blogleaves

2007: high waistbands, padded hips and shopping by star sign

Our predictions for 2007:

• High waists were back on the catwalk (and you can already find high waisted jeans in the more on-the-ball high street stores), so expect to see knicker waistbands creeping up too next year.
• Padded hips were also a surprise feature of the spring/summer catwalks (thank you Dolce & Gabbana) and Huit are among the brands who have been busy padding their knickers for 2007.
• Seeing spots (Shoshanna bikini, above left, coming soon) - from tiny Swiss dots to big fifties polka dots, they're a key story for both swimwear and lingerie.
• Ted Baker (set, above right, coming soon) - available on the UK site only, I'm afraid, but its lingerie and swimwear just gets better and better. It proved a favourite with all the fashion editors at our recent UK press day.
• We've all seen An Inconvenient Truth - or at least pretended to - so eco-friendly bamboo (from Ballet, among others) will be on everybody's radar.
• Shopping by size is soooo 2006. Next year, we'll all be shopping by star sign. Try typing your star sign into the figleaves.com search box to find the lingerie that truly reflects your personality.

Year End Solutions

As The New York Times pointed out today, 'tis the season for strapless bras. As New Year's Eve rapidly approaches, women everywhere scramble to find the perfect undergarments for their shoulder-baring dresses.

"There are more strapless options than ever before," says Stephanie Rosenbloom of The New York Times.

The Fashion Forms Nubra, Lejaby New Nuage multiway and Fashion Forms Extreme Silicone plunge bra at figleaves.com were all featured in the article, and we wanted to share a few more of our favorite 'solution items'.

Le Mystere's Seduction bustier - good for shaping and smoothing with a low back and dipped front to accommodate plunging back- and necklines

Fantasie's Smoothing strapless bra - a great option for larger cup sizes, offering support and smooth lines up to a G cup

Fashion Forms U-Plunge bra - just the thing for those dare-to-bare plunging necklines, giving support and lift with a dipped front and convertible straps

Lucky red pants for New Year's Eve

How to guarantee good things for 2007? Make sure you toast the New Year in your lucky red underwear this Sunday - it's traditional in Italy, apparently.

Here's hoping these examples from DT and Jezebel do the trick. See more for him and for her.

Pyjama news

Lots of pyjamas in the news today (must be Christmas or something):

• Singer and former Neighbours star Delta Goodrem (she's also famous for stepping out with Brian McFadden, of course) has turned her hand to designing pyjamas.
• Wearing your pyjamas to work is all the rage in the United Arab Emirates - so much so, in fact, that the local government of Ras Al Khaima has had to introduce a dress code for civil servants to stamp out the practice. It comes into force on 1 January.
• The highlight of child star Dakota Fanning's Christmas? New pyjamas, every time.
• It's goodbye to 'accidental president' Gerald Ford, who famously collected the newspaper from his front door in his pyjamas on his first day in office.

What Brit and Kate really need

‘Tis the night before Christmas and you still haven’t picked out a gift for your favorite celeb. Luckily, OK! magazine knows exactly what the stars really need. Send Britney Spears a thong from Commando. (It's called the 'invisible thong,' but wearing Commando is better than going commando.) For Kate Moss, OK! recommends this DKNY bra. Hopefully friends of these overexposed stars paid heed to this advice.

Feeling Lucky

We've always loved Skin for their pima cotton loungewear and cozy robes, but they've really outdone themselves this year with this knit cami and short. Created from luxe, soft baby Alpaca wool, this set is "quite indulgent - made for a loungey night at home," say the editors at Lucky magazine.

    

What he wants, what she wants

And so this is Christmas - the deadline for December 25th deliveries has passed in the US, while the UK has around two hours to go. So let's announce the results of our Christmas poll. We asked: What kind of lingerie are you hoping to find in your stocking this year?

41 per cent opted for the works - corset, suspenders, the lot.

Close behind came divine French lace, with 37.9 per cent.

Next we had "something in silk" - 14.8 per cent. And bad luck if you were planning to surprise your loved one with simple white everyday cotton under the tree - it polled a measly 6.2 per cent.

Meanwhile, we've been having a look at the stats for our men's lingerie buying guide, and guess what? The two most popular questions have been, "Can I buy her something red?" and "How can I persuade my wife to wear a thong?". So if you want to please your man this Christmas, a red thong is clearly the way to go.

Swimwear catch-up

Today's swimwear news:

• One of the products at NYU's ITP show is creating a buzz - how can you not love a solar powered bikini that charges up your iPod while you catch some rays? [gizmodo]
• More gadget news - how about a bikini for your iPod? [gearlog]
• Ciao bella - Italian women buy more swimwear (and spend more on it) than any in other country in Western Europe [researchandmarkets.com].
• New in - get a head start on next year's key swimwear colour (brown) with new styles from Rasurel (below) and Moontide.
• Fancy a swimwear makeover? Here's how.

Risque business

   

The winter is not just about bulky sweaters and mittens. Take a look at the January issue of Jane magazine featuring lovely, black lace bras. What better item to make you feel sexy when you're bundled up for the cold than the Latina underwire bra by Passionata?

The bra as art

Here are a couple of bras you won't find on figleaves.com (although I'm very tempted to have a company whip-round to buy one for the boardroom wall):

Aren't they wonderful? We hear a lot about 'fashion as art'; now artist Laura Jacobs has proved that the bra can cut it in the art world too. She has just exhibited these beautiful creations in New York and they're now available to buy - adorn your wall for $4-$5000.

Find out more about Laura here.