Saturday, July 31, 2010

Spice Up Your Attire With an Underwire Camisole

A snug fitting, sleeveless lingerie, which covers the upper part of body from chest down to the waist, is known as a camisole or cami. Present day camisoles are designed to be worn as an outer garment, not only a lingerie or sleepwear, typically because they come with an inbuilt bra, which provides the necessary bust support and comfort. Such camisole is referred to as an underwire camisole.

Role of fabrics in underwire camisole

Fabrics, which are used in making underwire camisole, are normally cotton blends with nylon and spandex or elastin to maintain the garment shape all through the day without any sagging or looseness. The fabric gives the camisole a stretch, fit and construction with utmost compression, which allows flexible and comfortable mobility. The elastic bands used are usually kept soft and brushed to avoid discomfort. The fabrics used can generally be washed in machine or by hand and normally sustain multiple recurrent washes. Some of the modern-day underwire camisole is also available in microfiber fabrics. The ideal fabric for such tight-fitting garments are the moisture wicking fabrics, which leaves a cool and dry feel even after they are worn for hours together.

Benefits with underwire camisole

Underwire camisoles are specially designed to be used for sportswear, running, jogging or yoga. The bra in these camis has wider straps for improved support and ease. Back strap and fasteners can be adjusted and mesh panel is present inside for proper ventilation.

Get a sleek & sexy look

Underwire camisole can sometimes have a molded cup bra or an inbuilt padded cup, which gives a sensuous and appealing bust shape, especially for the not so well endowed women. The padded cups eliminate any bra lines. On the contrary, for large busted women, there are underwire camisole styled with thicker shoulder straps and more fabric coverage for the extra support and lift required. Both the options come with back straps and fasteners, which are adjustable as per the individuals requirement. Construction of underwire camisole can be done for giving seamless look, flattened abdomen and a smooth waistline to get a sleek and sexy look.

Tips for supplementing your sexual vibes

An underwire camisole worn under a shirt or jacket along with a more erotic closefitting evening wear and skirts or under low cut tops & dresses can supplement sexual vibes to your appearance. When styled in satin or silk, they become a part of lingerie or sleepwear. At the same time, if made in regular cotton blends, they can be worn casually as day wear or work wear. It's a great piece of clothing for summer season when you want to beat the heat and an added layer for colder months. Underwire camisoles can be made more feminine and sensational with use of laces, embroideries and sheer fabrics with trimming of ribbons and bows.

To sum it up, underwire camisole is one of the most diversely used outfits, which have the power to spice up your attire, from your bedroom to work for your special evenings.

Friday, July 23, 2010

Vintage Shapewear - Fifties Fashion Needs a Fifties Silhouette

Fifties and sixties shapewear is in the news again, partly as a result of the TV series Mad Men. Actresses don the original sixties pull-on girdles to achieve those shapely figures women enjoyed flaunting all through the fifties until the call came for them to 'burn their bras' and become liberated! Now those fashions are back with a vengeance.

Some people collect vintage shapewear purely for the pleasure of owning a collection of vintage fashion history, others buy to wear and others still buy as an investment. Unlike the modern retro copies there are a variety of pitfalls to negotiate if you are entering the field of vintage girdles and corsetry for the first time. The first question that I am often asked is why someone should buy fifties lingerie when there is already such a wide choice of modern lingerie available. The detailing and hand finishing on exquisite fifties satin bullet bras and the art deco inspired stitching on fifties long line girdles has to be seen to be believed. It would be impossible for modern shapewear, which is mass-produced to come close to this level of workmanship, without costing a small fortune.

The following tips should give you the background you need when starting your own vintage lingerie collection.

Sizing: size specification has altered considerably over the years - you should be aware that a modern size 12 will be considerably bigger than a size 12 from the fifties, and also sizing is varies in different countries - a US size 12 could be a UK size 16!

Materials: It was rubber that gave vintage shapewear its stretch characteristics. The modern counterparts are Lycra and elastane. Sadly vintage lingerie containing latex is particularly susceptible to deterioration over time, even more so if the garments have not been stored in temperature-controlled conditions. If you stretch a girdle and it stays stretched then it will not be wearable and certainly will not be a collectible item either! From the forties onward some manufacturers used a form of foam rubber as padding in their corsets and corselets (effectively a longline bra and girdle joined into one garment). Frequently such vintage shapewear will not have stood the test of time - the foam rubber often becomes rock hard and inflexible or, worse, crumbles to a gritty powder.

All reputable vintage lingerie online stores will check and describe the condition of the fabric, but you do need to be especially careful if you use an online auction site to source your shapewear. Garter clips from this era used a metal frame with a rubber garter tab. So often a beautiful fifties girdle is rendered less desirable by the rubber tab hardening - the first time one tries to open the garter clip the tab cracks and crumbles. Of course if you are very handy with a needle and thread it is possible to replace the garter tabs; the resulting garment will still be a delight to wear but less attractive to the purist collector, for whom original condition and construction is very important.

