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A History of Sexy Underwear

It is well recorded that the female figure varies a greatly. History shows that it has always been like this! Historically, what's been fashionable for the shape of the female body has gone from the sublime to the ridiculous! However, the alluring female body has always been subject to what is covering it and history shows us that it's been covered in many different ways. Also, different parts of the feminine form have been emphasized, disguised, shrunk, increased by the style of the current fashionable frill fripperies. We've witnessed some preposterous extremes, from devices that required a small ... read more

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It is well recorded that the female figure varies a greatly. History shows 
that it has always been like this!
Historically, what's been fashionable for the shape of the female body has 
gone from the sublime to the ridiculous! However, the alluring female body has 
always been subject to what is covering it and history shows us that it's been 
covered in many different ways. Also, different parts of the feminine form have 
been emphasized, disguised, shrunk, increased by the style of the current 
fashionable frill fripperies.
We've witnessed some preposterous extremes, from devices that required a 
small army to coerce the unfortunate fashion victim into, to the flimsiest, most 
fanciful mere flutter of a garment. Let's take a look back at how sexy lingerie 
has developed and how it got to where it is today.
First of all, let's get some terminology sorted out. Thanks to the world's 
most romantic language, we now usually allude to female 'underwear' as 
'lingerie' - unless we're being derogatory in which case, depending on where you 
live, you can fill in the blanks!
When we (at least us of the male persuasion) envisage lingerie, we think of a 
flimsy material covering the female body in a way that gives us a hint of the 
delights that lie underneath. But the 'first' lingerie, probably from one of the 
Ancient Greek islands, was far different. These captivating Greek women used a 
boned corset fitted tightly around the midriff, not for support or even for a 
'slimming' effect, but to attract their men by revealing their heaving breasts 
in a most unsubtle way. Probably not what we would call lingerie today but with 
much the same desired effect.
As time rolled on, the female form took on new 'perfect' shapes depending on 
the in thing. As each 'perfect' form emerged, frill fripperies were introduced 
and introduced to embellish and accentuate that desired shape. The culture of 
the society dictated whether the breasts, the bottom or both would be 
highlighted and glorified. You could argue that nothing much has changed!
During Medieval times it was thought that the natural form and shape of a 
woman should be constrained and that the breasts should be firm and small. This 
situation was probably ok for those normally built that way but perhaps not so 
good for those of a more curvaceous construction. Many different sorts of corset 
were worn with the single purpose of flattening the breasts and/or the bottom. 
I've heard it said that, in order to draw attention to that part of the anatomy 
that shouldn't draw attention, some women wore tinkling bells around their neck 
to remind the men folk of the delights that still lay beneath.
The 'modern' corset is thought to have been introduced by Catherine de Médicis, 
wife of King Henri II of France. She enforced a ban on thick waists at court 
attendance during the 1550s and had a questionable effect on women for the next 
350 years.

The Renaissance saw another change in the preferred female shape. Women were 
required to have cone shaped breasts, flat stomachs and slim waists. In order to 
attain this look, they also needed to employ servants or family members to dress 
them because the cinching up of their corsets was done from the rear and needed 
much effort.
Due to this unnatural method of realizing 'perfection', Doctors and other 
notaries made the case that these corsets restricted women's bodies so tightly 
that their internal organs were being impaired and their ribs were being 
permanently misshapen. Around that time it was common for women to pass out or 
fall into a swoon. This was usually put down to their delicate nature but, in 
fact, it was because they simply found it almost impossible to draw breath! 
There are many accounts of women dying because of deadly punctures to vital 
organs due to this practice.
In the early 18th century the whalebone corset still kept women tightly bound 
but the artistry that reflected the times was incorporated into clothing and the 
corsets were decorated with alluring embroidery, ribbons and lace. A part of 
this lightening up was the fact that it became fashionable for the breasts to be 
pushed upwards to the point of almost popping out.
Towards the end of the 18th century the corset was being worn by the 
aristocracy, the burgeoning middle class and even by nuns in convents. It was 
often proudly shown off by its wearer because it was a visible outer garment at 
that time. In itself it was an object of beauty and ornamentation and its 
display was part of social deportment.
However, as people became more educated and aware, they started to question 
and critique many things including art, politics and, you guessed it, in thing. 
Backed up by professional people like doctors, public opinion became such that 
boned corsets were actually banned in many countries.
By the early 19th century, a much softer approach to the female shape became 
popular. The in thing still demanded the support that the old corset had given 
so it returned with more elaborate methods of construction. Boning was still 
used in small sections which allowed for better and more comfortable movement.

