The quest for the perfect bra is a journey that many of us (including myself) can relate to. Little did I know when I first embarked on this mission that it would lead me down a winding path filled with recommendations from friends, a fair share of trial and error, and countless hours spent scouring online reviews. Speaking of reviews, I recently found myself delving deep into the internet, immersing myself in customer feedback while on the hunt for a reliable underwire bra. I won’t confess the exact number of hours I dedicated to this pursuit (just trust me, it’s substantial), but I will gladly share my discoveries.
To be precise, my extensive research on retailers like Nordstrom, Amazon, and emerging bra brands such as Cuup and Savage x Fenty resulted in the addition of 17 bras to my shopping cart. From essential T-shirt bras that always need replenishing to a selection of lovely lace options, scroll down to explore the top underwire bras that made their way into my cart. And if you’re inclined, feel free to peruse the reviews as well.
We all wear underwear every day (presumably, of course), and that means it’s usually easy to pinpoint which style is your favorite. Hipsters, bikinis, high-waisted, G-strings—you name it. However, in the summertime, we can’t recommend a cotton thong enough. They are true game changers.
Sure, cotton is the most breathable and comfortable fabric to have on your body all day, but when paired with a thong’s seamless silhouette, it creates a smooth feeling underneath your clothing that doesn’t make you hyper-aware of your every movement. (So key in summer.)
Below we’ve rounded up the best cotton thongs that will have you rethinking your usual undergarment ways and hopefully for the better.
This summer, we’re seeing a major trend of “complicated” clothing that requires a bra situation that’s a bit more involved than usual. With cool cutouts, backless dresses, and the latest “napkin top” craze taking over the fashion scene, it’s no surprise if you’ve found yourself on the hunt for alternatives to traditional strapless bras more often. I know I certainly have.
The issue I have with regular strapless bras is that they’re not always completely invisible, and even the most supportive ones tend to slide down eventually. So, I went on a mission to find the best alternatives that still get the job done, and I’ve handpicked 18 items to share with you here. From adhesive bras and pasties to Kim Kardashian–approved boob tape, these options have me ready to bid farewell to my old strapless bra.
If you’re also looking to ditch strapless bras without sacrificing support and shape, keep scrolling to discover some fantastic alternatives that have earned glowing reviews from customers.
Despite my love for formfitting pants, I’ve never gotten along with thongs. Trust me—I’ve tried. But after years of trying to find a discreet place to pick a wedgie (excuse the TMI, but we’re all friends here), I threw in the towel and resigned myself a life of VPL so serious it could be spotted from outer space.
Until I discovered boy shorts, that is. There’s something about the cut that magically erases those pesky panty lines. The style is a fashion godsend: They lay (virtually) seamlessly under even the stretchiest jeans and provide a bit of a safeguard for those flippy Rèalisation dresses we all have in our spring wardrobes.
The best part? The fashion world has finally gotten clued in to the functional staple—which means there are plenty of styles that are every bit as alluring as those thongs you can’t bring yourself to wear. Read on to discover a breakdown of the best boy shorts.
Reviewer Highlight: “A bralette that doesn’t show! Comfortable, pretty, and feminine. After having a lumpectomy with axillary nodes removed, I was advised that during chemo, radiation, and beyond, it was best to keep my lymph system as un-stressed as possible (e.g., they didn’t like underwire bras). Finding bralettes that have a back closure and a low-cut front is hard. This one is perfect! Also, love the racer-back option.” — Reviewer
Editor Highlight: Looking for a risqué bralette? Look no further than this wireless lace bralette that can fit from sizes 30A–42C.
For all the reasons we love investing in gorgeous lingerie (e.g., the happiness and confidence boost, the varying trends, and ultimately, the sheer fact that it’s pretty), we also love having the best cotton underwear in our intimates drawers. We’ll take any reason to sport a beautiful matching set underneath our everyday clothes, but at the end of the day, we crave comfort.
