I’m looking to find a song to join to a classical one. The classical song would be at the start, and then I want to shock the audience with an electric energy. Something with a bit more sassy, rocky, guitars and so forth. Even if its just instrumental. Any suggestions?
I liked how the Burlesque movie used Beautiful People without the singing over the top, even though I don’t think it showcased a lot about actual Burlesque, but still had good singing and dancing.
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Good news and bad news today for lovers of fine Italian lingerie.
Intimissimi, the high-end lingerie line in the Calzedonia empire, has just unveiled its Fall 2010 collection — and it’s gorgeous (more on that later).
But the really good news is that Intimissimi has used the occasion of the fall season to launch an elegant shapewear line which it is calling its “Shaping Collection”.
Although the line is limited to seven pieces, Intimissimi makes a credible entrance into the crowded shapewear market with a collection that favors style over gut-squishing technology.
Control panels are subtly concealed under a lace-like mesh fabric in most pieces. These aren’t heavy-duty compression garments, but they’ll provide some welcome support in key places for those important occasions!
The Intimissimi Shaping collection includes a wireless triangle bra and an underwire bra; a bodysuit; a high-waisted culotte with suspender clips; a chemise; high-waisted shorts; and — a surefire hit — high-waisted leggings that firm up the hips and thighs. All pieces are available in pink or black.
Check out the images from the new collection featuring young actress Alisson Le Borges as the new face for Intimissimi Shaping.
Now the bad news: good luck trying to find this collection, or anything from Intimissimi, in North America.
Earlier this year, the company ended its short-lived licensing arrangement with Victoria’s Secret, and in the process lost its presence in more than 200 U.S. stores. Intimissimi does not have an online shop, and it hasn’t announced what it will do to fill the gap left by the Victoria’s Secret divorce. As near as we can tell, the only North American point of sale for Intimissimi is its E-Bay store — and it’s pathetic.
All of this would be understandable from a startup company struggling to establish a distribution network. But the Calzedonia Group is one of Europe’s most established retail franchises, with over 2,500 stores around the world. The Intimissimi brand alone pulls in about 400 million Euros a year for the company, so you’d think they could find a partner in North America.
After two years, Carrie Amber Intimates has completed the renovation of its now 60,000-square-foot facility in El Monte, Calif., a city in Los Angeles County. “Our old headquarters was becoming too small for our growing business,” Vinh Luong, director of sales and marketing for the company, said.
“When we bought this three acre property it was an old furniture manufacturing warehouse. We remodeled it to suit our brand needs and expansion. We envisioned a Carrie Amber community under one roof, complete with offices, a showroom, warehouse, photography studio, staff cafeteria and a farm with pet goats, ducks and rabbits.”
During the renovation, the company gutted the space, enlarging the office, lobby and showroom. “We created an airy and light-filled space by installing walls of glass for the entrance and front walls. The public areas such as the lobby and reception areas are multi-funcitonal spaces where we host buying groups, press events and fashion shows,” Luong said. “My favorite space is our showroom, which we modeled after a European boutique with glossy white floors and walls. We also did landscaping with lots of native Californian plants.”
Although the bulk of the renovation is complete, Carrie Amber plans to continue to update and add to the facility. Currently, the company is updating its trims library and sample room, and plans to add a recreation area with badminton and basketball courts, as well as an outdoor pavilion with picnic tables.
In other news, Carrie Amber has finished its photoshoot for the Seven ‘til Midnight holiday catalog featuring Heather Rae Young, the Playboy Playmate of the month in February 2010. Inspired by the heroines of “Hollywood’s Golden Age of cinema,” the images are divided into four themes, consisting of Femme Fatale, with Lamé and sequins seen; Nouveau Noir, featuring lace fabric and bow detailing; A La Mode-French, a “fashion forward collection” with tulle skirts and bows; and Bonjour Beaute, a collection of satin printed pajamas, camis and boxers.
Also included in the catalog is the company’s Baby Got Curves collection of plus size styles. Wholesale prices run from $2.50 to $16, and sizes from S through 3X/4X, or One-Size and One-Size-Queen. The catalog includes over 60 new styles.
When Leslie Wexner got into the underwear business nearly 30 years ago, there was a great divide. American women wore Fruit of the Loom, Hanes, or Jockey, pragmatic panties bought in packs of three at mass retailers. Department store lingerie was dowdy, referred to as “foundation garments,” and the fancier items were saved for special occasions, like one’s honeymoon. More modern unmentionables—lacy thongs and padded push-up bras—were available alongside feathered boas and provocative pirate costumes at Frederick’s of Hollywood.
Then Wexner, the founder of The Limited, purchased Victoria’s Secret, a small San Francisco chain headed into bankruptcy, and lifted lingerie out of the red-light district, launched it onto the runway, and landed it right into the underwear drawers of mainstream America. With prime-time fashion shows, sexy TV ads, steamy catalogs, and a presence in nearly every shopping mall in America, the company “made intimate apparel front and center,” says Marshal Cohen, chief industry analyst at the NPD Group, a market-research company in Port Washington, N.Y. Wexner “took the secret out of Victoria’s Secret.” (Cohen also credits Wexner with the “whale tail”—underwear peeking out of the pants—and other fashion phenomena: “He made it a trend; all of a sudden women wanted people to see what they were wearing [underneath], and innerwear became outerwear.”)