The in thing at the time was for a more separated look for breasts and a 
corsetiere by the name of M Leroy (who designed the wedding corset for Marie 
Luise of Austria when she married Napoleon Bonaparte in 1810) introduced a model 
which he called a 'divorce', allegedly because of the 'separation' involved. The 
most significant aspect of this perhaps, was the fact that women were able to 
dress and undress themselves due to more elaborate lacing methodology.
During the 1840s the extremely exaggerated shape for women caused whalebone 
to return with huge hoops and crinolines that were covered with all kinds of 
fabric and fineries. Unfortunately for women, it became the in thing to have 
waists small enough for a man to put his hands around and the need for even more 
waist-cinching became the female nightmare of the day.
It wasn't long before hoops and crinolines were replaced by the soft 'S' 
silhouette. This style still used the corset but added a bustle to the back 
creating an exaggerated butt. Once again it was the women who had to suffer for 
in thing, needing to stand most of the time due to the cumbersome bustle on 
their butts. Obviously men found this appealing because it gave them more 
opportunities to stare at the sexy women with their large bustles.
As more innovation came to in thing design, greater varieties of corsets were 
introduced. During the morning, a lady could wear a lightly-boned corset for 
promenading, an elastic corset for riding on her horse, a boneless corset for an 
excursion to the beach and a jersey corset for riding her bicycle. The corsetry 
industry was in its heyday!
Towards the end of the 19th century the corset supported not only the breasts 
but also the newly developed stocking. Stockings were held up by garters and 
suspenders which were then attached to the corset. These devices, although a 
triumph of design, probably added yet another frustrating aspect to the in 
thing-conscious female of the day.
By the beginning of the 20th century, corsets were being laced down as far as 
the knee. But many people didn't like that style, and in thing designers were 
leaning towards an uncorseted, more free-flowing style. Sexy lingerie was about 
to take a whole new turn. With the advent of the industrial revolution, and the 
invention of the sewing machine, Germany and France introduced the first corset 
factories.
In 1910 New York socialite Mary Phelps Jacob introduced a new type of bra. 
Not satisfied with the corset reinforced with whalebone which she was supposed 
to wear under a new evening gown, Mary worked with her maid to stitch two silk 
handkerchiefs together with some pink ribbon and cord. It was much softer and 
shorter than a corset and it allowed the breasts to be shaped in their natural 
condition.
Mary Phelps Jacob was the first to patent an undergarment named 'Brassiere', 
the name derived from the old French word for 'upper arm'. shortly after, she 
sold the bra patent to the Warner Brothers Corset Company in Bridgeport, 
Connecticut, for $1,500 (over $25,600 today).
In 1917 the War Industries Board of the US asked women to stop purchasing 
corsets to free up metal for the production of war materials. This step freed up 
some 28,000 tons of metal, sufficient to build a pair of battleships.
It seems that the success of the bra is due predominantly to The Great War. 
The Great War changed gender roles for all time, putting many women to work in 
factories and wearing uniforms for the first time. Women needed practical, 
comfortable underwear. Warner went on to rake in well over 000 dollars from the 
brassiere patent over the next 30 years. 
The other thing to acknowledge in the death of the corset was that The Great 
War had taken its toll on the supply of men. This meant more competition for 
finding a man so women needed to look their sexiest!
With the Roaring Twenties and its refined parties, in thing was turned on its 
side, the boyish style was in. The pursual of flat chests and stomachs along 
with non-curvy hips and buttocks led to the introduction of the liberty bodice, 
the chemise, and bloomers which were loose-fitting and light. For the first time 
pastel-colored lingerie appeared to replace plain old-fashioned white. To 
reinforce the boyish style the first bras were introduced to flatten the 
breasts. What happened to the corset? The butt part that held up the stockings 
was cut down and became the suspender belt.
The full-figured style came back in the 1930s. The feminine style once again 
became the in thing. Women were encouraged to look well-proportioned with a 
full-figure while remaining fairly slim in the hips. Now women had a full set of 
lingerie to help with the image: breast-enhancing bras, elastic suspender belts, 
not forgetting the girdle, which kept all the curves in their designated place.
The 1930s also saw one of the biggest advancements in the lingerie industry 
when the Dunlop Rubber company developed Lastex, an elastic, two-way stretch 
textile made from the fine thread of a chemically modified rubber called Latex. 
This could be interwoven with fabric which allowed the industry to make lingerie 
in various sizes to appropriately fit a woman's shape.
The arrival of the 2nd World War and its shortages meant that Germany was 
unable to import the fabrics they had used before then and their industry 
failed. Forever inventive, people started making home-knitted underwear out of 
materials to hand. Not sexy but at least they kept themselves warm.
At the end of hostilities lingerie consisted of basic bras and suspender 
belts. This was acceptable to the majority of women but the teenage girl, just 
emerging from the hardship of the war years, became a target market. These young 
women were anxious to become women and wearing lingerie was a fantastic step 
towards attaining that aim. The German lingerie industry introduced lingerie 
sets that appealed to these young girls and the industry never looked back.
In the United States, the lingerie industry was trying to create something 
new and original. Women were bombarded with all kinds of underwear and top 
clothing to help them look sexy. The film producer Howard Hughes introduced a 
new bra, a special wire-reinforced device for Jane Russell. This caused the 
censors throw their toys out of the crib about miss Russell's breasts being 
blatantly exposed all because of Hughes' fantastically inventive bra 
improvements.
The 1960s was a bad era for the lingerie industry thanks to the rise of 
women's emancipation movements. Feminists burned their bras and many 
manufacturers were forced to cease trading. However Lycra had just been 
developed and women began to wear tight-fitting leggings. The iconic in thing 
item of that era however, was arguably the sexy little mini-skirt and the demand 
for bikini briefs. Famously, for a scant moment in time, topless swimsuits and 
topless dresses were the rage. But, unfortunately for most men and fortunately 
for the in thing industry, they were merely a 'flash-in-the-pan'!
The 1980s saw the wire-reinforced bra become the premier best seller. While 
these are still popular today, the greatest seller now is the push-up bra. 
Statistics show the average American woman owns six bras, one of which is a 
strapless bra and one is a color other than white.
The modern female shape varies and is not as susceptible to fashion trends as 
in previously. However, the alluring sex will always looks astounding in sexy, 
slinky lingerie! 
So, there we are. From the push-up corsets of ancient Greece to the push-up 
bra of today. Sexy lingerie? Nothing ever really changes!

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