You’ve probably already seen this as a major trend in the intimates section, as many women are swapping their lace underwear for cotton briefs or even athleisure-inspired lingerie. If you haven’t added these to your collection, now’s the time.
We know you love peak comfort as much as we do, so we rounded up the best cotton underwear to have in your lingerie collection now. Whether you plan to lounge around the house in them or save your delicate underpinnings for more special occasions, there’s no reason you shouldn’t want to stock up on this comfortable underwear style.
These days, there are about 100 different types of bras and materials to choose between, from seamless and extra-padded bras to unlined and underwire bras. But when it comes to comfort, none usurp a good cotton bra. It’s really the next best thing to being braless, and when you’ve spent a lifetime wearing ultra-structured bras with underwires, you know just how big that is.
Since we’re firm believers that great lingerie is also meant to be seen, feel free to incorporate these options into your everyday outfits too. Brands have stepped it up lately on the aesthetic front, so these cotton bras are as pretty as they are practical.
One of the most underrated ways to make any outfit look better isn’t through adopting a few new trends or styling hacks (though it helps); it’s all about investing in well-fitted undergarments. So often, when we think about lingerie, it’s always within the lens that the entire world does not see them, therefore, it’s “not worth” splurging on. But that’s not necessarily the right move. Sure, we’re not all walking around naked, but improper underpinnings cause some of the biggest wardrobe malfunctions which makes buying good lingerie all the more imperative.
While there are a few undergarments worth investing in (like shapewear or seamless panties), the most transformative thing you can buy is a lifting bra. A well-made bra will not only make all your clothes fit better, but proper support can help with back issues and even self-confidence. But you don’t just have to take my word for it. In an effort to show how life-changing a great bra can be, I scoured the review sections of popular lingerie brands and retailers to identify the 26 best lifting bras.
Though finding the greatest version of this bra for your needs will be based on what you like (e.g., if you prefer padding, wireless bras, or extra-boning for support), the bras listed ahead are all great options to try out. Because I’ve taken into account what makes them truly the best: quality, size inclusivity, cost, stylishness, and real-life reviews. So without further ado, prepare to have your entire mind blown by these lifting bras…
If you have a formal occasion such as a wedding or party to attend in the future, figuring out what to wear underneath your dresses should be the least of your worries. But if you’re the type of person who prefers to have a little extra support for those occasions, know that there’s a type of shapewear designed for every style of dress. To find out, we asked fashion stylist Alyssa Sutter, who has dressed multitudes of celebrity clients (including Lucy Hale), for her go-to undergarments for any style of dress she’s working with. See what she recommends below.
“An A-line or fit-and-flare dress is actually very flattering,” Sutter says. “This silhouette would require minimal shapewear. Depending on your shape or size, you can try classic high-waisted shorts, briefs, or a waist cincher.”
Perfect to wear underneath a dark color.
You’ll feel completely supported in these.
The cotton makes these the coziest shapewear to add to your collection.
Mothers-to-be, these will be your go-to shapewear shorts.
If you’re wearing something shorter, these briefs will be perfect.
You’ll turn to this shapewear time and time again.
“[For a body-con dress], I would recommend a full slip or bodysuit with a built-in bra,” Sutter says. “This is the best way to ensure no lines or creases will be shown… Another option would be a thin control-top thong if you just want to slim the tummy a bit.”
You’ll no doubt have a smooth look all night long with this.
These come in nine great colors to ensure a match.
Give yourself all the support you need in this bodysuit with a built-in bra.
If you don’t want to wear a bodysuit, this will give some tummy control without leaving a panty line.
This bodysuit is a fan favorite among our editors.
Who said shapewear can’t be sultry?
“Shapewear with extended pantyhose or a catsuit is perfect for under a maxi dress,” Sutter says. “This is the best way to keep your figure looking smooth from top to bottom.”
These will be practically invisible underneath your dress.
Not only will these leggings support your legs, but they will also give you a boost in the behind, too.
