One hundred years of pretty under things at the Design Exchange’s Lingerie Française exhibit

It’s actually amazing to look back on how fashion has changed over the past 100 years, but while our clothing might be what historians will look at first, it’s really the lingerie of the past century that made our silhouettes what they were.

Last week I took a trip to one of my favourite venues in the city, the Design Exchange for Lingerie Française – a retrospective covering over 100 years of French lingerie. From corsets in the late nineteenth century to bullet bras in the 1940’s to push up bras in the 80’s, it really is fascinating to realise how far women’s underthings have come – and thank goodness!

The exhibition features eleven renowned French lingerie manufacturers — Aubade, Barbara, Chantelle, Empreinte, Implicite, Lise Charmel, Lou, Maison Lejaby, Passionata, Princesse tam.tam, and Simone Pérèle — each who have lingerie samples from their archive on display taking you through the past century and the evolution of not just the fashioning of our undergarments, but also the technological advancements and societal changes which help to shape our lingerie drawers.

The exhibit stays in Toronto only until October 13, 2013 at Design Exchange at 234 Bay Street, Toronto and the best part – admission is free!