Lingerie Glossary : Anne'G Lingerie: fine french lingerie, import it yourself duty free shopping

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z Tout

Antigel by Lise Charmel
Casually provocative, funny and natural, she can also be alluringly affectionate and sensitive. She wants to stand out at every moment in life; taking any opportunity to express herself through fashion. Whether she wants to be serene, romantic or irresistible, Antigel by Lise Charmel suits all her moods.
Antinéa by Lise Charmel
The Antinea by Lise Charmel woman is an all-embracing woman who seeks feminine elegance. She appreciates styles that combine comfort and beauty, exuding a magnetic aura. Confidently charismatic, she loves the way the designs feel on her. She is in harmony with herself and all those she wants to charm.
Assia
With loads of experience and her first successes as a designer, ASSIA naturally positions itself on the top end of the market. Focusing on quality and technology, her target is to create a new style : Assia Lingerie, a new spirit!
Aubade
Lingerie created by Aubade is the fruit of a delicate alchemy between our demand for quality, a long corset-making experience, constant research into new materials, shapes, colours, an in-depth analysis of fashion trends and our long-standing passion for women and their power of seduction. The Aubade world, the French Art of loving, where men and women rival each other in seduction, humour and complicity.

Baby Doll
Short night-dress with lace, that became popular in 1956 thanks to the same-named movie with Carroll Baker.
Balcony bra
Bra offering a deeper cleavage, whose straps are close to the shoulder. Balcony bras are generally made without foam, unlike the uplifting or push-up bra. See syn. Push-up bra / Uplifting bra (P).
Bandana Scarf
Triangular- or quadrangular-shaped piece of cloth knotted on the head or around the neck. Syn. Scarf (S).
Basque / Guepiere
Single-yoked model grouping together the functions of the bustier and of the suspender belt. It supports the chest like a bra and has fasteners (suspenders generally removable) to attach stockings. The straps are often removable. Syn. Guepiere (G).
Bloomer
Kind of women’s baggy pants, however long the leg is.
A bloomer also refers to women’s shorts including a brief, used in athletics or volleyball, very short and tight-fitting. Its very flimsy and slinky design enables to freely move; this is the reason why bloomers are so popular among sportswomen.
Body
Flimsy garment covering women’s body, replacing bra and brief with a garment.
Bolero
Short jacket with open front, with or without sleeves.
Boxer brief
A boxer brief is a men’s underwear, generally short, that looks like shorts. It differs from the pants in that it has legs more, or less long. The shorty, whose legs are very short, is a variant of the boxer brief. Sometimes, when the boxer brief is less loose-fitting, it is comparable to boxer shorts.
Boxer shorts (men)
Short girdle similar to large pants. It is a less loose-fitting variant of the boxer brief and longer than a shorty. Although they can also be worn by women, boxer shorts are mainly masculine.
Boxer shorts (women)
Short girdle similar to large panties. For women, this high-waist shape totally covers the buttocks and genitals (unlike the shorty which is worn on the hips).
Bra
Underwear intended to support the chest. There are dozens of different models enhancing comfort, support, shape, invisibility, etc. See Balcony bra (B), Carioca bra (C), Charmel Bra (C), Cut-out bra / Demi bra / Quarter-cup bra(C), Full-cup bra / classic (F), Half-cup bra (H), Moulded bra (M), Moulded padded bra (M), Plunge bra / Plunging cleavage bra (P), Push-up bra / Uplifting bra (P), Strapless bra (S), Soft bra (S), Sport bra (S), Sublim'Up (S), Three-quarter-cup bra (T), Triangle bra (T), Tulip bra (T).
Brazilian
Underwear halfway between brief and string. High waist covering the front. The strip rimming the hips can be of variable size. It covers pretty much half of the buttocks.
Brief
Adjusted women’s underwear that covers the buttocks and sexual organs. See Culotte Tricheuse (C), High Brief (H), Italian Brief (I), Loose Shorty (L), Panties (P), Saint-Tropez Brief (S), Sexy Brief (S), Shorty (S).
Bustier
Article of clothing covering the chest down to the bellybutton.

