My love, my life, my lingerie

As promised, my lingerie dreams for this year. I just have too much love in my heart for this topic, it demanded a post all for itself.

Grace Kelly in THAT negligee

My overwhelming memory of the film "Rear Window" is watching Grace Kelly step out of James Stewart's bathroom in that beautiful silk negligee and catching my breath (plus I also think she had some fluffy marabou pumps to match - be still my beating heart!). She looked so beautiful and elegant, the gown draping from her frame so perfectly, and do you know the thing I loved most about the whole moment? She was just going to bed. How wonderfully decadent and romantic is that? A stunning piece of clothing worn just for oneself. And okay, I'm sure James Stewart appreciated Grace's impeccable taste in nightwear, but that's not the point. Outfits like these make woman feel beautiful, they make girls feel like girls, and I just adore that. 


Basically my friends, I love lingerie!


Anyone who knows me well will know about my long term, fully committed relationship with my lingerie collection, a collection that I'm very proud of and have been cultivating for quite some time. I have so many matching sets of underwear that I've lost count of them, and yet, if I could, I'd be more than happy to buy a new set everyday. They are my beautiful silk and lace children and I love each and every one of them - I know I'm starting to sound a little crazy but I'm just trying to emphasize the sheer depth of my passion! 

I think the main reason that I love lingerie so much is the way I feel when I wear it. There are few things that give me more pleasure or make me feel more feminine than starting an outfit from the inside out, making even the most boring outfit or work uniform fun as I know I have something special on underneath. Wearing pretty lingerie is an easy way to feel glamorous and beautiful every single day with hardly any effort, so that makes me love it all the more! However, I'm saddened by the way that lingerie addicts such as myself seem to be a rather rare breed in the modern world. 

Now I am a great fan of modern lingerie, I frequent high street shops for bra and pants sets, and I think it's great that such a variety is available to the modern woman. However, I do feel that our generation has somewhat lost it's romanticism when it comes to underwear. Gone are the days when every girl would be wearing silk under her dress, with garters and beautifully seamed stockings. If the vintage lady wished for a more pleasing silhouette she would slip into a girdle, perhaps a merry widow or even a corset, and cover them with a delicate chemise, a teddy or a slip. Nowadays we have to make do with spankx and hold-in tights up to our armpits! Now, I'm not knocking people who wear these kinds of foundation garments, I know that a lot of people swear by them, but personally I would rather wear something that gives my body the shape I want but also makes me feel glamorous and sexy - something I could never feel in what by all intents and purposes looks and feels like a pair of cycling shorts. I want to bring back that feeling of glamour and femininity to my undergarment wardrobe. I'm waving the banner for the lingerie revolution!


Ideally I want to develop the skills to draft patterns for my own entirely unique set of vintage inspired lingerie, including everything from girdles to bullet bras, but at the moment my lingerie making skills - both in techniques and experience - are very much in their infancy, so I'm going to try walking before I try to run! I want to start out by making a variety of different types of lingerie from patterns before I try and design and draft any of my own. I was lucky enough to receive a copy of Kwik Sew's Beautiful Lingerie pattern book as a Christmas gift, so this is going to be my starting point.

I can't wait to get started on these!

This book includes patterns for a camisole, half slip, chemise, teddy, panties, 7 different types of gown and a robe. So I figure I'll just start at the beginning and work my way through. I've also bought a handy reference book (Sewing Lingerie by Linda Neubauer) to keep by my side at all times so I feel set to go! I have some fun ideas as to how to adapt these patterns, so hopefully I will be starting on the teddy asap.


That's enough on lingerie for now, I'll try not to completely overwhelm you with my love of it, but I warn you, there will be much more to come! Bye for now.