Fashion corsets are now popping up at your local mall, in big-box stores like Zara and Forever 21 and at popular online hubs like ASOS.com. Shopstyle.com reports corset searches are up a whopping 97.2% year-over-year (corset belts are the most popular).
But those adopting the look aren’t wearing the Victorian-era waist-cinchers like they used to. Trend-setters like Gigi Hadid, Kim Kardashian are strapping corsets over their clothes, putting all that boning on display.
The look didn’t come out of a vacuum: Alexander McQueen, Dolce & Gabbana, Balmain, Louis Vuitton and Preen have all sent the rib-crunching trend down their runways.
inding the perfect strapless bra can seem like a never-ending and never-fruitful task. For every good style, there are probably five or more that fall short in one way or another; whether it’s that the underwire digs in, or that it starts to slip down after ten minutes, or that it’s just plain unflattering.
If you’re yet to land yourself the perfect strapless bra then help is at hand, because the Telegraph fashion team have tried and tested a selection of bras to help you make a beeline for the perfect one for you…
I’ve always felt a bit jealous of women who are able to wear backless dresses without a bra – but stick-ons have always seemed like a scary, nay, risky proposition. However, Fashion Forms stick on bras are Net-A-Porter approved, and are apparently worn by several stars under their red carpet gowns, so I thought I’d give their ‘Go Bare Ultimate Boost Strapless Backless Bra’ a try.
Sticking it on for the first time is tricky – there’s a 6-point list of instructions for how to take it on and off and you’re only advised to wear it for a maximum of 6 hours, meaning they wouldn’t work for a wedding. With no straps, you’re obviously relying only on the cup and although the brand caters for up to a size E, I didn’t feel entirely secure. That said, the shape was great once you’d got it on – smooth and bump free. Perhaps it’ll just take a few goes to convert to the stick-on revolution?
Since my past experiences of strapless bras could all be summarised with the word ‘scaffolding’, I doubted that Wacoal’s unpadded lace option would work past a C cup on first inspection. Somehow, though, it kept everything where it should be, but without digging in so much that it created unsightly bulges. And since it wasn’t heavy, it didn’t shift down during the day and need hoicking up constantly. The natural shape (not too natural, mind) even looks good under a white t-shirt, which is the ultimate test for me, as I find most bras look a bit torpedo-y through a white t-shirt. The nude shade was a pretty good match for my fair skin, too, and while nude bras generally aren’t the prettiest, the lace helped. I’ve been wearing mine under things that would hide bra straps, which says it all.