Panty Raid

Alison Jenkins

 

 

 

It has recently come to my attention that some women coordinate their bras and panties. And they don’t just match colours: they buy the sets together. One of my friends won’t buy the bra if there is not a matching panty available.

I was shocked. Speechless, even. Don't get me wrong: I like to get dressed up. But I have never, ever thought buying a matching set of underwear. Ever. I just wear whatever is clean and doesn’t show through my shirt. And I avoid visible panty lines, when possible.

Am I odd? Tomboyish? Prudish maybe? I didn’t used to think so. I have a couple bottles of shampoo, over eight kinds of scented lotion leftover from gifts and AVON catalogues, pocket-fulls of lip gloss. I have a girly streak. But my feminine confidence was shaken by my friend’s confession.

I began to be shy of my underwear at the gym and pool. What if the other girls match and I’m in the corner: the tall awkward one with cotton panties and a bra that doesn’t match? Does anyone notice? Maybe everyone notices! How did I not notice them noticing?!

To allay my fears, I began an informal, non-scientific, non-random survey of friends, acquaintances and, well, really whoever I could find, male and female. It was my preoccupation for a week.

So here it is. The results section of my experimental write up. To my relief, a few people are like me and had never thought matching was at all important. The majority however, take matching seriously and that while it needn’t be a priority, coordinating underwear is nice for special occasions. All the girls were clear that "special occasion" is just as often exclusively for the wearer as it is for significant others.

Some women mentioned that they like to match their underwear to their outfit (Ohmygosh! Really?) Yes really, but not all the time. However, one woman does coordinate everything all the time. Bra-panties-outfit, every day. I encountered a full spectrum of underwear coordination values.

At first I was amused by the apparent triviality of matching something that is hardly seen. It seems like a lot of effort to keep it all organised. And really, what if I find a bra that I love and that does wonders for my favourite sweater. I don’t want to feel obligated to hunt down the
appropriate panty. And I hate spandex on my bum.

But the more I thought about it, and the more women I spoke to, the more I realised that I was being narrow-minded. I began to see that coordinating lingerie has very little to do with having your underwear seen by anyone; it’s related to self-esteem. Underwear is a bit like makeup, or perfume
--some women are really into it, some women aren’t, and as long as she feels good about herself, she is beautiful. Even in cotton bikinis.

Two days ago I was at La Senza and I found the most comfortable bra ever. I bought two. And as I gazed at the panties, admiring the matching colors and the satiny feel, I thought about the women I had spoken to. I considered for the first time buying a set. I went so far as to pick up a
coordinating pair of panties. But I put them back. I knew the best match for me was already at home.