Cagi
Founded in 1925, Cagi has become leader in the underwear market and its points of strenght, recognized by the customer in a seventy-five years history, are quality, customer service and an excellent quality-price ratio. Cagi's articles are charateristic in the high quality of the yarn, originality of the models, elegance of the manufacture, perfection of the product finishing, unalterability of the colours, resiliency and softness. The company is organized with the inner production of weaving, dyeing plant, finishing and electronic automatic cutting departments.
Camisole
Loose-fitting piece of lingerie, similar to undershirt. Usually matching the brief. See Vest (V), Top (T).
Carioca Bra
Bra by the Lise Charmel group (Lise Charmel, Eprise, Antinéa, Antigel), little covering and lifting the chest.
Charm panties
Name given by the Lise Charmel group (Lise Charmel, Eprise, Antinéa, Antigel) to one of their panties to differentiate the Charm panties from the Fantasy panties.
Charmel Bra
Half-cup bra with foam-filled cups by Lise Charmel.
Coat (house coat)
Derived from the negligee of the XVII° century. Garment worn above the pyjamas or a night dress.
Culotte tricheuse or Petite Tricheuse
Brief by Aubade. This shape enables to obtain a seductive roundness of the buttocks. This brief provides an integrated string form and a band of opaque or coloured mesh which passes under each buttock for a push-up effect. It remains invisible under clothes.
Cut-out bra / Demi bra / Quarter-cup bra
This sexy bra covers the breast to just above the nipple (about a quarter of the way up the breast).

Denier
Unit of weight to measure the fineness of silk or man-made fibres. It is equal to 1 gram per 9000 metres. It is used to measure the fineness of stockings and tights. Accordingly, the more the denier is small, the more the stockings or tights are fine. Stockings and tights usually measured between 5 and over 100 deniers. Very fine stockings: 8 or 10 deniers – Opaque stockings: 180 deniers. Ex.: 20 deniers = 20 grams for 9000 metres of this fibre.
Dress
Long piece of clothing in form of a sheath, which can be more or less ample, enveloping the body, holding on the shoulders and having sleeves or openings for arms.

Embroidery
Art consisting of sowing threads of different colours in order to create multiple-coloured designs and patterns.
Eprise by Lise Charmel
Eprise by Lise Charmel, the passion of dressing full-bodied women in unending beauty. Perpetually searching for the highest quality, they dream of exceptionally pretty inlaid guipure or fine lace to snugly sculpt their feminine curves.
Eye mask
Half mask made of velvet or satin, sometimes embellished with embroidery.

Fantasy panties
Name given by the Lise Charmel group (Lise Charmel, Eprise, Antinéa, Antigel) to one of their panties to differentiate the Fantasy panties from the Charm panties.
Full-cup bra / classic
Traditional bra maintaining the chest. A good choice adapted to larger cup sizes. See Soft Bra (S).

Garter
A garter is a piece of clothing, a ribbon or an elastic strip placed above or under the knee to maintain and stretch the stockings or long socks. Accessory belonging to the bride’s finery.
Gerbe (Tights and Stockings)
Key features of Gerbe The quality of raw material and knitting process Selections of high-performances yarns and exclusive techniques of knitting to assure an exceptional sheerness, touch and durability. Selections of waistbands, refined and elegant laces. A matchless comfort A wide range of finishings, stitch-by-stitch closed toes, reinforced toes, reinforced heels, gusset, back strip, stitched-on waistband, fort an optimal comfort. A gradual knitting of toning massage effect and a light legs effect. An « Haute Couture » manufacturing Exclusively French and entirely hand-made manufacturing. Flat, invisible and comfortable seams. A perfect quality and a unique finishing A quality control of the products during all the manufacturing stages and an individual final control of each product before folding. Size-shaped, carefully hand-folded products.
Gilsa Paris
Gilsa Paris is a must in manufacturing and distribution of lingerie accessories. Gilsa Paris proposes clever and innovative accessories to women looking for freedom and well-being. Know-how and perfect knowledge of the market make Gilsa an acknowledged actor by the lingerie world. Making women even more incredible is forever our philosophy... Dare fashion !
Girdle
Article of clothing tightening the waistline and covering the body, from the waistline to the thighs.
Guepiere / Basque
Single-yoked model grouping together the functions of the bustier and of the suspender belt. It supports the chest like a bra and has fasteners (suspenders generally removable) to attach stockings. The straps are often removable. Syn. Basque (B).
Guipure
Embroidery made of very fine yarns and high density stitches, enabling the cut of embroidered patterns. They can be then put on other fabrics.

Half-Cup bra
Bra providing a good support and pushing up the chest, without shaping it too much. Its shape, limited to the half of the breast, is little covering and allows the wearing of low-cut necklines.
Hang
The way in which a fabric falls or flows.
High Brief
Brief covering up to the bellybutton.
Hot tanga
Tanga by Aubade. St Tropez shape, very open on the buttocks. The line waist/thighs remains parallel on the front and on the back. Advantage: sexy shape sliming the hips.

Implicite by Simone Pérèle
Implicite was created in 2007 by Simone Perele group. A collection of modern, chic and glossy seduction for women searching for a glamour and sexy lingerie.
Italian (Brief/Panties)
Underwear intended to hide the pubis, its particularity consisting of being made of openwork stitch with embroidery.