You’ll have seamless coverage from head to toe.
Surprisingly comfortable.
For maxi dresses with high slits, this slip dress will work perfectly underneath.
You’ll feel fabulous in these.
“There are great undergarments specifically for plunging necklines and low backs,” Sutter says. “Plunging slips and convertible bras will keep you covered for the trickiest necklines. Adhesive bras can be worn with open-back and plunging necklines.”
Even the lowest necklines will be no match for this Spanx bodysuit.
Adjust the straps on these to accommodate any type of neckline you have.
This bodysuit by Skims will do the trick.
This will definitely be staying in place.
When you need a seamless finish, wear this with all your plunging dresses.
This one has rave reviews on Nordstrom’s website.
“[A slip skirt] is a great shapewear item if you are wearing anything semi-sheer,” Sutter says.”
This lace is so pretty.
Planning to wear something semi-sheer? You can’t go wrong with this slip skirt.
A wardrobe essential.
So sleek.
This will be sure to create a smooth line under the skirt of your dress.
This is actually cute enough to wear on its own.
“If you’re wearing a strapless dress, I’d suggest a strapless slip or bodysuit,” Sutter says. “You can find many options with different necklines to mimic the neckline of your dress.”
Rest assured this bodysuit will stay in place.
This might be one of the most comfortable pieces of shapewear ever.
Wearing that strapless tube dress just got easier.
Trust me when I say this slip is a game-changer.
With four stars on Amazon, it’s safe to say this is a good buy.
When in doubt, shaping briefs always work.
This post was published at an earlier date and has been updated.
Finding a properly fitting bra that provides the right amount of support can sometimes prove to be a challenge. While I love a dainty bralette just as much as the next person, I’m sometimes in need of a bra that provides a little more on the lifting and shaping front. Those with larger busts or wider-set breasts can especially benefit from styles equipped with extra side support, which are not only forward-shaping and lifting but also help prevent overspills and keep any potential side-boob situations in check.
Not sure where to start? Typically, bras with any or all of the following features are great options: three- or four-part cups; side slings; and wider, higher-rising sidebands. Three- and four-part cups are designed with lifting seams (unlike a classic molded cup) and usually include a diagonal seam that directs breasts inward. Side slings are the extra piece of fabric at the outer edge of the cup and also work to push the girls forward. Extra-wide, higher-rising sidebands help keep everything nice and smooth in the underarm zone, in addition to providing extra support all around.
I scoured my favorite places to shop intimates to find the best bras with side support out there. Bonus? They’re all super pretty, too. Without further ado, keep scrolling to check out our 28 top picks.
Of all the ways you can show yourself some extra love, nothing feels quite as good as buying yourself some pretty underpinnings. After all, there’s something to be said about putting on pretty lingerie that makes you feel happier and ultimately more confident. Want to really treat yourself? Opt for pieces from your favorite luxury lingerie brands, and you’ll feel as if you’re dressed in the best—even if it’s hidden underneath everything else.
Okay, we’re not saying that buying yourself opulent bras, daring bodysuits, and pretty underwear are the most feasible options, but if you’re looking to indulge a little, you’ve come to the right place. After all, you’ve earned it, right? If it gives you a major confidence boost along the way, even better. Ahead, we’ve gathered the coolest lingerie brands that will feel just as luxe as they look. Scroll down to shop them all below.
As someone who almost exclusively wears thongs, I have long been convinced I don’t need to update my lingerie drawers. That was until a recent conversation I had with the CEO of Journelle, Sapna Palep. She told me, “Just like you have a bra wardrobe, that has different types of bras that work for different activities and different occasions, you need a bottoms wardrobe too. It is okay to be a superfan of one style and have many of that style, but you should still have a few other styles as options. ” And she’s right.
In order to look as polished and elevated as humanly possible, you need to have a good undergarment collection to match. Underwear is often overlooked and saved for last-minute Christmas gifts but it’s a must-have investment for anyone looking to scale up their wardrobe.
