Posts in category "karolina"

Luxury Lingerie Reviews: FYI by Dani Read, Lascivious & Jenny Packham

Who can resist the January sales? I most certainly can’t.  Here’s just a few of the bargains I snapped up from last season and my thoughts on them!

All images by Karolina Laskowska unless otherwise credited

FYI by Dani Read ‘Despote’ bra and briefs

The ‘Despote’ set, image by FYI by Dani Read

FYI by Dani Read is one of the brands that I’ve been admiring from afar for a while now – after all, leather and spikes are right up my street when it comes to design aesthetics! Unfortunately, I faced the usual issue of student budgeting and could only dream of owning a set.

Imagine my glee then when I spied the ‘Despote’ set at the Coco de Mer sale for a fraction of its original price… Filk chiffon paired with patent leather caging and black spikes? Yes please! I snapped it up and waited impatiently for my order to arrive. I ordered a 32C bra and Medium brief, the closest sizes to what I usually wear.  The bra retailed at $156 and the brief at $108. Whilst the bra is sold out, the brief is available here.

Unfortunately, I was left feeling a little deflated by the garments that arrived. Whilst the set still looks a damn sight cooler than most of the lingerie out on the market, I just didn’t feel the quality or fit were quite up to scratch.  The leather cage structure doesn’t offer much adjustment and seems to follow a very straight shape, leave an unattractive bulge in the back of the garment. Considering the set as boudoir pieces, I’m able to forgive the less than perfect fit on the bust – after all, with those spiked shoulder straps I don’t think I’ll be fitting any t-shirts over this bra any time soon!

The leather strapping on the briefs has a an elasticated panel and adjustable gold sliders, whilst the strap placement is particularly flattering for those of us with larger hips, sitting on top of them instead of cutting into them. The cut of the briefs at the back is a little off though – I couldn’t get the material to sit flat and so had to make do with it bunching together!

Overall I was a little disappointed by the set, though I suppose my issues are always a danger when ordering over the internet without actually seeing the product in person.  Nevertheless, it’s still a very striking lingerie set, and most certainly incredibly different to most of other luxury brands on the market – for all its faults I’m sure it will still be making many an appearance in the bedroom!

Lascivious Lila bra and Isla briefs

The ‘Isla’ set, image by Lascivious

Lascivious‘ classic Lila bra has been a part of my collection for quite some time now – and I’ve been looking out for matching briefs ever since! The Isla briefs were another lucky steal at the Coco De Mer sale and go almost perfectly with the Lila bra. I purchased a 32C Lila bra and M Isla briefs.

The Lila bra is an open cup with sheer gathered mesh detail above the bust. The Isla briefs are made of powernet, with similar gathered mesh details on the hip panels, with patent eyelet tape and elastic details. There’s silver hooks and eyes going down the centre back of the briefs and removable suspender straps. The bra retails for £86 here and the briefs for £112 here.

For a cupless bra, the fit is very good – the wire encases the breast well whilst the underband is comfortably tight and the mesh detailing is flattering.  Obviously for a bra of this style support isn’t an issue!

Overall the briefs are a good fit, with the mesh detail on the hip sitting flatteringly high. The high-waist also means that the suspenders actually keep your stockings up, making this the very first pair of suspender knickers that do what they’re supposed to!

My only issue with these briefs is the hook and eye fastening at the back. There’s no delicate way to put this, but itreally hurts. The hooks are surprisingly sharp and there isn’t any layer between them and your skin, so wearing these for more than a few minutes because incredibly uncomfortable. I’m a little heartbroken about this – these are truly gorgeous knickers and I’d been hoping to wear them on an everyday basis but it’s just not feasible!  Luckily the set’s gorgeous enough to qualify as boudoir-only – where, let’s be honest, comfort isn’t completely necessary.

Edit (06/03/13) – I’ve since been informed that the Isla knickers that I purchased had a manufacturing fault – the hooks that had been causing the discomfort had been sewn in the wrong way round – they should have been facing away from the body.

Jenny Packham silk & lace robe

Lace trim robe by Jenny Packham, image by Harrods

Jenny Packham is one of those designers whose lingerie I’ve often admired from a distance – whilst many of her designs are beautiful, the price tags can make the eyes water somewhat.  I was very lucky in acquiring this robe – as a current season piece it still hasn’t reached the sale, so it was a chance ebay find that led it into my posession. It’s a simple enough piece, made of silk satin with a lace trim along the neckline and sleeves.

