Body Stockings

Bodystockings are one of those ‘Marmite’ items in the lingerie world – you either love them or you hate them. Well, or you’ve never even heard of them (I hadn’t until a couple of years ago, I’ll admit). So, what is this mysterious bodystocking?

Basically, a bodystocking is an item of lingerie which is designed as a one-piece to cover your body and legs, and sometimes your arms too. It’s often sold under the hosiery category in online boutiques, being a kind of tights-plus-camisole, all-in-one garment. This style of lingerie provides a sexy and appealing look and can be worn as an undergarment with nothing underneath it, or over a bra and knickers for more support and coverage.

There are many different styles of bodystockings out there, including both cheap-and-cheerful and premium quality options. There are sheer bodystockings, suspender bodystockings, fishnet bodystockings… the list goes on! These various styles can give you different looks depending on your individual tastes and requirements. Here’s a guide to picking the right style for you…

Sheer Body Stocking

Who wears it: A sassy, sexy girl who’s confident showing off her body!

This style of bodystocking is quite a daring and bold design, for girls who want a sexy and appealing look. A sheer black coloured bodystocking can add a touch of elegance and doubles up as looking just like sexy tights when worn under a dress or skirt. Some women may choose to wear knickers or a bra below this style of bodystocking for extra coverage, and to provide the bust area with support and an uplifting effect, but for a more alluring and dramatic look in the boudoir you can wear these with nothing below!

Suspender Body Stocking

Who wears it: The lingerie-loving girl who wants a simple but stunning solution, to look fantastic in an instant!

Perhaps you love the whole stockings-and-suspenders look, but don’t want the hassle of putting on multiple garments each morning and then worrying your suspender clips are going to come undone. If that’s the case, a faux suspender bodystocking is perfect for you! Thanks to some well placed cut outs to resemble a camisole, suspenders and stockings worn together they look just like the real thing. Suspender bodystockings are also great for making thighs appear slimmer, making them perfect for curvy women looking for a glamorous type of lingerie that balances out their curves.

Fishnet Body Stocking

Who wears it: The ultra-confident girl who dares to be different

Fishnet bodystockings are quite a unique design of underwear which will inevitably spice up your lingerie drawer. Fishnet has a bad rep but so long as you steer clear from any lurid colours (neon pink fishnet is never classy) anyone can make this work in a way that’s stylish and sexy. So, when you want something a little more distinctive than a simple bra and knickers set, why not pop on a fishnet bodystocking and give him a surprise he’ll love? There are plenty of girly choices to pick from, including bodystockings with ribbon, bows, diamante and more!

What is your favourite style of bodystocking?

Michelle Star writes for Esty Lingerie, an online luxury lingerie boutique where you can pick up the perfect bodystocking for you, whether that’s a fishnet bodystocking, a lace one or something a little bit different…

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Perfect Wedding Lingerie

You’ve got the dress sorted. You’ve had the shoes picked out for weeks. Don’t forget about your bridal lingerie.

Wedding outfit planning tends to go something like this: Dress, shoes, jewellery, hair, make-up. With everything to consider when planning their wedding day get-up, women tend to forget their lingerie. I don’t know a bride that didn’t leave it right until the last minute. Rather than an impulse buy, it’s something that should be considered when you’re buying your dress.

Your wedding lingerie will determine how your dress hangs.

We should know by now that decent underwear can make or break and outfit. The right bra size can change the shape of a dress entirely (and yes, most women are still wearing the wrong size so get yourself a proper fitting). When you’re buying smalls for your wedding day, popping to M&S just isn’t going to cut it.

We’ve all gone out for the day wearing a bra that doesn’t feel quite right. It digs in at the sides, pokes and prods or rides up at the back. Or realised that actually, the thong we’re wearing just isn’t comfortable. The very last thing you want on your wedding day is to be fidgeting about because of your underwear. You’re going to be in your dress for hours, you can’t subtly sort out a wedgie as you walk down the aisle. But you also want to look pretty amazing in your undies as well. Sexy and comfortable isn’t an easy mix to get right without expert advice.

The top half

Depending on the shape of the dress, you might find your cleavage taking centre stage. You’ve got backless, strapless and all sorts of breast engineering to contend with. You need to make sure you stay comfortable and keep ‘the girls’ in check throughout the day.

“It is really recommended to wear the exact bra on the last days for the dress fittings, as it does change the shape and the measurements have to be perfect.” Says Myla bra-fitter Denise Deacon. “Even if the dress fits well, wearing the right bra can change it dramatically.”

“Every bride should have a bra fitting session, especially if they never had it or had it over a year ago.”

The bottom half

“I want something different!” are words that brides can sometimes regret. When it comes to underwear, it’s actually no bad thing to stick to what we know feels comfortable. The problem with that is that the same rule then has to go for the dress.

“Your wedding lingerie will determine how your dress hangs.” Says Ayten Mustafa of luxury lingerie brand Ayten Gasson. “It should never be a last minute thought or a quick purchase.”

“Bear in mind your VPL. If your dress has a full skirt you are lucky enough to be able to choose which ever knicker shape takes your fancy – such as a silk knicker with a ruffled leg covered with lace and bows, with no bumps or lines visible from your dress. You should avoid a knicker shape you are not used to wearing. If you have a lingerie drawer full of knickers, avoid g-strings and thongs.”

The bells and whistles

You can’t wear tights. You just can’t. You might as well not bother with the rest if you’re going to ruin it with tights. If you’re not used to wearing stockings or hold ups, give them a try for a while before walking down the aisle. The finishing touches to your undergarments will make you feel super sexy, which is what you want when you finally remove your dress.

