Lingerie-inspired…

My very first bra was ugly – very Soviet for the unflattering shape, lack of embellishments and fabric most likely recycled from the military parachutes were clearly designed to make a girl feel like a woman who can “stop a galloping horse and enter a burning house”*, not a beautiful, mysterious and sensual creature she was born to be. That was the way we wore and saw lingerie until the tanks came…

They brought a feeling of fear, new government, hope and, eventually the prettiest undies we could only imagine. Those were still scarce and expensive, but they were out there, displayed inside glass cabinets, all lit up, every satin bow, delicate lace and sweet silk buttons. And it was simply beautiful!

I bought them in sets. I liked the harmony of top and bottom and still believe that mismatching doesn’t only hurt my eyes, but also makes me feel less attractive and as if I didn’t care when dressing up in the morning**.

And then, of course, I discovered new brands that later became my favourite - classic and feminine, the ones outside the trends, the French and Italian and later – the British. The first one was Aubade and their Bahia collection, then Chantelle, Lejaby, Cosabella, and, of course, Elle Macpherson Intimates that will be particularly wonderful for small frames, followed by the ultimate luxury of Myla, La Perla, Myriam Girard and Fleur of England.

H&M, ASOS and La Redoute are wonderful to visit for the basics and inexpensive sweet sets and if the nature was generous to you, the shopping list should definitely include Freya lingerie, Lepel, Pour Moi?, Huit, Panache and Fantasie underwear.

So whether you like your shoes, bags or gorgeous clothes, it is the lingerie that will have the biggest impact. And not only on the way you look, but also the way you feel***.

* the logic (or lack of) can be found in a poem “Russian women” by Nekrasov

** also I don’t believe in bra straps mixed with tank tops because there are such options as strapless underwear or sleeves.

*** free the world from ugly bras and embrace the wonderful feeling of being a beautiful woman.

 

Photo source: Flair Italy October 2010 (photography: Enzo Truoccolo, styling: Laura Taccari)