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Lingerie through the Ages

Jul 29, 2010

Lately on our Facebook page we’ve been posting some tidbits about the history of lingerie. We’ve had some great reactions and along the way we’ve found out some really fun facts.

The amazing thing about studying history of any kind is looking at how the view of society changes. Lingerie has been viewed as everything from frivolous to essential, from sexist to romantic, oppressive to liberating.

Here are some key moments in the timeline:

Antiquity: The earliest record of women wearing undergarments is from Egypt circa 3000 B.C. Only noblewomen were allowed to wear it; slaves and servants wore loincloths, or were naked underneath.

Medieval times: The desired look for women in Medieval times was a boyish figure, so corsets were worn not to accentuate the breasts as in Greece, but to flatten the chest and hips to hide the feminine figure.

The Elizabethan era: The corset changed once again, as the Elizabethans favored the hourglass figure. Often additional panels were added to the sides and rear of the corset in order to create an even more dramatic waistline.

18th Century: The reigns of Louis XV and XVI are considered a gilded age of fashion design, and the centerpiece of many of the fashions was the corset. No longer worn just as undergarments, corsets were so fashionable that they were displayed on the outside of the dress.

The Victorian era: Although we think of the Victorian era as a time of sexual repression and prudishness, lingerie evolved considerably during these years. Some of the innovations were the first corset that allowed women to put it on or take it off from the front by themselves; the first elastic corset, which provided more comfort; the frilled pantaloon; stockings; and garter belts.

World War I: When the Great War broke out, the U.S. government asked women to stop buying corsets so there would be more metal available for the war effort. This initiative resulted in enough surplus metal to build two battleships. The war also led to more women joining the workforce in factories; corsets were impractical for work. Fortunately, a woman named Mary Phelps Jacob, unhappy with the restrictive nature of corsets invented the brassiere, and women were immediate converts.

The Roaring 20s: With the flapper look everywhere, women wanted boyish figures to go with the skinny dresses. Brassieres were made to flatten the chest, and although constricting corsets were out, the introduction of the girdle continued the long tradition of tight undergarments.

World War II: In the 30s and 40s, bosoms were back. Instead of flattening the chest, brassieres enhanced them, as the idea of “cup size” was introduced.

The 60s and 70s:  The early sixties carried forward many looks from the 50s. Slips were especially popular as well as girdles and garter belts. But with the rise of the hippie and women’s movement, lingerie, and especially bras, became a symbol of conformity and restrictions. Wearing a bra became unfashionable and tube tops, halters and triangle bikinis were all the rage, of course worn braless. One style of underwear that became a hit was the bikini brief, thanks to the hottest items in fashion design, mini skirts and hot pants.

The 70’s until today: The market for fashionable lingerie has boomed. Throughout the eighties lingerie became mainstream; Madonna wore it on the outside of her clothing, lace was popular and the thong began to become something real women wore everyday. During the 90’s numerous advances were made in fit, cut and style. Push up bras became all the rage as being busty and showing cleavage was trendy. Water bras, air bras, stick on bras and more were created to add extra size. Since the late 90’s, and due to the demand of a more educated consumer (ahem, pats on back) many bra manufacturers have rapidly expanded their offering to include beautiful bras in a wide range of sizes. In the early 2000’s and thanks in part to Cameron Diaz in Charlie’s Angels,  the boyshort became a hot new trend.  At the moment, patterned bras (plaids, florals etc) are the most trendy and of-the-moment, but as with hemlines, the post-millenium era is truly a ‘make it your own’ moment with no real dominant style and women are free to choose what types of knickers, bras, tube tops, stayups, hose, chemises, corsets, waspies, push ups, minimizers, slips, tank tops, pjs, halloween costumes, sports bras, triangle tops or high waisted shorts they might like.

This is a great article to delve into if you have some more time.

(with help from this source)

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