Go on to see which types of underwear Journelle’s CEO thinks we should all own.
Gorgeous lingerie gets plenty of time in the spotlight (who doesn’t get excited about pretty little bits of lace?), but the plain-nude bras people wear day in and day out are really the backbones of the intimates world. After all, what do you wear more often: a nude bra or a lace corset? For that reason, I figured it was time to highlight the best bras out there using the ultimate test—evaluating how they look under a form-fitting white T-shirt.
I tried a plethora of basic bras and narrowed my favorites down to five standout picks. I think it’s safe to say that the five winners ahead are officially the best bras to wear underneath white T-shirts if I do say so myself. The best part is that the winners weren’t all the most expensive ones either, so you don’t have to worry about them all being out of reach. Scroll down to see how the bras actually look under a tee and pick the perfect bra for you.
“The newest trend in underwear is definitely the high-cut French brief.” Boom. You heard it here first courtesy of former Journelle Head of Product Development Sandra Rose, aka the woman in charge of knowing what’s new and next in the underwear space. There are a couple of reasons to get on board with the trend, but my primary motive? The underwear style makes your legs look way longer.
“With the band sitting at your natural waist, it gives you legs for days!” says Rose. Fleur du Mal founder Jennifer Zuccarini agrees: “High-cut styles elongate the line of your leg and emphasize your waistline because they sit higher, on a smaller part of your waist than, say, a hip-hugger style.” Another, more practical plus of the high-cut underwear trend? “With a higher rise, they are less likely to bunch when you’re wearing high-waisted pants and skirts,” says Rose.
As for where the reemergence of the high-cut French brief trend came from, Zuccarini attributes it to Instagram It models like Kendall Jenner, Bella and Gigi Hadid, and Emily Ratajkowski as well as ’90s supermodels like Naomi Campbell. Just like with any trend, “it takes time and the right people wearing it again and again for people to adopt a new look like this,” says Zuccarini.
Since the look has been gaining steam for a moment, the time is now to hop on the high-cut underwear trend. To help you with that aim, we rounded up the best options along with some visual inspiration to get started.
Any woman with a larger chest knows she’ll come across a handful of sartorial challenges here and there. Whether you’re searching for button-downs that won’t gap between the buttons to finding flattering cocktail dresses, there are a lot of things to think about. More likely than not, if you’ve gone through the long process of trying a seemingly infinite number of bras that claim to provide support and comfort (and let’s not forget about style), chances are you don’t want to go through it again. Luckily, with the help of real women like yourself, you won’t have to. To save you a little time, we pulled together a list of the most popular lingerie brands shoppers can’t stop raving about. Scroll down to see them all…
Shopping for clothes can be challenging, no matter who you are or what you’re looking for. But if you have a bigger bust, the activity can feel like a real chore—especially where comfortable lingerie is concerned. You might have even ruled out bralettes altogether, deeming them insufficient in the support department. But we’re here to tell you that they do exist.
To prove our point, we rounded up the best bralettes for big busts. While underwire bras will always offer serious support, sometimes you just want to be as comfortable as possible. So after combing through pages of customer reviews, we’ve discovered the bralettes anyone with a big bust will want to live in. Scroll down to shop them all below, and be sure to check out why women are raving about them.
Less than a month after Jennifer Lopez posted on Instagram in an electric blue lingerie set from the Italian intimates brand Intimissimi, she’s done it again—and this time, her post came with a big announcement. As of Monday, the singer and actress is the brand’s newest global ambassador, which means this probably won’t be the last time we she shares her current favorite lingerie picks. Lucky us.
The news of her partnership with Intimissimi broke alongside the brand’s spring/summer 2023 collection, modeled entirely on J.Lo herself. And while every image from the campaign is more gorgeous than the last, a handful that show Lopez in a $69 hot pink, lace bra made me especially convinced to pull out my credit card. In fact, her balconette bra had me rethinking everything I thought I knew about my lingerie preferences, which up until this point, didn’t include bras at all. But leave it to J.Lo to sway me in the way of perhaps giving the style a go.