Over the past 28 years, by making sexy lingerie affordable, accessible, and acceptable, Columbus, Ohio-based Victoria’s Secret has created a middle ground in intimate apparel. The company woke up a sleepy category, one that took in $10.75 billion in 2009, double what it was when Wexner started. Retail experts say Victoria’s Secret has made department stores more aggressive and fashion-forward. Additionally, it has opened the doors wider for smaller brands like Hanky Panky and Josie Natori, and allowed bigger brands like American Eagle Outfitters, Chico’s, and Abercrombie & Fitch to carry their own lingerie lines. Even practical panties are sexier and more relevant. Jockey and Hanes now both sell thongs. “This is now a category with much greater diversity,” says Wendy Liebmann, CEO of WSL Strategic Retail in New York. Other players “have been forced in a positive way to become more competitive.”
Wexner, 73, is an unlikely candidate to upend the American underwear industry. He’s quiet and reflective, and he dresses conservatively. (In the early days building his business, he says, he was frequently thought to be the company attorney.) He’s been on a quest to find the “purpose of life” since his mid-30s, which may have contributed to his emerging as one of his generation’s most generous philanthropists. (He gave $250 million to set up the Ohio Higher Education Trust in the early ’90s.) He sells sexy underthings to young women and has talked in the past about the “moral compass” that guides him.
Customers logging on to El Asira, a website selling sexual enhancement products, will soon discover that it’s not your average online sex shop.
Suggestive images of naked women and men and advertisements for raunchy sex toys are absent. And just like mosques, the shop is gender segregated — women log in to the left and men to the right.
Welcome to the world’s first online halal sex shop specially designed for Muslim couples looking to spice up their marriage while adhering to Islamic principles.
All products sold by El Asira comply with Islamic sharia law. Shop owner Abdelaziz Aouragh, a 29-year-old Dutch entrepreneur and a practicing Muslim of Moroccan origin, says the store has become a huge success since its launch a couple of months ago.
In fact, when it first opened, the site crashed because overwhelming numbers of visitors flooded the site. Aouragh’s mobile phone was flooded with calls from media outlets curious about his pioneering business. A Russian TV crew flew in all the way from Moscow to interview him in Amsterdam.
“It has been a major success and it’s still rising. I think because it’s the first of its kind,” he told Babylon & Beyond. “The concept we have is totally unique.”
The young entrepreneur says he and his Swedish suppliers are squeamish about having El Asira portrayed as a sex shop. The massage oils, lubricants and various aphrodisiacs sold have all been carefully vetted by scholars of Islamic jurisprudence in Saudi Arabia, among other countries, he said.
More risque bedroom accessories are on the way. Aouragh says he is in the middle of negotiating a deal with a renowned designer for a line of lingerie specially designed for his brand.
Raunchy sex toys and pornography, banned under Islamic law, aren’t for sale.
Affinitas is targeting a variety of lingerie tastes with its fall/winter 2010 collection, which features bras, panties, bustiers, chemises and more in designs ranging from sweet to sexy. Styles will begin shipping to stores this August in sizes 30 to 38, A through DD, and S through XL. In the company’s continued effort to keep merchandise accessible, the line will retail from $10 to $50.
New signature ranges include Kate, a “sexy” leopard print on a blue background with black lace trim. In contrast is Sarah, a black floral embroidered design against a white background that Affinitas defined as “sweet.” Jasmin caters to the woman who wants both options with bright red and subdued silver colorways seen. New colors include a variety of blues, Fuchsia and chocolate, among others.
In other news, Affinitas is following the social networking trend with the launch of its Facebook Fan Page and Twitter Account. The company is using these sites to communicate happenings including new lines, sales, giveaways and more.
Retailers carrying Affinitas include HerRoom.com and LingerieStoreUsa.com, as well as specialty stores nationwide. The company targets youthful, fashionable women from ages 18 to 30 with an annual income of $25,000 or more.
Couture designer extraordinaire Jean-Paul Gaultier is never shy about finding new and shocking ways to display his creations. Fitting, then, that some new Gaultier lingerie pieces are featured prominently in a fashion editorial layout in the latest Elle magazine.
Shot by Serge Leblon with model Yulia Kharlapanova, the Elle spread is titled “Summer’s Bright, Structured Separates” and uses a gritty, barren urban landscape for some very revealing episodes of self-expression.
The shots above feature Gaultier’s satin bra tops, priced at $1,120.
Lingerie has a long and prosperous history as enhancers of the female form. It is believed that the first example of lingerie for women originated in the Mediterranean. This was two thousand years before Christ. The field of womens lingerie has grown and flourished ever since. Now, it is popular among all classes of people. It appears all around the world. It is also a multi-million dollar industry, with newer styles and functions appearing on a regular basis.
