Womens Lingerie : Lingerie Articles

THE BABYDOLL
A babydoll is a short nightgown or negligee intended as nightwear for women. The garment is often trimmed with lace, ruffles, appliques, Marabou fur, bows and ribbons, optionally with spaghetti straps. Sometimes it is made of sheer or translucent fabric like nylon or chiffon or silk. The garments hemline is usually about six inches above the knee like a Minidress and may have a scoopneck. They are usually considered provocative.
It is said the name was popularized by the 1956 movie Baby Doll starring Carroll Baker in the title role, which essentially marked the beginning of the enduring popularity of the style for adults. At the same time, new synthetic fabrics and boutique retailing made the form both affordable and easy to purchase. Short daywear dresses of a similar style are sometimes called babydoll dresses; the name is sometimes two words, baby doll, and sometimes hyphenated, baby-doll.
However, there may be an alternative origin for the style, if we consider the lineage of lace-trimmed shortie bed-jackets and bed-capes of the 1930s and 1940s. It is now a highly eroticized item of adult apparel, often classified as a form of lingerie. When worn by an adult woman there is great contrast to when worn by an infant; the legs are fully displayed and some styles emphasize or deliberately expose the breasts as well. The gown is often sold as a set with matching panties (UK - knickers) as a typical babydoll is short enough that underwear is visible if worn . Styles of the same general length but not intended to emphasize sex appeal are sometimes called shortie nightgowns. Babydolls are now available in a sufficiently wide variety of styles that many lingerie retailers consider babydolls a distinct department. Modern babydolls often vary considerably from the styles of the 1960s and 1970s. Baby doll negligees from the 1950s to the early 1980s are now collectible items. Some babydolls open up in front and resemble more of a robe or peignoir. Another type of Babydoll is the Babydoll T-Shirt, which is nothing more than an extra long T-shirt worn as a nightie.
 
THE BODYSUIT
A bodysuit is a leotard-like undergarment, sometimes used to provide support and shaping, sometimes simply as a top that cannot become untucked from one's trousers or skirt. It is usually skintight or formfitting. They can have long or short sleeves and be made like a tank top. Bodysuits are for both females and males. Unlike a leotard, a bodysuit also has snaps at the crotch. It is also called a snapsuit or a onesie.
 
THE BUSTIER
A bustier is an article of clothing for women, which is form-fitting and is traditionally worn as lingerie. Some people wear it as an outer garment. Bustiers can slim the wearer's waist, while enhancing the bust. Bustiers often have detachable garter straps for holding up stockings.

 
THE CAMI
A cami or camisole is a woman's undergarment which covers the top part of the body. It is sleeveless and tight fitting in contrast to a loose-fitting babydoll or chemise.
The materials of choice in which they are manufactured are satin or silk. A camisole can be worn over a brassiere or without one. Some camisoles come with a built-in underwire bra which eliminates the need for a bra. In modern times, the camisole has been transformed from simply being an undergarment to outerwear, with the fabric changing more into cotton based materials. Some wearers shy away from the outerwear camisole because they fear their bra straps will be exposed, though of late several celebrities are indicating that it is fashionable to do so.
 
THE CORSET
A corset is a garment worn to mold and shape the torso into a desired shape for aesthetic or medical purposes (either for the duration of wearing it, or with a more lasting effect).

The most common use of corsets is to slim the body and make it conform to a fashionable silhouette. For women this most frequently emphasises a curvy figure, by reducing the waist, and thereby exaggerating the bust and hips. However, in some periods, corsets have been worn to achieve a tubular straight-up-and-down shape, which involves minimising the bust and hips.

An overbust corset encloses the torso, extending from just under the arms to the hips.
An underbust corset begins just under the breasts and extends down to the hips. Some corsets extend over the hips and, in very rare instances, reach the knees. A shorter kind of corset, which covers the waist area (from low on the ribs to just above the hips), is called a 'waist cincher'.

A corset may also include garters to hold up stockings (alternatively a separate garter belt may be worn for that). Normally a corset supports the visible dress, and spreads the pressure from large dresses, such as the crinoline and bustle. Sometimes the corset has been supported by a corset cover.
 
THE GARTER
Garters are items of clothing, used to keep stockings up. Normally just a few inches in width, they are usually made of leather or heavy cloth, and adorned with small bells and/or ribbons. In the 18th to 20th centuries, they were tied just below the knee, where the leg was skinniest, to keep the stocking from slipping. The advent of elastic has made them unnecessary from this functional standpoint, although they are still often worn for fashion.
A garter is often worn by newlywed brides. It is the groom's privilege to remove the garter and toss it to the male guests. The symbolism to deflowering is unambiguous. Historically, this tradition also relates to the belief of guests that having an article of the bride's clothing was good luck. As this often resulted in the destruction of the bride's dress as fabric was ripped off, the tradition arose for the bride to toss articles of clothing to the guests, including the garter. Sometimes, if the guests were too drunk, they would try to remove the garter ahead of time, and consequently the tradition arose for the groom to remove it himself and toss it to the guests, thus discouraging distressful (for the bride) intervention from the guests.
 
THE GARTER BELT
Suspenders in British English, or garters in North America are small straps or bands that hold up socks or stockings. For stockings, they are usually attached to a suspender belt or the bottom of a corset, and have special clips on their ends. Suspenders worn with stockings by women have a strong erotic appeal to many men. As with many items of female undergarments, they are sometimes items of fetish. For this reason they are sometimes worn by exotic dancers
 
THE G-STRING
A G-string, thong, or string tanga is a narrow piece of cloth or even leather that passes between the legs, usually between the buttocks, and is attached to a band around the hips, worn as a bikini bottom or as underwear by both men and women.
The term appeared in English as Geestring 1878, for the string that holds up the loincloth worn by American Indians. The present spelling G-string is first attested in 1891 — perhaps influenced by the homonymous musical term for of violin string tuned to a G — as American English slang to describe the loincloth of Philippine natives. This style of loincloth was the traditional 3+ meter long wound strip. Later, probably through a chain of social contacts through the US military, the term "G-string" was applied to the breechcloths of American Natives overseen on reservations. Only in 1936 is the first use recorded for female (stripper) underwear.
 
MERRY WIDOW
A merry widow is a short, strapless corset with half-cups for the breasts and long garters. It was first made by the lingerie company Maidenform in 1952, to coincide with the 1952 film, The Merry Widow, starring Lana Turner. The original Merry Widow foundation garment was a full-length corselette, cut with attractive panels of black and white lace, incorporating slim panels of black elastic yarn net. A heavy-duty zip was inserted behind a velvet-backed hook-and-eye flange, and the whole garment was lined with nylon voile. Nine long spiral wires were cased in black satin. Turner is reputed to have said, "I am telling you, the Merry Widow was designed by a man. A woman would never do that to another woman." To this day, merry widow is the generic term for a corselette bra in the United States. This type of lingerie is also know as a Torsolette and is used in Bridal
Lingerie and used like a Bustier.
 
THE TEDDY

A teddy is a form of bodysuit-like lingerie, often worn in the boudoir. Unlike a bodysuit, it is typically looser and more sheer, and may be designed to slip off from the shoulders, rather than to open at the crotch. The teddy is normally worn for the seductive look, rather than practical reasons.