Condition: The nearer the condition of the garment to 'factory fresh' the more collectable it will be - naturally this is more difficult to attain with items from the twenties and thirties than from the sixties. There is currently little demand for lingerie after the sixties, because at that point pantyhose all but killed the stockings, garters and girdles. Collectors look for garments that are clean, show no signs of wear and tear, no perishing of fabrics, rust or storage marks. Frankly collecting for investment tends to be risky because subtle deterioration can be ongoing without expert care - it is better to collect to enjoy wearing, with the bonus that if you treat the items with care you are likely to recoup your outlay if and when you do decide to dispose of them. Age: It is obvious that an older item in great condition is likely to be more valuable than a more recent example. Check the label - older labels will have the hand washing instructions - if you see the machine washing icons then you are looking at modern shapewear! One clue to age is the older garments will have rubber, cotton, rayon used...more modern garments will have Lycra. Bear in mind that if the labels have been removed from the garment then it is unlikely to be of much interest to a collector. Another clue to age is that items from the forties often had the 'utility label', looking like a pair of 'pac men'. The holy grail for collectors, is to get find 'new old stock', often sold with the acronym 'NOS' - not only will the labels be intact but the original cardboard sales tag will be on the garment, and maybe even the original packaging.

Being able to shop online has boosted the popularity of vintage shapewear, but as with any other collectible item, it is always a case of 'buyer beware' - the more detailed the item description, covering sizing, labeling and condition, and the more detailed the photographs, the more confidence you can have in buying. If you are buying on an auction site, check how long has the seller been a member of the site. Check the member's feedback. With all sellers whether auction or an online boutique, check the returns policy.

Saturday, July 17, 2010

Buying Lingerie For Your Gal - Tips For Men

You've decided to buy lingerie for that special lady in your life. You could be buying the perfect sexy gift, but only if you follow certain guidelines we'll discuss in this article.

Women love gifts, so you are already on the right path when you purchase lingerie for her. That being said, women are a bit touchy about the size of their bodies, so you need to go about the process with a light touch. Giving a gift of lingerie that is too small will definitely ruin the evening - trust me on this!

Your overriding goal is to get something she is going to like. Lingerie is not sexy. The woman wearing it is. This means she needs to feel great wearing it, not self conscious. If you buy something that you want, but she won't like, it is not going to work out because it hardly puts her in the mood. Get her something based on what you know she likes and the gift has a much better chance of going over well. Do not try to recreate the wheel here. If she already has lingerie, you should be able to get a pretty good idea of what she is after.

Colors make the woman. She has certain colors that work for her and certain colors she loathes. How do you figure out which is which? Just watch her and take a look in her closet. What does she wear frequently when she wants to look her sexy best? Stick to those colors. Don't buy her hot yellow lingerie because you like the color!

Now comes the incredibly delicate part of the operation. You need to figure out what size to buy her. A word of advice - better to have died a small child than buy lingerie that is too small! In truth, figuring out her size isn't too hard. Just look through her closet. Get sizes for bras and underwear. The bras will give you bust line dimensions and the underwear will give you her real waist size. Women will wear pants and skirts that are too tight, but rarely will do the same with underwear.

Buying lingerie for you gal is a high risk, high benefit affair. Get it right and you'll be very glad you did. Just follow these guidelines and you have a pretty good chance of success.

Friday, July 9, 2010

Lingerie - 5 Most Sexy Lingerie Types!

Lingerie bring to the mind a whole lot of ideas. Some are simply comforting whereas others are exciting and sensuous. Sexy lingerie just another type of lingerie, which can help you make your life a little more interesting and passionate.

Here are some most famous and sough after sexy lingerie types:

  • Sheer lingerie: The name very much signifies everything. The name is aptly so because this type of lingerie is transparent. The light fabric used in this lingerie reveals a lot without making it too obvious.

  • G-Strings - Thongs: This lingerie is to be used instead of underwear. G-strings and thongs are for both men and women. This is suggestive lingerie. Both are basically the same, in g-stings, the strings are colored, whereas in thongs the strings used are transparent.

  • Lace Lingerie: This one very feminine and beautiful lingerie. It has the capacity of changing a common woman into something cute and sensuous. The lacy bras and underwear are quite in demand. The laces are stitched around the basic fabric of the lingerie or the complete two pieces are created completely from the lace. This adds a lot of sensuousness to the lingerie.

  • Corsets: This is one of the oldest types of lingerie. Corsets are adjustable. It spreads over woman's body from breasts to the navel area. Corset in earlier times were worn inside a garment. One of the best feature of corset is that it can give an outline to the body. It can make your body look almost perfect and redefine body shape. It has the ability of making your waist look smaller and give more shape and fullness to breasts. Corset is a little difficult to adjust.