The robe that I managed to get is a size Large (I would ordinarily opt for a Medium), however as a piece of loose-fitting loungewear I don’t feel it causes any major issues. The bra retails for £739 and can be purchased here.

Funnily enough, I don’t feel that there’s much I can really say about this robe. Overall, it’s very pretty – there’s a lovely lace trim along the sleeves and neckline. The kimono style sleeves and full skirt are fun to swoosh around in and the tie waist is flattering But that’s about all I can say about the garment. It’s pretty, but it’s not special. It’s not made by artisans and finished imbeccably – the lace appliqué is machined on and it is made in China (this isn’t a knock at China – I’d just expect a garment at this price point to have more expensive labour costs).

As with most premium and luxury lingerie, you are paying for the name rather than the lingerie itself. There’s nothing wrong with the robe, but I just can’t see how it justfies the £739 price tag.  For that sort of money I would personally want something unusual and impeccably crafted – though that’s just not the way that the industry works.

Readers – did you manage to catch any bargains in the sales? Have you tried any of the designers above?

Karolina

Karolina

Student at De Montfort University's world-renowned Contour Fashion course. Makes many knickers in her spare time.

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The Lingerie Collective: Highlights for Autumn/Winter 2013

In early January I visited The Lingerie Collective trade show, home to some of the world’s most exciting luxury brands.  Here are my favourite exhibitors and what we have to look forward to in Autumn/Winter 2013!

All images by Karolina Laskowska unless credited otherwise.

Beautiful Bottoms:

Beautiful Bottoms are renowned for their fashion-forward prints and affordable silks. This season is no exception, with highlights including this silk georgette rose print slip and some gorgeous printed silk satin pyjamas.

Top image: Provided by Beautiful Bottoms

Felice Art Couture:

Felice Art Couture are a new luxury loungewear brand with some of the most intricate embellishments that I’ve ever seen in the lingerie world.  Delicate Chantilly laces and stunning beadwork make these garments seem like works of art than something to lounge in!

Fraulein Kink:

Fraulein Kink’s new collection has some of my favourite bedroom accessories yet. This season sees a Wild West influence with pieces such as crystal-tipped lassos and (my personal favourite), gold spikey spurs.  Other standout pieces include the fringe, feather and spike eyemask shown below.  As usual, Fraulein Kink’s designs are a perfect lingerie accompinament.

Top image: Left: A nineteen13 Production, right: Camilla Camalgia

Kriss Soonik:

Kriss Soonik’s loungerie is as fashion-forward and unusual as ever, with old favourites such as the suspender top being reinvented in a long-sleeved velour version. My personal favourite is the lace and tulle babydoll, a perfect match of sporty and unusual shapes with flirty feminine details.

Marika Vera:

Marika Vera is one of my all-time favourite lingerie designers and the new collection ‘Welcome to the Rabbit Hole’ is no disappointment. Exquisite silk satins and chiffons are layered in unusual and flattering silhouettes with details such as delicate strapping, collars and loose ruffles.  The garments are also multi-functional – equally beautiful in the boudoir as when mixed into outerwear.

Top and bottom image: Provided by Marika Vera

Shell Belle Couture:

The new collection by Shell Belle incorporates stunning laces with delicate sheer meshes and silks.  Romantic classics such as the Seduce Me gown sit alongside new flirtier pieces such as camisole sets and animal prints.  The detailing on these pieces is exquisite, from the positioning of lace to delicate straps and the signature stitched scallop edges.

Something Wicked:

Something Wicked’s lingerie designs are the perfect blend of fashion-foward naughtiness. Irresistably soft leathers are paired with delicate chantilly laces and gold plated components. The newest collection features a softer approach to the luxury S&M vibe, with flirty chiffons in shades of berry and lilac being given bondage inspired strap details.

Top and bottom images: Provided by Something Wicked

Underprotection:

Underprotection are a Danish brand that creates ethical lingerie and loungewear, using only sustainable fabrics such as bamboo cotton.  The designs themselves are gorgeous – my personal favourites are the scallop-panel bra and knicker set. The gorgeous colours and stitching details have put the set majorly high on my lust list!

Readers: what do you think of my picks from the show? Had you encountered any of these designers before?

Karolina

Karolina

Student at De Montfort University's world-renowned Contour Fashion course. Makes many knickers in her spare time.

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Lingerie School, Year 2: Jellyfish Lingerie!

