I’ve always been in awe of those people on Instagram who manage to put together “lingerie outfits”, layering up various pieces from different designers with different shapes, styles and even colours. Even though I’ve written what was once a fashion blog for 8 years, I’d hardly call myself a fashionista – in fact, I think of it more as a personal style blog and I write about what I like to wear rather than what’s on trend – I never claimed to have an eye for fashion!
However I’ve been gathering bridal lingerie left, right and centre, sending several pieces back that didn’t work for me, but keeping the parts that did work. As a result, I’m collecting a fairly piecemeal bridal trousseau. And fortunately, many of these pieces are either white or ivory, meaning that they can easily be put together to create a lingerie outfit without too much thought – and here’s my first one!
So I’m breaking this post down into the 3 separate parts that went into this outfit, and hopefully I won’t ramble too much!
Gilda & Pearl Kimono Robe
Every part of this outfit was a real steal in terms of price, but I think this one really beats the rest. I have a huge thank you to say to Esty Lingerie for mentioning Gilda & Pearl’s Depop account where they sell sample items for hugely discounted prices. And that’s where I managed to find this gorgeous kimono style robe for only £60 when it had a RRP of £700! It has a stitching error on one of the sleeves which is only noticeable when pointed out. While this might bother some, for me, it’s worth it for the huge price drop – especially considering this similar robe on their main site is over £1000!
I find it difficult to dive into making an investment purchase from a brand I’ve never even seen or touched before (as many people do I imagine!), so this sample sale allowed me the opportunity to try the brand for the first time. I’ve got my eye on several other pieces in their sample sale that I might just treat myself to (wedding present to myself?!).
This kimono was listed as one size, for sizes 6-12, and fits me as a size 10 really well. The main body of the robe is made of a super delicate, soft chiffon fabric that’s almost entirely sheer. The top part has lovely lace panels embellished with shimmering sequins. But the real showstopper for me is the kimono style sleeves. It took a lot for Char to stop me swishing and swaying to get a few non-blurry photos of it!
Masquerade Tiffany Basque
Long time readers and lingerie lovers might remember one of my old favourite brands was Panache’s now almost-extinct Masquerade. I’ve actually reviewed a basque from them before here and a bra here, and another bra here actually!
I’d been looking for a basque for secret wedding purposes (I’ll share more about this after the wedding, it’s a surprise!) and I thought it would also make another good bridal lingerie solution post for those looking for a strapless basque for under the dress. Sadly there are very few of these left around the internet, but I found mine on Amazon for just £7.16! So if you’re lucky enough to be one of those sizes remaining, this makes an excellent purchase.
For a quick size and fit review, I bought this in a 30FF (as this was the nearest size to my 28GG/30G they had left), and it actually fits really quite well! The cups are potentially a little on the small side, but as they’re integrated into the top of the basque so as to not look like cups, it’s difficult to tell! There are actually underwired cups on the interior.
The basque fastens down the back with a long strip of hooks and eyes – I needed Char to fasten me into these! I have them on the loosest hooks here and it fits most comfortably there – the body I would say fits close to a size 10 overall, with enough stretch in the satin-like fabric to fit both my hips and waist. I also found that it doesn’t slide down or cause any bulging at the front or back, which is awesome. For me, I might even use this in place of a strapless bra. If you can find your size, I highly recommend it!
The only issue I had with this basque is that it came with straps which I decided I wanted to remove for the photos, but they were REALLY hard to remove! The hooks were getting stuck under the loops and were very fiddly. The same was true with the suspender straps. Once they’re off, that’s fine, but getting there was difficult!
Ell & Cee Elfin Shorts
In my quest to buy the perfect pair of wedding knickers, I came across Ell & Cee. Their collection at the moment seems to be very limited as I think they’re selling everything to close (correct me if I’m wrong?!), but that means that there are some more real bargains to have here!
I spotted these Elfin Shorts reduced from £45 to £25 and grabbed them straight away. I wasn’t sure whether they would be wedding day knickers or not, and now having tried them I’ve decided for me it’s a not as they’re not “knicker” enough, but they are still stunning and really fun to wear. They have a crochet style lace along the bottom edge dotted with clear sequins (which magically manage to match with the sequinned lace of the robe!) and a silk georgette elasticated waistband that sits low on the hips.
They’re super pretty and have a slight beachy, boho feel to me. I think they’re really fun to wear, but like I said, more as lingerie shorts than actual daily wear knickers. I also realised when wearing them that the sequins have been sewn onto the inside of the seams which means they’re a little scratchy on the inside which could be annoying for a full day’s wear.
These are a size small – I would have normally picked a medium but there were none left. Fortunately they fit much better than I expected, in fact, medium might have been a little too big.
What do you think of my attempt at a lingerie outfit?