“The choice of hosiery is only hold ups or stockings. If you’ve never worn them before now is the time!” Insists Michele Scarr owner of lingerie shop Bordello. “Choose ivory or white. We sell Wolford stockings because of their superior quality.”

“Does your budget allow for two separate outfits? Are you going to freshen up & change into something completely different on the wedding night, perhaps something more sexy & erotic? Some brides like to take a few sexy pieces for their honeymoon in other colours or perhaps choose a bridal negligee.”

The right lingerie can make you feel sexy and confident – who wouldn’t want that on their wedding day? Putting a little bit of thought into what you’re wearing under your dress will make sure you feel your best throughout the day. That’s surely much more important than which table settings you choose.

Posted in Bras, Bridal Lingerie, knickers, Wedding

Men Cannot Sell Women’s Underwear in Saudi Arabia

King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia has issued a royal decree banning men from selling underwear in lingerie shops in a move aimed at ending decades of embarrassment and creating an estimated 40,000 jobs for women in the ultra-conservative kingdom.

The decree has already run into bitter criticism from hardline clerics, who claim that allowing women to work is against God’s law. Sheikh Abdel Aziz al-Sheikh, Saudi Arabia’s Grand Mufti, has stated publicly that employing women is a “crime and prohibited by Islamic sharia”.


But the move has been backed by a women’s Facebook group called “Enough Embarrassment”, which had called for boycotts on lingerie shops that employed men. The demand was met with a fatwa, or religious decree, banning women from working when the Labour Ministry first floated the idea three years ago.

Despite the misgivings of conservatives, the decree comes with indisputable royal backing. “This is an order from the King,” Adel Faqih, the Labour Minister, said. “All preparations are under way to fully implement this decision.”

The ban on male shop assistants was announced last June and shopkeepers were given six months to replace their all-male staff, a move seen as a something of a social revolution in a country where women are not allowed to drive and only women from the upper classes generally work, and then only in medicine or government jobs.

It is bad news, however, for the mostly foreign men, many of them Pakistanis, who worked in women’s underwear stores in the kingdom. Under the new law, 7,300 shops will be affected, the Labour Ministry said. It will deploy staff in shopping malls to ensure that women are not harassed when they start their jobs. The decree will be extended to cosmetic shops later in the year.

While the creation of women’s jobs in women-only shops has been seen as a step towards reform, the kingdom has been criticised by rights groups for a proposed anti-terrorism law that critics say is aimed at stifling dissent at a time when the rest of the Arab world is in social and political upheaval.

Amnesty International, which obtained a copy of the draft law, said that under the new legislation, even peaceful acts of dissent could be prosecuted as “terrorist crimes”, allowing the authorities to detain suspects indefinitely and without trial.

Posted in shopping

Was Betty Boop – Feminist or Cheap Floozy?

Betty Boop is the ultimate woman.  She is naughty but nice and knows how to wrap men around her little finger.  But is she the ultimate feminist, or is she nothing more than a cheap floozy?  Should all women aim to be like Betty Boop or should we all aim to be anything but her?  Obviously, that is looking at her personality, because there isn’t a woman on the planet who doesn’t want to look like Betty Boop.

Betty Boop as a Floozy

It would be quite easy to say Betty Boop was a floozy.  She was highly sexualised and wore a short black dress, a contoured body and garter belts of course.  She used to provoke men to make advances and moves towards her.  Of course, she sang, she was sentimental and she behaved mainly like a flapper.  She was a real girly girl in that respect.

Betty Boop as a Feminist

However, we could also see Betty Boop as a feminist.  She was the first sexual woman that graced our cartoons.  No longer was the woman any different from the men, being recognisable as a woman only thanks to the huge eyelashes and the fact that she wore a dress.  Also, she may have been highly sexual, but don’t feminists tell us that we are supposed to celebrate our sexuality?

Take, for instance, the feminist stance on prostitution.  Naturally, it depends which exact strand of feminism you follow, but in general feminists believe that a woman has the right to sell her body for sex.  So long as she does so out of her own volition, there is nothing against utilising the beauty that we have been given.

Of course, Betty Boop is also seen as a feminist because she is a member of the 1930s jazz movement, but has no husband and has a career.  A working woman who is unsupported by a man is the ultimate woman of course.

The Decline of Betty Boop

And then it all went wrong.  Betty Boop gained popularity amongst men who saw her as the ultimate sex doll, whilst at the same time gaining popularity amongst women who saw her dress style and behaviour as empowering.  However, the Motion Pictures Producers and Distributers Association enforced the Production Code, which led to much censorship.  Suddenly, Betty Boop was no longer a sexualised woman – neither feminist, nor floozy – but a housewife.  Sure, she was still without a husband and some saw her as more of a career woman.

Not only was her person censored and could she no longer act in the flapper, carefree manner that we had all grown accustomed to, her clothing was censored to.  She suddenly wore a much fuller dress and her cleavage all but disappeared, being covered by clothing.  Worst of all, she was no longer the centre of attention.  Instead, her sidekicks (usually male) became the important part of the story, the ones who had the adventures.

So, by the end of the series, was Betty Boop a floozy or a feminist?  Probably neither.  She was just a boring woman.  It must be said, however, that by the end of the series, she was anything but a feminist.  She no longer looked sexual or behaved sexual, she was no longer important and she was no longer a girly girl.  In fact, she was just the perfect conservative wife, who just simply still lacked a husband.

Whatever Betty Boop was or wasn’t she certainly looked smoking hot, in the early days at least.  With women once again being able to dress the way they want, gorgeous couture is once again available, thank goodness.

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