F/W 2012 Lingerie Trend Report: Paris Salon International de la Lingerie

Now that the Spring/Summer market is over, it’s time to take all the stuff I’ve seen and condense it into our semiannual lingerie trends reports. This was a really busy market season for me as I attended two shows for the very first time: the Salon International de la Lingerie in Paris and the International Lingerie Show in Las Vegas…in addition to my usual circuit of the Curve New York and Designer Lingerie Showcase shows.

Because lingerie isn’t really talked about in the mainstream fashion industry, a lot of people don’t realize that it has seasons just like the mainstream fashion industry, and a new cycle of trends appears roughly every six months. Most everything I’ll be talking about in the trend reports over the next few days is not available in stores yet. But since you’re getting the inside scoop, you’ll be able to tell your local lingerie boutique what you’d like to see six months from now, and hopefully be able to pick it up then. With that said, here are my jet-lagged rememberings from the Paris show.

Lace, Lace, and more Lace

While the American lingerie market tends towards the sporty, loungey, and understated, the European lingerie market is all about opulence, luxury, and conspicuous consumption (or at least as conspicuous as underwear can get). One  of the ways I saw this was in lace trims, overlays, and embellishments everywhere.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hardware, Crystal, and Metallic Details

Lingerie is getting a bit edgier with hardware and metallic details, especially for high end, avant garde brands (I think the official fashionspeak word is “directional”) like Bordelle and Made by Niki. Hardware details also take advantage of the lingerie as outerwear trend. If your bra has pretty gold accents, that’s an incentive to show it off…not cover it up. I love how this trend also offers an alternative to more overtly feminine lingerie, like the lacy pieces above. If your style is more Rockstar than Rococco, these pieces are for you.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Corsets, Bustiers, and Waist Cinchers

One thing that I saw I lot in Paris that I see almost nothing of in the states was corsets and bustiers. I’m not sure what it is, but fashion-forward corsetry and corset-like shaping garments seem to be a lot more commonplace across the pond than here. As you can see, most of this pieces also include the lacey overlay trend.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bits and Bobs

Here are a few random things from the show that don’t quite fit into the categories above:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dear readers, what do you think of next season’s European trends? Any favorites? I’d love to get your thoughts in the comments!