It’s my second year of lingerie studies and my first term is soon coming to a close… Along with a rush of deadlines!  Consequently, the past few days have been a flurry of lingerie activity in order to get my first design project ready to hand in.  Even though it’s still missing the finishing touches, I thought you’d all like to see how my first lingerie project of the year has turned out.

Initial sketchbook work: photography and exploring shapes and colours

Our project brief gave us relatively free rein – requiring a bra, knicker and suspender belt with relevant technical accompaniments.  I chose the starting point of jellyfish and sea life, having always been fascinated by the shapes and colours – flowing, light and delicate.  There are so many ways that these qualities can be transferred to lingerie.

Photographs of ink in water

Print ideas – the centre design ended up being used in my final garments

As well as exploring these qualities through drawing, I had a go at photographing some ink in water to try and capture the amazing shapes and colours.  I loved some of the photos so much that I even had a go at designing some repeat prints with them.

Looking at garment details. L-R – La Perla, La Fille d’O, Fleur of England

I began to look the lingerie world for inspiration.  I was feeling particularly inspired by designs that mixed sheer and opaque fabrics.  I also noticed that quite a few of my favourite designs utilised straight lines – a technique that’s particularly difficult to get right when pattern cutting lingerie, especially in a manner that looks good on the human body.  La Perla’s AW12/13 collection has used these particularly effectively.  I also love the crispness and use of panelling in La Fille Do’s designs and the use of graphic black with sheer tulle by Fleur of England.

Design ideas and scribbles

I began to have a go at sketching my own designs. Unfortunately, drawing is not my strong point – my design ideas are nearly all scribbles that probably don’t make sense to anyone but me!  Nevertheless I had a very strong vision of what I wanted for my final designs. I wanted immaculate attention to detail and perfect finishing – minute and perfectly sewn pin stitches on each seam, purely elegant garments.  I also began experimenting with creating partial bras and cups to get a clearer vision of my designs.

Final fabrics – silk satin, silk habotai, silk chiffon and stretch mesh.

Illustration of my final designs

Everything came together in my head when I finally went fabric shopping.  I found the perfect silk chiffon – ombre reds, purples and blues that exactly echoed my sketchbook starting points. I knew exactly what I wanted my garments to be.

Illustration board of my ‘collection’ – luckily I only have to make one set!

In the final week before the deadline I’ve finalised my designs and am still in the process of actually finishing my garments; unfortunately I don’t have any of the fantastic industrial sewing machines in my own house and have to wait for studio time to use them! Nevertheless, you can get an idea of what my final designs will be, even if they are just pinned together.

Garments in progress: pinned together bra (hence still looking lumpy and shapeless!) and my final skirted suspender belt

So in the next few days I will be panicking about finishing technical packs and drawings (incredibly boring but a necessity for any garment to go into production!), market research and photoshoots.  You will just have to watch this space for the final outcome!

Readers: Do you think I’ve been successful in following my initial ideas through to literal garments?   What are your favourite parts of the project?

Karolina

Karolina

Student at De Montfort University's world-renowned Contour Fashion course. Makes many knickers in her spare time.

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Lingerie Reviews: Autumn Acquirements From Maison Close, Lascivious, & Lacing Lilith

Disclaimer: The Soie Cherie set was kindly provided MemeShop.  All other garments in this post were purchased by myself.  Lascivious and Lacing Lilith are not affiliated with these reviews in any way.  All opinions are my own.

I’m constantly shopping for new lingerie – I have a terrible habit of justifying it as ‘research’ for my lingerie studies!  I’m forever trawling the internet, sample sales and ebay in case I manage to uncover a bargain.  Here’s my lucky finds from the last month and what I thought of them.

Maison Close’s Soie Cherie bra. Image from MemeShop.com

I’ve encountered the brand Maison Close only briefly in the past – they’d always appeared to me as being highly erotic and boudoir wear focused, with lots of garments featuring naughty cut outs and straps.  The Soie Cherie set was therefore quite a pleasant surprise – it’s much more girly and not quite as obvious as the brand’s other offerings.  Featuring a soft bra (£60)  and detachable-suspender brief (£55), the set is made in a stretch fuchsia silk with delicate black stretch lace inserts.  Sizing comes up very small in Maison Close’s designs, so I would fully advise going up a size in any order.  I ended up ordering a Medium bra and Large briefs when I usually wear a 30D bra and UK 10/12 briefs.

