A Man’s Guide to Buying Lingerie
June 26, 2008
Guys–we understand. You’d love to buy her something sexy and luxurious, but walking into a lingerie shop is right up there with getting a cavity drilled or singing "Feelings" at a karaoke party. Even a phone order is hard–how do you explain over the phone (without the use of hands) what size bra you think she wears? So, here’s the drill.It’s a a lot easier if you know her sizes. If you don’t, take a look in her lingerie drawer and check the label on a bra–the size should be right there–34B, 38DD, something like that. Panties are in sizes usually from XS through XXL. Sometimes they’re numerical, ranging from about 5-10. You might also take a peak at brand names– especially on items she wears all the time. If you see 3 Wacoal bras, for example, you can be pretty sure that’s a brand she loves.
Now you’ve got the critical info–what to buy? Well, if you see quite a few of the same brand, you can take it up a notch and choose a luxury item in that brand. For instance, if she buys herself mid-range Le Mystere bras like this cotton racer-back bra, why not go all out and buy her this sexy, lacy confection from Le Mystere. Don’t forget to add matching panties.Or, how about buying her something you know she won’t buy for herself? We all hear that thongs are the most comfortable panties ever–but some women won’t even try them. Let her try them out on your dime. She might especially like Hanky Panky’s Color Play Thong, which comes in an array of pretty exciting colors. Better yet, it’s one size fits most, so you can hardly go wrong.
If you absolutely can’t find her sizes, you’ve got a few choices: guess and hope for the best, ask her outright, or buy something not quite as dependent on fit, like a silk nightgown, or slinky robe. Luckily,we got some suggestions here too.This Clair Pettibone Stretch Lace Athena gown will make any woman feel gorgeous and the movie-star calibre matching robe will help through winter nights to come. If she’s more of an all-cotton woman, Hanro makes the softest, sleekest cotton sleepwear imaginable, like this , It too, has a matching robe .
Of course you’d like something you want to see her in, but if it’s too gimmicky or plain uncomfortable she’ll wear it for you, but it won’t leave the drawer more than a few times a year. The key is to choose something that’ll let her know you think she’s special but will also be comfortable. Many women are so hung up about body image that they don’t realize that, to the men who love them, they are hot, hot, hot. So if you bought her a blender last year, this is the time to go all out and show her how she looks in your eyes.
Find gift ideas for lingerie at HerRoom in these departments:
Bras
Thongs
Sleepwear
Sexy Lingerie
Posted by Tomima at 6:34am
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A Guy’s Guide to T-Shirts and Undershirts
March 14, 2008
Guy Fashion 101: T-shirts and undershirts are not the same. Undershirts should not be worn as t-shirts and vice versa. If you got it for free, it’s probably cheap and ill-fitting. Every guy should own a wardrobe of both undershirts and t-shirts. These are the rules.
Let’s begin with undershirts. An undershirt is designed to be worn UNDER another shirt. It’s primary purpose is to catch perspiration 
and, in the winter, to add warmth. A proper undershirt is one that is form-fitting, not too thick, and has the right neckline so that it can’t be seen under the top shirt. For example, you want to wear an open button down shirt. Wear a v-neck undershirt, and have it be long sleeve if you want added warmth. Of course, an undershirt should also be all cotton in order to absorb perspiration.
How many undershirts should a guy have? It really depends on your lifestyle. If you wear a suit and tie every day, you should have at least two weeks worth of undershirts. This will cover you for travel or lags in your weekly laundry. Styles again depend on preference. Some men hate the look of a short sleeve undershirt under their shirts. Then the answer is to get a sleeveless undershirt. Some men like their undershirt to be visible at the neckline. So buy crew neck undershirts.
Final notes on undershirts. They should be white, so bleach them. When the underarms become yellow, throw them out. Don’t buy them too big, or you’ll have layering and "tucking in" issues.
Now for t-shirts. T-shirts are more about fashion. The size and cut should flatter your physique. I interviewed Jason Scarlatti – designer for the 2(X)ist brand – and Gregory Sovell - designer for C-in2 brand and former designer for 2(X)ist – and asked them about the fit and look of t-shirts on men. Both agreed that most men wear t-shirts that are too large for them. This is probably because t-shirts used to shrink. Now, they are made-pre-shrunk, but men haven’t caught up with this fact. The second point both made is that the beefier or thicker the t-shirt, the lower the quality. And, the quality of a t-shirt can quickly be determined by looking at the price – the higher the price, the better and softer the t-shirt.
Scarlatti was very specific about the fit of a t-shirt. The new look in t-shirts is to try and capture the James Dean image – short sleeve that stops at the bicept, fitted but comfortable across the chest, straight down the sides, and ends 2" below the belt or at the bottom of the fly. This, Scarlatti says is the look most men in fairly good shape should strive for.
Sovall made the same James Dean analogy, but went into detail about the sleeve. He said if you can run a pole through the sleeves of a t-shirt and it lays flat like a flag, the t-shirt will not fit nicely. The key is to find a cap sleeve. To tell if the t-shirt has a cap sleeve, lay the t-shirt down flat on a table. If the sleeve openings point downward, and can’t be layed completely flat, that t-shirt has a cap sleeve and a better fit. When your arm is down, the sleeve won’t have that strange fly-away flag look, and will not have the bunched fabric look under the arm.
The number of t-shirts in your wardrobe, again, depends on your lifestyle. However, they should be good quality, fit well and be of a color that is flattering. Black is always good and makes the wearer look thinner.
Find t-shirts and undershirts at HisRoom.
Posted by Tomima at 10:45am
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