There are two different classes of lingerie for women. One style enhances what women already have. Another style hides what women don’t want to have. Bustiers and corsets can fit in both classes. Corsets have a slimming effect, making the waist appear smaller and curvier. Bustiers push up the breasts, enhancing and forming the bust.
Bras are a type of women’s lingerie, although they have been so mainstreamed as to be a normal addition to most women’s closets. Bras can serve many functions. They support women with bigger busts, aiding in back support. They can pull up drooping breasts, and enhance with gel and other fillers. With a pair of matching panties, bras can also attract.
Lingerie has come a long way from the days of burlesque. Seedy motels and back alley shops were the breeding ground of lingerie back then, when men with insatiable appetites went to Burlesque shows to see their fantasies enacted on stage. Women with skimpy or stringy clothing danced. Some took pieces of their clothing off and taunted the men with them. Now, women can do the same thing for their own men, without the inhibition of those older days. Womens lingerie has come into the light, and there exist many gorgeous and tasteful pieces. And what is not tasteful is acceptable in other circles and with other purposes. The g-strings, thongs, backless panties and fishnet stocking with leather are a look that serves to sell sex. This sex sells between a couple in the bedroom or on the pages of Playboy.
Some popular styles of women’s lingerie include:
Camis: These sleeveless tops usually include spaghetti straps and flow over the body. They sometimes include matching panties.
Chemise: A short, straight nightgown, light and soft.
Teddy: Imagine wearing a loose-fitting bathing suit with frills and lace.
Baby Doll: A particular style of lingerie. This was invented in a 1950’s movie of the same name. It is a very short nightgown that accentuates the bust. It stops just above the hips and usually comes with panties. The fabric floats away from the body, while it clasps around the bust.
Kimonos and negligees: These are not lingerie, per se, but can be worn over top of it. For women who chill easily in the shorter pieces, this can make the difference between whether they wear lingerie or not.
Womens lingerie was originally made from silk and satin. It represented sexuality and comfort. Now lingerie is made of a lot of different fabrics, each with its own meaning. Leather lingerie denotes danger and carries with it a rebellious attitude. Velvet lingerie is soft and exotic. Cotton is for modern women who dislike frilly, sassy clothing. Lycra, a relative of spandex, is used for a sporty, tight-fitting look.
Curvy Kate is poised to offer the American bra market something the company believes it has been lacking: stylish bras in big cup sizes and small bandwidths. The lingerie sets—which launched in the United Kingdom last July carrying bras in sizes 28 to 40, DD through J—will attend this August’s CurvExpo shows in Las Vegas and New York City, and plans to exhibit at the show’s February 2011 editions.
The company’s goal is to find “an experienced and established [U.S.] distributor and/or agent who understands the potential of our product,” said Hannah Houston, marketing manager of the company. Retail prices range from approximately £12 to £15 for panties and £26 to £30 for bras, which is equivalent to approximately $18 to $22, and $38 to $44, respectively, at the current exchange rate.
Entering the U.S. market seems like the natural progression for the young company, which Steve Hudson, managing director of Curvy Kate, launched after many years as a retailer specializing in bras for full-busted women. The brand can be found in 200 retail stores throughout the United Kingdom, Australia, Poland, Germany and New Zealand, and recently signed with Canadian distributor Clara Isopo at Paragon International. Major UK retailers carrying the brand include Bravissimo and JD Williams.
Houston added that the fitting revolution is starting to hit the U.S., making it the perfect time for Curvy Kate to make its entrance. “Over the last year we have been researching the U.S. lingerie industry and have found [that] there is a gap in the DD-plus market. Curvy Kate offers incredible fit, fashionable styles and great support, and few brands are currently catering [to] this customer,” she remarked.
“Over the last five years the fitting revolution in the UK has encouraged more women to find their true bra size, with 70 percent finding that they are actually wearing the wrong bra. Most women tend to wear a back size that is far too big, and to support the heavier bust it is crucial that the back band is a firm fit. The 30/32 back bands out-sell [our] larger back band sizes in the UK […] When fitted correctly women [also] tend to find that they are, in fact, a bigger cup size [than they had thought]. [Although this bra revolution] hasn’t completely saturated the U.S. market, change does seem to be taking place and women are looking for brands [that] cater to smaller back sizes and larger cups. Also, there is a growing interest in brands [that] encourage women to find the perfect fit.”
Due to “[our] variety of styles, which cross several market areas,” Houston said Curvy Kate’s customers range from the 16-year-old girl to the woman in her 50’s. “Generally, though, we look at our target customer as a woman of 18 to 34, who enjoys fashion but ultimately is looking for pretty, everyday lingerie that supports her fuller bust while remaining comfortable and attractive.”
In product news, over the next year the company plans to add a K cup. The company is also adding seamless cups, plunge bras and swimwear collection with tankini and bikini options.
