to pull it on.

Susan B said...

That is indeed the problem. What I've found is that the "pretty" (e.g. lacy, skimpy) lingerie really isn't very comfortable to wear for hours on end and in the case of bras, doesn't provide the needed support (or gives one "quadra-boob", not pretty under a sweater).

Under most clothes, I'm a Wacoal and Spanx girl.

Anonymous said...

I love beautiful lingerie and buy it just for myself. Have found a wonderful brand that is so ,so beautiful and also so, so expensive. But what the heck, if I can afford it and it feels fine,the sizing always matches,so I don´t need to fit it on every time, it´s totally MY own business!

Kai Jones said...

Lingerie can only be beautiful if it makes me feel beautiful. Hence it must give me the necessary support and fit (e.g., a bra), be comfortable (I don't think beauty requires pain, just the opposite, how can you relax and be beautiful if you're uncomfortable?), wear well (can't be worrying about your lingerie getting torn or a strap breaking) *and* be lovely to look at. And it must do all this at a price that wouldn't feed a starving child for month.

Based on what I own, I usually settle for the first 3, in my price category. Those are hard enough to find as it is.

Anonymous said...

Being a 75 DD girl the only choice in bras I have is "Do I want the really pretty one or the one even my grandmother would consider damn ugly?".
Both cost the same, so for me, it's pretty underwear.

Anonymous said...

I guess because I have a "thing" against expensive stuff that falls apart, for me I'll pay good money for well-built bras and "undies", but I won't pay a lot for stuff that I know will be in rags after just a few wearings.

Anonymous said...

They say: A girl needs underwear, but a girl wants lingerie.

For a 32E sized person, sturdily-built underwear, that does not look like erstwhile coal-miners put it together, means seeking good quality lingerie.

Contrary to impressions, not all lingerie falls apart quickly; you get what you pay for, even in lingerie. I pay top pound (in the UK, no dollar) for it and they last.

Contrary to impressions, lingerie can be comfortable 24h a day. I know from experience.

The key is to go to a lingerie shop where assistants know what they are doing; then say 'no' when you mean 'no'; and once you start using them pretty pieces, hand-wash them.

Too much for you? I think you deserve tatty underwear and no more. ;-)

Even without invoking Tad Safran, British ladies can learn something from American sisters. I am neither so for me, it is fun from the sidelines.

Mopsa said...

Pretty stuff is yummy, but it needs to work on the farm too - ie no drooping shoulder straps or too-low cut cups. And if more than 18 years old surely we should leave them thongs alone (at least for day wear). Wear what you like for seduction of course!

http://mopsa.blogspot.com/2007/04/girly-undies.html

Teresa said...

Fit and comfort first. Hopefully one can find something pretty that does both. I've bought some very uncomfortable "pretty" things - they got tossed in a drawer and never worn after the first time.

Right now I need to make time to buy some more good things. I tend to forget because outerwear is more of an issue for me. That and the fact that I wear a 38B bra which for some reason is a scarce commodity in retail stores in the US (although it can easily be ordered online).

Glamourpuss said...

Lingerie is my passion; more than any other garments, frilly smalls make my soul sing.

Puss

Thomas said...

I am one of those men on whom lingerie is simply lost. I say one of those, but for all I know I am the only one. I simply don't get it - I find none of it flattering or attractive, and am always amazed that it sells so well. If it makes women feel sexy then I can have no protest, but I wonder how much of that is the male gaze. This may be a circular argument, but I wonder if women would feel sexy in it regardless of what men think.

Anonymous said...

I spend a small fortune on my lingerie collection. I pay top dollar for quality lingerie that looks and feels amazing. Sometimes you just need a plain, smooth, T-shirt bra for some garments. But more often (especially now that it's sweater weather) I can put out something a little more lacey and frilly and no one is the wiser. And I do - every day.

Thomas - in short, yes I would.

I've dated guys who loved lingerie, guys who liked it OK, and guys who couldn't care less about it (or found it unattractive). Curiously enough, my lingerie collection really boomed while I was dating the latter. I knew he didn't care for my pieces but that never stopped me from wearing them. And when we broke up, I bought myself a little present - a painfully sexy bra. No man was going to see it, but I wanted it for myself. I like feeling gorgeous as I dress an undress. What a great way to start and end every day!

Anonymous said...

I wear "serviceable" lingerie most of the time -- t-shirt bras and french cut panties are the staple -- but I love pretty unmentionables. The challenge is to find comfortable ones in my size -- a 40C on top and an 18 on the bottom.

My favorite "secret weapon" consists of a red bra and red lace boyshorts, which I wear not only to seduce, but when I've got a big meeting or event coming up. Even though nobody knows I've got them on but me, that boost of confidence goes a looooong way on the days when my batteries are a little flat.

Anonymous said...

Tom, you're not the only one. My fellas (yep, both) are much more interested in skin than fabric. Undies for me should be (i) comfortable; (ii) discreet; (iii) easily removable. And I just don't get the Spanx phenomenon - I rather like being able to breathe, myself. Cotton knickers and a seamless bra for me thanks.

Kai Jones said...

Well, Thomas, my husband claims the same thing.

But I notice he gets frisky more often if I happen to be walking around in a pretty negligee, or the bra and panties that match and have lace. He may *think* he likes nude better, but he responds to sexy lingerie.