My first impression of the set was that Maison Close use utterly gorgeous packaging – each garment comes in its own purple and gold branded box and is wrapped in tissue paper.  The actual set is very flirty and feminine – the combination of delicate lace and soft silk gives it a very luxurious feel.

Unfortunately it does appear to be a bedroom-only set. As with most soft styles, the bra doesn’t provide any major amount of support, though it does give a flattering shape to a smaller bust.  I also had some issues with the knickers – on their own, they are utterly fabulous, being both comfortable and flattering.  However, the problems start with the garters straps: the fact that they are silk makes adjusting them quite tricky, whilst the small clips can get quite fiddly and make it rather difficult to actually attach them to stockings. My real problem with them though was the fact that they don’t actually hold your stockings up – take a single step, and you’ll find your stockings actually start pulling your knickers down!  This is unfortunately unavoidable for any suspender straps that come from the hips and not the waist.  If you are considering buying them, I’d simply advise ditching the suspender straps and pairing the briefs with some lace hold ups.

I can’t deny that I’ve been eyeing up the Midori bodysuit (£198) for a while now – I adore Lascivious’ aesthetics, and as part of their ‘Classics’ range, this garment has simply been taunting me every season. I was lucky enough to find this bodysuit in a sample sale a couple of weeks ago and so avoided breaking the bank!  Featuring sheer net that drapes across the body, elastic strap detailing, satin ties around the bust and neck and suspender straps, it’s a hugely flattering piece for all sorts of body shapes.  The satin ties can be worn according to your preferences, whether you prefer them crisscrossing across the body or wrapped tightly under the bust.

Unfortunately I have once again encountered some trouble with Lascivious’ sizing – I’d previously purchased knickers and another bodysuit from them in a Medium, only to find that they were too short for me in the torso.  With this playsuit, I took a bit of a risk in buying it in a size Large.  Whilst it fits perfectly on my bottom, this time it’s a little too long in the torso, with the draped mesh falling a lot lower on my body than in any of Lascivious’ product shots!  Nevertheless, I think it still looks absolutely gorgeous when worn so I don’t have any real complaints!

Latex can seem like a pretty scary material for most people – with its obvious fetish connotations , the average lingerie lover is going to deem it as just a little too S&M to incorporate into their lingerie drawers.  Nevertheless, latex has been rather prevalent in the high fashion world recently, perhaps making it a little more socially acceptable!  I’ve previously only dipped my toes in the water by buying latex stockings and fingerless gloves (the perfect accessory to toughen up any lingerie outfit – trust me!), but decided to take a jump when I saw this Lacing Lilith corset sample (in my size would you believe it!) on ebay.  It’s a lot more extreme than my usual lingerie tastes but I still have no regrets – latex is a fabulously forgiving material and it’s bound to make an impact wherever you wear it.  I bought this with the intention of wearing it for Hallowe’en but I haven’t quite decided how I’ll be styling it! Either way, I have plans of making this corset at home with the rest of my lingerie collection – I wonder how softening the look with some lovely lacey pieces would look?

1940s and 1950s bras

Finally, my occasional perusing of Vintage shops resulted in my finding these two vintage lingerie treasures: a 1940s and a 1950s bra, both in amazing condition. Most surprising of all though is the fact that they both fit!  They both feature delicate lace inserts, pale satins and intricate stitching and boning.  Both bras use liberal amounts of boning for their support (instead of the underwire that we are all so familiar with now), with the 1950s bras’ being so effective it is in fact strapless.  They both have the rather pointy bust shape that was so popular at the time – unfortunately this renders them a little inappropriate for daily-wear, though the collector in me says this is irrelevant!

Readers: What do you think of my most recent lingerie wardrobe additions? What have your most recent purchases been?

Karolina

Karolina

Student at De Montfort University's world-renowned Contour Fashion course. Makes many knickers in her spare time.

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September Lingerie Adventures: What Katie Did, Victoria’s Secret, Sparklewren, and More!

September always seems to be my busiest month.  Once again, it’s been crammed full of lingerie happenings.  As well as being inundated with orders (following the launch of my brand last month), I’ve been juggling lingerie events and preparations to move cities!  It’s been an exhausting month but worth every moment.  Here’s a few of my favourite adventures, I hope you enjoy them!