Keep scrolling to shop the $69 bra that’s made me want to wear bras again, thanks to J.Lo.
Trust us; we know that shopping for the right bra can be a real pain. Figuring out your correctbra size is half the battle, but finding a style that’s actually comfortable for your body type and needs can also prove to be a challenge, especially if you have a bigger bust. When you’re in need of good support and don’t want your bra straps digging into your shoulders by midday, your best bet is opting for a bra with wider straps.
Wide-strap bras help distribute the weight of your breasts over a larger surface area, providing much better support than their thinner counterparts, thus resulting in less stress on your shoulders. Moreover, they’re less prone to digging and slipping, which is a major plus in terms of comfort.
We did some digging—no pun intended—and found 28 of the best wide-strap bras (and bralettes!) the internet has to offer. Oh, and they’re all super pretty, not bulky, to boot. Keep scrolling to shop our finds.
Watching shapewear evolve over the past few years has been a wild experience. What was once our best-kept secret is now something we are proud to show off. People are even wearing shapewear pieces as if it’s their regular clothes. The brand to thank for this cultural shift has to be Skims. I strongly admire the effect it’s had on the shapewear-and-lingerie industry. The confidence and feel-good energy that the brand provides to its customers has been next level, and we’re most definitely here for it.
After seeing the rise of the shapewear industry, I decided that I’m finally ready to build out my personal collection, but I wasn’t exactly sure where to start. Emma Grede is an expert in the shapewear world. I mean, she co-founded both Skims and Good American. I convinced her to give me a shopping list of the first few shapewear pieces to add to my collection, and I couldn’t be happier with my shopping cart after this chat. Shop with me below.
“I love the brief because it provides ample core support while offering a seamless construction, so it layers perfectly under any outfit. It also shapes and lifts your butt, so you feel super snatched and sexy. The Sculpting Mid Waist Brief paired with the Sculpting Bralette provides support and shapeliness without compromising comfort.” — Grede
“Our bodysuits at Good American are the perfect shapewear piece for everyday wear that holds in your core, shapes and lifts your butt, and supports your chest. It’s also extremely soft and seamless and can be worn as a layering piece or on its own. My favorite pieces right now are the High Shine Compression Bodysuit and Scuba Modern Tank Bodysuit—they are both so versatile and can take your look from day to night.” — Grede
“Leggings are such a versatile, comfortable, and sexy wardrobe staple, but it can be challenging to find a pair that complements your body type, while also elevating your look. I love our Good Waist Leggings from our High Shine Compression collection because they are made from a smooth compression fabric that nips your waist and defines your figure.” — Grede
“We recently launched Compression Denim, our latest system of sculpting denim with three different levels of sculpting fabric to shape your figure without sacrificing comfort or fit. We designed three different levels of compression to give our customers a range of support—so you’ll feel the power of shapewear in your favorite denim. My favorite is our Super Compression because you actually get to control how much you sculpt your waistline with adjustable front buttons. The jeans also look super tailored and can be dressed up and down.” — Grede
This is the kind of lingerie that’s so pretty I’d immediately want a pic in it.
Kendall Jenner wore this bra on Instagram, so now I want to wear this bra on Instagram.
This bra is a Who What Wear reader favorite.
This color is everything.
Think pink.
Now this would be my Valentine’s Day pick (and just might arrive on time).
If you ask me, Jennifer Lopez‘s partnership with Italian lingerie brand Intimissimi is a match made in fashion heaven. Not only is Intimissimi perfectly on-brand with J.Lo’s signature sultry personal style, but the prices are definitely reasonable. Just ahead of Valentine’s Day, Lopez released a new Instagram video of herself wearing the cutest matching set that I suddenly want in every single color.