  • Baby doll/Fantasy lingerie: This lingerie suits those who want to see their lover in different avatars every time. So you can dress your lover as a baby doll or as a sexy nurse. You will also find more costumes that will bring together imagination and reality. Here too, the dresses designed are sexy and attractive. This type of lingerie contains absolutely stunning color range.

Sexy lingerie is highly attractive. You will find plus size lingerie in all the above lingerie.

Saturday, July 3, 2010

Pear Or Apple - The Sweet Guide to Lingerie

Contrary to many opinions, a woman may either possess the generalized shape of an apple or a pear. There are no other categories. Much of the confusion in this matter naturally arises from a slim or fit body challenging the imagination to ponder exactly which of the two categories fits where neither seems to. The key thing to understand here is that the more excess weight the woman carries, the more pronounced her body type becomes. Shape distinction is not so much a static evaluation as it is a commentary on the way in which our bodies hold weight when we gain it.

Also, it is important to understand that as women our bodies are constantly assaulted by hormonal and chemical shifts that are both the product of heredity and our physical and emotional environments. It is a relatively common phenomenon for a woman to undergo a severe hormonal stress such as childbirth or menopause and to afterward find that her body type has changed.

This guide is meant to discuss the differences in the two body types and to assist the reader in the selection of lingerie that may help to emphasize her best assets while subtly detracting from her less than ideal features. Never forget that feeling sexy in your own skin is more alluring than the wrong cut or style of lingerie could ever be!

Spiced Pears

Go ahead and complain about your wide hips, blossoming buttocks and voluptuous thighs! If your weight gain typically takes place predominately in these areas, then you are relatively lucky. A proportionally small waist and narrow upper body, even on a heavy frame, lessens your likelihood of death by heart disease, attack or failure dramatically when compared with an apple shaped woman. Any excess of weight will create an unnecessary stress on your bones, tendons and organs but if you are a pear you definitely can afford to carry a bit more weight than your counterparts.

A pear shaped woman is also fortunate from an aesthetic viewpoint. While she may feel larger than she should be, even with a few extra pounds her figure adheres to the archetypical feminine ideal.

When choosing a good panty cut, the back is not nearly as important as the waist. Due to the pear's waist to hip ratio a low rise or bikini waist is almost always preferable unless the woman in question is trim or only a few pounds overweight.

A good if somewhat overdone lingerie option for the pear figure is the baby doll nightie because it will provide masking partial hip coverage. A chemise or a long night gown with a low cut bodice is also an excellent choice because these cuts will draw attention to your upper half. A classic teddy should not be discounted provided you are holding no more than a handful of extra softness because it will make your already small waist seem even tinier, giving you an exaggerated, idealized feminine form. Don't overlook lingerie involving capris, pants or harem style leggings. Anything you can do to play down your bulges below the waist will show off your best half and help you feel the way you want to for your next intimate encounter.

Apple Tarts

If you are prone to weight gain do you see it first in your face, then next in your middle? Do you buy pants based on waist girth rather than on hip width? Are your legs your pride and joy, but you just wish your waist didn't seem so straight up and down? Do your cycles seem more irregular and your menstruation more painful on average than other women of your acquaintance? Yep, you're an apple. Welcome.

Admittedly, an apple shaped woman is not only less classically proportioned she is also prone to packing all manner of the fat that can kill her directly around her heart. Even a trim apple is at greater risk for heart disease than a pear shaped woman of the same height holding twenty to thirty pounds in excess. Weight control in apples is not only a matter of physical comfort, but of long term health. Some basic nutritional information should be employed by you for every meal you eat. Eat more fruits and vegetables with every meal to assist your digestion and metabolism. Don't partake of animal fats or red meat in general if you can help it. When it comes to oils try to stay light: virgin olive oil for cooking, flax oil for dressings. Try to use more seeds, nuts and fish for your protein needs as most of these are high in omega fatty acids which will aid your body in a natural reduction of harmful fats.

A flattering panty can take many forms but it could be useful to disguise your slightly thicker middle with a high waist as in a traditional thong. Try one in a darker shade to create a flattering optical illusion.

As for lingerie styles, try to make purchases that cinch or disguise your middle while accentuating your gams. Teddies with very high sides can paint your figure in entirely new and flattering lines. Corsets, bustiers and waist cinching garments are indispensable to you. Play with hosiery and have fun, but try to avoid dark bottoms in combination with light tops because this pairing will leave you looking your worst unnecessarily.

In Conclusion

Knowing whether you are an apple or a pear is the first step in deciding what lingerie styles or clothing styles in general will show you off to your best advantage. Remember that the key to a perfect figure is creating an image of balance between your top and bottom halves. Every woman possesses her own unique beauty. Bringing that beauty to the fore can help you to look and in turn feel your very best at anytime.