Clockwise from the left – SS13 including the new highwaisted bikini and Morticia corset, Miss Miranda and Sophie St Villier’s burlesque routine

My lingerie month began with an invitation to What Katie Did’s fabulous AW12 collection launch – a delightful afternoon of fabulous fashion shows and some rather delicious WKD cupcakes.  A particular highlight of the event was the SS13 preview show – my personal favourites including a red and peach colourway for the Morticia corset and a delightful highwaisted bikini with side cut outs.  We were also treated to a fabulous burlesque performance courtesy of Miss Miranda and Sophie St Villier – I was very taken with Miss Miranda’s polkadot seamed stockings and ended up picking up my own pair!

Inside Victoria’s Secret Bond Street boutique – angel wings and all

Before leaving London, I knew I had to go and see what all the fuss was about with Victoria’s Secret.  They’d opened their Bond Street boutique amidst a flurry of controversy and speculation and I was itching to see it for myself.  My first impressions were exactly what I expected: it’s glamorous, attention-grabbing and very, very ‘American’.  The décor is all black and pink gloss and chandeliers, with lingerie covering literally every available surface.  It was a little overwhelming – the themes of each room were a vague at times and the designer collection left my jaw dragging along the floor – though not for the right reasons.

Some of the ‘Designer Collection’

With a premium price, the designer collection seemed average at best, with the lingerie being poorly constructed and offering incredibly limited sizing.  I did wonder why they’d even bothered to include it – after all, the department store ‘Fenwick’s’ is just across the road and offers the crème de la crème of lingerie (Carine Gilson, Chantal Thomass and La Perla just to name a few) – and often for a less intimidating price tag.  Additionally, the mainline products seemed to have an unnecessarily high mark-up – it seemed like the average bra on offer was around £30, which seems a little ridiculous considering the British high street offers multiple identical products for around £10.  To be fair to VS, the customer service was impressive  - sales assistants could be found everywhere and they were all incredibly happy to help and discuss the products.

I was a little disconcerted by their infamous fitting service (having a tape measure wrapped around the top of your bust on the shop floor and then being offered a less-than-accurate size).  Nevertheless, armed with my fitting card, I explored the shop in a bid to find something I’d like to add to my lingerie collection.  Unfortunately, the only bras I could find in a 32C were molded cups and pushups; the lace balconettes seemed reserved only for those in a 32D or above.  I’m personally rather fond of my bust shape and don’t feel it needs a 2-cup-size boost! I fully understand that expanding size ranges can be a complex and costly undertaking for a lingerie brand, though with a label as big as Victoria’s Secret you’d think it wouldn’t be too much of a risk.

Details on the Sparklewren ‘Burning Coals’ corset

So what could be a better cure for the boring and mass-produced than a visit to the wonderful Sparklewren boutique?  After popping in to Jenni’s Birmingham boutique last week, I knew my lingerie lust-list had just been entirely re-written.  Her new ‘burning coals’ corset is one of the most gorgeous garments that I’ve ever laid my eyes upon: phenomenal shaping and exquisite embellishment, with layered golden lace, crystals and spikes – everything that I could ever ask for in a corset!  I was even lucky enough to try it on.  All I need to do now is win the lottery and make it mine! I thoroughly recommend visiting the Sparklewren boutique to any lingerie and corsetry lover – the creations it houses are more works of art than simply garments and the couture laces and crystal embellishments are sure to appeal to any lover of shiny things!

My gorgeous new French lace and my first camisole experiment with it

Finally, I’ve been getting to grips with the aftermath of launching my own lingerie brand!  The response that I’ve had has been a lot better than I ever could have expected.  I’ve been inundated with orders and have received some incredibly lovely messages from customers – it’s really helped to enforce that following my dream was actually a good idea.  Unfortunately, my shops orders seem to have taken up all of my spare time! I’d ordered some stunning French leavers lace that I’ve been barely able to touch since it arrive.  I’m hoping that at some point in the near future I’ll manage to get some free time for some new designs – all I’ve managed so far is a lace camisole, when really I want to be trying out the soft bras and high-waisted knickers that are still just ideas in my head!

Now that September’s over, I’m finally going back to my lingerie studies at university.  It’s going to be an incredibly exciting year – we’re going to be looking at corsetry and swimwear to name just a few of the things we’ll be doing.  I can’t wait to see where my new lingerie school adventures and I’m looking forward to sharing them with you!

Readers – have you had any of your own lingerie adventures last month? What do you think of mine?

Karolina

Karolina

Student at De Montfort University's world-renowned Contour Fashion course. Makes many knickers in her spare time.

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