Goodbye Thongs! 'Granny Panties' Are Making a Comeback
Rock Newtney
The Rising Popularity Of 'Granny Panties' Could Be Tied To A Healthier Perception Of Beauty
The New York Times reported Wednesday that young women are increasingly embracing "granny panties" and spurning thongs, proving that now more than ever, women are dressing and shopping for themselves.
Beyond that, however, lies a notion even more exciting: a change in the way we wear underwear could be signaling a change in our perception of what is -- and is not -- beautiful.
The Times cites a 7 percent drop in the sale of thongs over the past year, compared to a 17 percent increase in sales of full-bottomed underwear. The real takeaway is that women, no matter their shape or size, should wear whatever underwear they like -- be it thong, brief or otherwise, as long as they feel comfortable in it.
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Me & You's "Feminist" underwear -- their best seller, as told to the New York Times.
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The rising popularity of plus-size models and increasing market for fashionable, affordable clothing in extended sizes all point toward a more inclusive, body-positive society. But something as simple as underwear style has often been left out of the conversation. Now, the connection is quite clear, according to Myla Dalbesio, a size 10 underwear model. Dalbesio explained to the Times that "the high-waisted and high-cut styles hark back to a time when different body shapes were in style."
The consumer shift, which the Times piece also attributed to women simply buying what they find sexy and comfortable, comes at a time when many women have started taking lingerie into their own hands. Lonely Lingerie, a brand with a mission to empower women to be themselves, recently launched the Lonely Girls Project, encouraging women to post photos of themselves to Instagram in their natural habitat, in lingerie they feel good wearing.
"The Lonely Girls aren't telling women how they should look," designer Helene Morris explained to The Huffington Post. "We want women to look at the imagery and realize they don't have to be a certain way to feel beautiful. We simply wanted to offer the idea that it is okay to be yourself."
That sentiment is shared by Kerry O'Brien, founder and designer at Commando, a brand known for its seamless, comfortable underwear.
"When I’m designing new styles, I never think 'Will a man find this sexy?'” O'Brien told HuffPost. "I think about what women want to wear and I create styles that will gently hug her body and make her feel fabulous. No matter what style she prefers, women should love their underwear and their underwear should love them back."
Whether for body acceptance or sheer comfort, women increasingly wearing whatever underwear they want is a movement we can get behind. And as Dalbesio said, it can help society better understand that "there is not one ‘ideal body,’ but a plethora of them.”
Young Women Say No to Thongs
"When I walk into a lingerie store, I'm always like, 'OK, which drawer in here is for the grannies?'" Daphne Javitch, 35, said of her predilection for ample-bottomed undies. That preference led Javitch, back in 2010, to found Ten Undies, a line with a cult following that sells cotton full-bottom bikinis, boy shorts and high-waist briefs not unlike the kind immortalized in "Bridget Jones's Diary." ("Hello, mommy.") Ten's wares are comfortable and practical, to be sure, but that's hardly the only draw.
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Data provided by the research company NPD Group back her up. Sales of thongs decreased 7 percent over the last year, while sales of fuller styles - briefs, boy shorts and high-waist briefs - have grown a collective 17 percent.
Erica Rousseau, the fashion director for accessories, cosmetics and intimate apparel at Bloomingdale's, said that indeed there has been a "shift in the business." She noted that the trend is in line with the higher-waist and roomier pants styles that have dominated fashion this season. Perhaps motivated by the same kind of contrarianism that helped elevate Birkenstocks and fanny packs, young women are embracing "granny panties" - and not just for laundry day.
"I only wear granny panties," Julia Baylis, a willowy 22-year-old, declared proudly. Baylis and her best friend, Mayan Toledano, 27, design the boutique clothing label Me and You. Their best-seller is a pair of white cotton underpants with the word "feminist" printed in pink bubble letters across the rear. Since the line's introduction on April 7, the panties have sold out.
Besides sales, the "feminist underwear" has inspired countless Instagram "belfies" (that's a selfie for the behind) from Me and You customers eager to show off their feminist convictions as well as their pert posteriors.
Baylis and Toledano are part of an all-female creative collective founded by Petra Collins called the Ardorous that explores feminist topics from a millennial point of view through collaborative and solo art projects. For the generation that counts both Beyoncé and Lena Dunham as feminist icons, female sexuality is wielded for one's own pleasure.
"Most lingerie is designed to appeal to a man," Baylis said. "For us, that's not even a consideration.
This is underwear you wear totally for you. Maybe no one will see it, or maybe you'll put it up on Instagram to share with everyone you know."
That's not to say Me and You's customers don't want to feel sexy; they absolutely do. "What's sexy for us is being natural and comfortable," Toledano said.
And if seducing a man isn't the goal, it can be a welcome side effect.
"I think there's a widespread misconception that men are into pearl thong, lace contraptions," said Javitch of Ten Undies. "To be honest, men are into girls in T-shirts and white underwear."
It's a notion mainstream lingerie companies have been slow to embrace. As the gender gap among owners of small businesses continues to narrow, female entrepreneurs are becoming increasingly empowered to fill the void in the market.
When Greer Simpkins, 28, began doing research for her own lingerie line, she visited a Victoria's Secret store in New York to observe how women shopped for underwear.
"I noticed that a lot of women would come in with a friend, and they'd be asking: 'Do you like this? Do you think he will like it?'" said Simpkins, who previously worked as a counselor to young girls at McLean Hospital, a psychiatric hospital in Belmont, Massachusetts. "They'd be thinking about everyone else but themselves," an attitude she thought the store encouraged. She was also frustrated with how many trends, colors and frills the lingerie industry pushed each season.
"Most women just want something basic for every day that will make them look and feel good," she said.
So, in December, Simpkins introduced an underwear line with just one design: a white cotton panty with an unusually high cut and narrow back. The name, Hello Beautiful, is meant as an affirmation. She already counts Chloe Sevigny, an arbiter of all things cool, as a fan.
Fuller styles are a welcome alternative for Myla Dalbesio, a size 10 underwear model. "The high-waisted and high-cut styles hark back to a time when different body shapes were in style," she said, adding that many larger women find high-rise briefs flattering because they define the waist and cover areas a woman may be less comfortable with.
Dalbesio said she was hopeful that the greater diversity of offerings was a sign that the lingerie industry is beginning to recognize that "there is not one 'ideal body,' but a plethora of them."
In the end, it is about options.
"There's nothing wrong with wanting to be more traditionally sexy and wearing a thong; that doesn't mean you're not a feminist," Toledano said. "This is a step toward embracing more variety in what's offered."
