Want to know why we think of certain lingerie as exotic? The idea of lingerie and what has made it what it is today can be traced through several centuries of history. Through the history of exotic lingerie, women have not necessarily changed the focus of what lingerie should do for them, but instead, have focused on the best way to expose what they want and hide what they don’t want. For those interested in knowing why lingerie is like it is today, they can look into how it was.



The first style of lingerie has been traced back to ancient Rome and Greece. This type of lingerie was seen as a corset. However, the corset was used only to push up the women’s breasts so that they could be seen outside of their dresses completely. After this particular stage of lingerie faded out as a fashion, lingerie became a focus of support.

The two main areas that lingerie focused on for support is the bust and the buttocks. The silhouette was one of the fashions that were used in order to expose both of these areas to the fullest by adding support. Corsets and bells were used to define and bring out these specific areas of a woman’s figure, especially during the Middle Ages. The evolution of this continued into the Renaissance, where things such as padded silhouettes for support and cones to shape the breasts came into style. It was during this time that the corset became popular to make the abdomen flat and the busts big. Women began to use whale bone in order to make the corset tighter around their abdomen. This was to the point of breaking ribs in their body.

It wasn’t until the eighteenth century that the flattery of the corset became something that wasn’t as harsh to a woman’s body. Instead of focusing on the corset for breasts, exotic lingerie began to focus on hoops that would go over the waist in order to make it smaller. The S-silhouette also came into play, which allowed women to have an exaggerated buttocks, small waist and large breasts.

The end of the nineteenth century divided exotic lingerie into two categories. One held corsets in order to support the figure of the breasts while stockings, held up by garters and suspenders helped to create a different look for the buttocks. It was the beginning of the twentieth century when industrialization became more popular that corsets began to go completely out of style. In 1913, the first bra was invented by Mary Phelps Jacob by tying two handkerchiefs together with a string. This was softer and more comfortable than a corset and allowed for women to be comfortable while working in factories.

The Roaring Twenties twisted the entire figure of women, moving to an attractive look by having a flat chest and straight hips. Chemise and bloomers were invented in order to stay light and loose-fitting on women, allowing them to look small and flat. However, it was only one decade later that the figure was back in style. In the 1930s, the first form of elastic was also invented, making it easier for women to keep a sexier look with exotic lingerie, while not having to suffer from things such as tight fitting corsets.

In the 1970s, women began to wear less and expose more. The mini-skirts were a popular way to do this. It was with this change in fashion that it was also required to change what women were wearing underneath, which pulled for the invention of the bikini strap underwear, and eventually led to the wearing of thongs. Today, lingerie is a popular and comfortable way of achieving the look that is desired with the breasts and the buttocks. New inventions and ways for the right support are continuously coming into style to help women achieve the best look.

From corsets to thongs, under garments for the looks have developed and evolved for the benefit of both men and women. Knowing where lingerie has come from and what it has allowed women to expose through their bodies allows you to find what you want when learning how to shape your body with lingerie.