Lingerie: This season is about luxury and individuality

By Constance Harris
Monday Nov 14 2011

As a fashion editor for many years, I have seen much beauty, glamour and wealth.

Yet, for all the stunning looks, houses and jewels I’ve encountered, the only element I’ve ever truly coveted of these so-called fabulous lives is the beautiful lingerie that some of these wealthy women have.

There is something deeply exquisite about a woman’s body in luxurious lingerie. Complexity of garments, delicate lace, sensuous silk-satin, warmed and moulded to her curves, make beauty of the female form. Lingerie truly is an art dedicated to a woman’s body, if not to her very essence.

Earlier this week, looking at the unusually constructed Stella McCartney chemises and briefs in burgundy silk-satin on the lingerie floor of Brown Thomas, Dublin, I had one of those lingerie-lust epiphanies that I normally only experience when in the presence of La Perla. I could well imagine how Stella’s creations would look on and how good the feeling would be.

It is interesting to notice that over the last few years, as we live through a period of retrospection, lingerie is reflecting that in succinct design. In the previous decade, lingerie was about performance: all show, less about the woman’s soul. In this decade, it is meaningful, interior, and private. It is about true beauty.

“People want the feeling of wearing beautifully crafted lingerie. They’re looking for luxury fabrics and detail. They’re looking for something very special,” Kathy Murray, Group Buying Director for Cosmetics, Lingerie, Living and Interiors at Brown Thomas, told me.

Divided in two parts, one area of Brown Thomas’s lingerie floor is dedicated to functional, yet beautiful, daywear lingerie and support wear by brands such as Wacoal, Lejaby, Spanx, Freya, Chantelle, and more, while the other section is all about luxury and individuality.

Apart from the truly stunning Stella McCartney collection, here you will find exquisite pieces by Aubade, Myla, and Mimi Holliday by Damaris, which opens a pop-up shop in the store from November 25.

This season’s key colours are burgundy, navy, purple and black. Brown Thomas does lingerie from 28A and upwards to F- and G-cup, and will do special orders, too.

Kathy is an advocate of telling your lingerie specialist about your wardrobe and your needs. “Your shape changes as you age. Once the fit is correct, everything else is layers. Your lingerie should do an amazing job for you. So getting regularly fitted is important,” she said.

To be better, feel better and be the beautiful woman you are

- Constance Harris

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Rihanna Engages in a Turbulent Romance in the ‘We Found Love’ Video

Rihanna Now

Rihanna has premiered her new video for ‘We Found Love,’ and the video reflects the emotional weight of the song’s lyrics as RiRi takes us through the ups and downs of a passionate relationship. The clip kicks off with Rihanna speaking in an Irish accent — the video was filmed on the Emerald Isle — as she says, “You feel hopeless, like nothing can save you. And when it’s over and it’s gone, you almost wish that you could have all that bad stuff back so you could have the good.”

Throughout the rest of the ‘We Found Love’ video, quick glimpses are given of Rihanna’s relationship with blue-eyed stud Dudley O’Shaughnessy. The duo appears to be madly in love at times, but there are times when you can also see their relationship falling apart. The video is like a montage of their best and worst times, as they can be seen laughing, kissing and screaming in each other’s faces. The passion is clearly there — O’Shaughnessy even tattoos ‘Mine’ on Rihanna’s booty! — but there are other shots of the two looking like they are ready to kill each other.

Some highlights from the video include Rihanna’s amazing, edgy outfit choices, with a lot of her wardrobe pieces including some form of acid-washed denim. The scenes that really stick with you, however, are when Rihanna and her beau are at their worst. They can be seen crying and bathing in a tub in all of their clothes, smoking tons of cigarettes, and looking like they’ve had way too much fun partying as they’re surrounded by booze and other types of drugs.

In one part of the clip, they even get in a fight in a car, which is slightly reminiscent of Rihanna’s infamous, violent fight with ex-BF Chris Brown. The video ends with Rihanna curled up in a ball on her floor after she leaves the apartment she and her BF were residing in. It’s a tragic end to their “hopeless” relationship, leaving us heartbroken for the couple and their self-destructive romance. This has been one of Rihanna’s best videos yet, with a solid, realistic plot that almost everyone can relate to.

Watch the Rihanna ‘We Found Love’ Video

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