1910 Underwear, “bust improver” by Dickins and Jones, London. Fashion and Decor, A Cultural History
A "Bust Improver" by Dickins and Jones, London 1910, Victoria and Albert Museum, London.Â
Not until the 1930s was the saucy side of underwear made public in advertisements for the new garments which, as the 20th century developed, included X-shaped stretch corsets and bras that seemed to reduce in size as the decades went by.I would not claim that 18th- and 19th-century underwear displayed a period of innocence. Women's uplifting bodices and decorative bows were designed to give the body allure. And already in 1890 there was a shocking-pink silk-satin corset, not really so different from the sparkling creation with a wasp waist produced by corset supremo Mr Pearl for burlesque performer Dita Von Teese in 2011. Vogue
Victoria and Albert Museum, London
