Review: Fairytales By Angela Friedman 'Sweet Tooth' Bralet And Ruffle Knickers

Disclosure: I was sent this lingerie to review free of charge. All opinions are my own.

Fairytales is luxury designer Angela Friedman’s new diffusion line. With a girly pastel colour palette and delightful fabrics like super sheer nylon mesh and printed silks, it offers a more affordable entry into Friedman’s world of beautifully feminine underthings. When I was offered the chance to review some of the pieces I jumped at the chance; I adore the slip that I have from the main line and I was very curious as to how this line would compare!

I was sent the Sweet Tooth bralet in a size Small and the Ruffle knickers in a size Medium (my usual sizes are a 30D bra and UK 12 knickers), both in the lilac colourway. The bralet costs $54 and is available in sizes XS-L while the knickers are $70 and available in sizes XS-XL. Both pieces are also available in pale pink and blue. Other styles in these colourways include a variety of knicker shapes, a simpler soft bra and a babydoll.

Both bra and knickers are made of a wonderfully soft and sheer lilac nylon. The bra is an unstructured soft bra, with triangle cups that have been ruched at the underband to give gentle support. The underband is created with a white satin elastic, closed at the centre back with a silver-toned hook with two loops to give some adjustability. Shoulder straps are made of a similarly finished but much narrower elastic, finished with white plastic sliders and rings. Both cup edges are finished with white picot edge elastic. The neck edge is finished with a double sided ruffle of nylon, edged with a white ‘babylock’ stitch and applied with a straight stitch. The apex of both cups is finished with a white satin bow. The knickers are a side-tie style, created from the same lightweight nylon mesh. They are finished with two rows of ruffles at the front and three rows at the back, applied with a straight stitch. The ties are also made of the same nylon mesh and the knicker leg and waist edges are trimmed with white picot edge elastic.

Both pieces fit well; the bra gives gentle support, with good cup volume and a comfortably tight band. I’d say that the flexible fit means you could easily go up or down a cup size and still have a reasonable fit. The knickers have a comfortable fit, with gentle elastic that doesn’t cut in anywhere. I wore mine tied almost as tight as they can go, so would assume that they could also fit a size larger easily. Both pieces are extremely sheer: great for the boudoir, but be warned if you intend to wear this bralet out and about!

My only gripes with these pieces are that there could be some tightening up of construction techniques. With that in mind, it’s important to remember that at this price point it’s important to have reasonable expectations, especially as they have been made in New York where the cost of living is relatively high. I was disappointed to find that the knickers contained no lining on the gusset; I would normally expect to find a thin layer of cotton here. Consequently, I just didn’t feel comfortable wearing these knickers outside the bedroom: a real shame given how pretty they are! I found this a little puzzling, as every other knicker style in the Fairytales line appears to contain a cotton liner. I also found that the picot-edge elastic hadn’t been applied to the knicker edges as neatly as I would hope. On many areas, the overlock stitching had been applied too closely, resulting in part of the elastic being cut away and starting to fray. This would mean that I wouldn’t expect the knickers to have a shortened lifespan.

On the bra I found some strap raw edges had been finished with a lockstitch, which isn’t as secure as a stitch like a bar tack or tight zigzag. I would worry therefore about this elastic starting to fray, though if cared for and washed appropriately this would not become an issue for some time. Although these details don’t necessarily detract from the wearing experience of these pieces, it would be nice to see them addressed going forward.

These pieces have done a great job of capturing the essence of Angela Friedman’s aesthetic at a much more accessible price point. There are a lot of pretty and flirty details that make this lingerie oh-so-covetable. The price makes ‘Fairytales’ a great collection for a guilt-free treat. Although there are a few construction issues I would like to see addressed, I feel they’re somewhat minor given how relatively affordable these pieces are. Overall, I think these pieces hit a great balance between affordable and good quality, and I’m looking forward to seeing where Angela Friedman takes this diffusion line in the future!

Readers: How do you feel about diffusion lines? Have you tried ‘Fairytales’ yet?