101 years of the bra

101 years of the bra



Fresh out of university I just knew I wanted to be a fashion buyer. I landed up in the lingerie department of a major retailing outfit and thus the lingerie queen was born. It didn't take long for me to realise that it was a marriage made in heaven -- me and undies; 'till death do us part'.
Whilst every other designer in my company was assigned to the task of designing dreary raincoats and industrial footwear to combat the British climate, I was enjoying the glamorous world of pretty trims and bows for the sexiest product on the market. I loved the fact that this was a product that any woman could enjoy regardless of her age or vital stats -- lingerie doesn't discriminate. It's a totally feel-good purchase


2

Hello boys!



Just when I thought I was settling into my newfound career in the 1990s, traffic-stopping Czech supermodel Eva Herzigova launched her attack on the unsuspecting average British bloke.
The hugely publicised billboards for lingerie giant Wonderbra's 'Hello boys' campaign featured on some of London's biggest, busiest streets. British men were never so keen to get put of bed and face traffic en route to work Eva and her assets smiled down upon the rush hour as men one by one ruined their hard earned no-claim insurance policies. The number of accident black spots increased dramatically. It was official -- Eva was the most traffic-stopping model!



3
All shapes and sizes



A couple of years before Eva, singer Madonna had already added insult to injury. She realised that underwear is so fabulous you needn't wear anything else! Her infamous conical bra, which should have been copyrighted by Bollywood actress of yore Mala Sinha, may as well have come with a health and safety warning -- it could have had your eye out!



4
Lingerie revolution



Lingerie was being taken places it had never been before, we were in the middle of a lingerie revolution! Every woman was starting to question the contents of her underwear drawer. Quite frankly, I was exhausted from creating products to meet the insatiable demands of the '90s woman.
This seemingly discreet undergarment had transformed itself into the must-have fashion item of the decade. Lingerie had been elevated from functional to fashionable.




5
The gel bra



Just when it started to calm down, America's sweetheart, actress Julia Roberts had squeezed herself into the amazing all-new gel bra for her role in the blockbuster Erin Brokovich. Her cleavage should have had an agent, because it became a bigger talking point than her acting. Every woman wanted that product and the lingerie rollercoaster was in motion again...