Archive for the 'Women’s Lingerie' Category
Invention to Fix a Bra’s Underwire When it Pops Out
December 04, 2008
I find it kind of odd that a man would find a solution to the problem of an underwire popping out of a bra. But, Scott Dutton from England has. Called the Bra Angel, this devise has won the inventor two gold metals for Invention of the Year.
Here’s how the Bra Angel works. It’s a piece of plastic with barbs built into it. You slip this piece of plastic over the end of your underwire that is poking out. You then slide the underwire back in to its casing. The barbs catch into the casing’s fabric and the opening is now no longer an issue. Your underwire stays in place.
The idea for Dutton’s invention came from his wife. Apparently she had numerous bras that were ruined because of the underrwires poking out. After looking on the internet and finding nothing on the market, he went about designing prototypes until finally coming up with the design for the Bra Angel.
It’s an interesting invention. However, underwires poking out are mainly caused by laundering your bras incorrectly. Manufacturers sew a bra’s underwire into a casing with additional space for the underwire to move. When the wire pokes out, it is usually because the casing has shrunk due to hot water and a washing machine. The underwire can also poke out if the sewing at the end of the casing is not strong enough. But, this is rarely an issue with well-made bras.
Though it’s an interesting solution, I’m not totally crazy about it. With the barbs holding one end of the underwire in place, the underwire is now not allowed to float within the casing. Underwires are supposed to do this so that they will fit better and feel more comfortable. The Bra Angel also adds bulk to the underwire. I’m concerned that this could be uncomfortable. And finally, I worry that the barbs could also pierce the outside fabric. Now you have a bra with pointed barbs sticking out between your breasts our under your arms.
I say the jury is out. But for a quick solution to an underwire popping out, this is certainly a clever invention.
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Posted by Tomima at 7:10am
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Wacoal Luxe -The New Lingerie Collection From Wacoal
November 28, 2008
Wacoal announced a new line of lingerie this year, and named it Wacoal Luxe. So why? I was on the phone with Wacoal’s Elizabeth Smith, Director of Retail Service, this week and asked that very question. Here’s what I learned.
For a while now, Wacoal has been hearing requests from its large retail clients like Neiman Marcus and Nordstrom to create lingerie that is one step up in terms of styling and sophistication. Wacoal has fabulous products, but customers were also looking for a more sophisticated color pallet and European styling, while maintaining an American fit.
Wacoal answered this call by creating the Wacoal Luxe line. The bras in this collection are a bit paired down. This means the necklines are more open, the cups have a little less coverage, and the centers are less tall. But they achieved these changes while still giving support and capacity.
By way of example, take the Rose is a Rose Collection. A very expensive, beautiful embroidery is used that was sourced in Europe. More neckline is exposed. The contour padding in the contour style is made in a new breathable stretch foam that is feels light, doesn’t add bulk and is breathable so that the wearer doesn’t become hot.
In the Feme Fatale push-up bra, the pads have been positioned differently in the cups. The cup pad picks your breasts up while rotating them inward as well. There is none of that spillage look that most push-up bras create. The pad sits at the bottom and to the outer side of the cups and is graduated. The result is a very comfortable push-up that looks natural and that you can wear all day. It also has a low centerfront to accomodate lower necklines.
The price point of Wacoal Luxe is a little higher than most Wacoal products. However, the price is justified, according to Smith, due to the beautiful fabrics, laces and embroidery used in the products. Also, the use of colors such as charcoal and animal prints gives the Wacoal Luxe line a sophisticated presence.
Due to the success of Wacoal Luxe, there will be a full figure line launched in Febuary of 2009. Called French Dressing, this line will have larger sizes and go up to 3 hooks in back, whereas the current Wacoal Luxe bras have 2 hooks.
Having seen this line personally, I think Wacoal has a real winner. The products are truly beautiful and feel great to the touch. And, our fit models found them all running very true to size and fitting fabulously.
Pricing goes from $38 to $78.
Find Wacoal Luxe lingerie at HerRoom in these departments:
Bras
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Posted by Jan at 8:55am
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What is the Proper Layering Sequence with Shapewear?
November 24, 2008
I think all of us at one time or another have wondered about the proper sequence of undergarments. Let’s say you have a pair of pantyhose, a panty, and a piece of shapewear. In what order do you put them on? Do you wear all of them or forfeit something?
We posed this question to 13 of our shapewear vendors including Spanx, Bali, BodyWrap, Va Bien and TC Fine. We were stunned to hear they all had the same response. It was, forget the panties, put on your pantyhose, and then put on your shapewear.
Are you surprised? We here in the office were. For starters, most of us felt panties should be worn. The reason the manufacturers feel they aren’t necessary is because they all make shapewear with a cotton crotch or an accessible crotch. Therefore, shapewear is specifically designed to eliminate the need for panties.
I took a poll of the women in our office about this. The responses fell roughly along age lines. Our younger crowd agreed about not wearing panties. Many had tried panties on under their shapewear, but found that the panty created an additional line – even when they tried laser edge cut panties like Commandos. Our more mature crowd simply likes the idea of panties and wouldn’t consider not wearing them.
The reason pantyhose go on first is because if put on over shapewear, they tend to slide down due to the slick nature of the shapewear fabric. You can spend the night feeling your pantyhose inching down your body and finding yourself in the ladies room several times in order to pull them back up. The panthose can also cause a line that otherwise would be smoothed out if shapewear was put on over it. Now, that said, there are several shapewear pieces that have silicone gripper tape along the legs to keep the shapewear in place. Putting this gripper tape on top of pantyhose renders it worthless, and could possibly cause a run in the pantyhose. So, there can be some conflicting results in this situation.
Personally, this is what I do. I don’t wear panties. I also don’t wear pantyhose. If I want leg covering, I buy thigh-high stockings. Since my shapewear of preference is a biker short style, I first put on my thigh-highs, pull up my shapewear, and make sure the top of my stockings are secured by my shapewear. Now, I really only have one layer on, I’m comfortable, not hot, and have a very simple solution when I need to visit the ladies room.
Does anyone have any better ideas here? If so, I hope you’ll post them here in comments.
Find shapewear at HerRoom in these departments:
Shapewear
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Posted by Tomima at 11:53am
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