Kenzo
KENZO's fashion means pleasure, lightness, freedom... Founded in 1970, the Kenzo Takada's label created an unsuspected alchemy between East and West. The originality of his collections and the creation of a new, fresh, coloured and sometimes poetic style has made his name famous worldwide. KENZO introduced the true concept of volume and freedom of movement into clothing. At the dawn of the 21st Century, KENZO's fashion lies in this openness to the world and exchanges between different cultures and will undoubtedly generate further memorable creations. The line KENZO Lingerie is directly inspired by the universe of KENZO; rich in shapes and colors.
Kimono
Japanese tunic with wide sleeves covering the body down to the feet, crossing over in the front and held by a belt knot at the waist. Used as a flimsy negligee over a nightie.

Lace
Reticulated fabric of yarn or thread which forms patterns with openwork in the stitch. The lace mesh is very fine.
Leggings
Leggings are women’s tight-fitting trousers going down from the waist to the ankles. They are also called tights without feet or boxer brief (long). Most of the leggings are made of Lycra, nylon, cotton or sometimes wool.
Lejaby
Combining its exceptionnal skill and its creativity, while maintaining its strong and resolutely contemporary identity! With a history of maintaining the rules of its craft stretching back over more than 78 years, Lejaby's products combine sophistication and impeccable fit as well as keeping with the french corsetry tradition - for the pleasure of being a woman.
Lise Charmel
The Lise Charmel woman is enchanted by beauty, exceptional creativity, high quality, elegance, well-being and good taste. The lingerie of her dreams combines the most beautiful materials such as inlaid guipure lace and fine silk. The Lise Charmel woman is captivating, sophisticated and unique. She is the feminine emblem of haute couture.
Loose shorty
High-waist brief, larger (flowing) on the thighs.
Lou Paris
Lou Paris, this mark based in 1946 in Grenoble: her name is Lucienne, is a professor of gymnastics and has for passion the sewing. In sixteen years Lucienne, who is nicknamed Lou, draws and realize his first bra by hijacking the use of a round iron. She declares then " I just wanted a comfortable bra ". Lou was always synonymic of inventiveness and creation in the world of the lingerie.

Marlies Dekkers
Marlies Dekkers maps out her life as she wants: after leaving the Academie voor Kunst en Vormgeving [School of Art and Design] of Breda, Netherlands, with her diploma acquired with High Distinction, she starts her own business in her room in the attic. Against the fashion designers of the time, she is interested in the physique, in the visible shapes of the body whereas the fashion is clothes with a great quantity of fabrics and abstraction of the model's body. Through her creations, she develops the idea that built her life: the woman should be energetic, independent and proud of her own body.
Mesh
The loops formed by the thread, silk, wool, etc., when put together, form a mesh. The mesh can be loose or tight as seen in knitwear.
Bra with rigid moulded cups offering more deepness to the chest.
Mini-Coeur Brief
Underwear by Aubade. Low-waist model, covering the buttocks. Advantage: ideal for wearing with low-waist trousers.
Mini string (sexy string)
String shape covering only the genitals. Unlike the tanga, the mini string is also composed of a very thin strip of a few millimetres on the buttocks.
Moulded bra
Shaping model with seamless cups (ideal to wear slinky garments), remaining perfectly invisible under clothes. It gives to the chest a round and generous shape.
Moulded padded bra

Negligee
French idiom describing a garment made of lace, knots and noble fabrics. It is a night garment. It differs from the wrap or the dressing gown, being more elegant and more a lingerie than a housecoat.
Nightdress
Women’s nightdress whose form is the one of a dress with thin straps. It is generally made of a flimsy and soft fabric, like nylon or silk. It is mostly cut above the knee, has a low-cut cleavage and can be slit on one or both sides. Its shape as well as the sometimes added embroidery make that garment particularly seductive or even sexy.
Nightie
Lingerie to be worn under a dress. It is a variant of the petticoat that avoids transparency.

Panties
Small-sized brief, generally high-cut on the thighs. See Brief (B), Charm panties (C), Fantasy panties (F), Italian panties (I).
Petite Tricheuse or Culotte tricheuse
Brief by Aubade. This shape enables to obtain a seductive roundness of the buttocks. This brief provides an integrated string form and a band of opaque or coloured mesh which passes under each buttock for a push-up effect. It remains invisible under clothes.
Petticoat
Variant of a small bodysuit worn under a skirt. Short nightie in lingerie.
Plait
Fabric made of gold, silver, silk, yarn, wool, etc., having more body than a simple ribbon, which is placed on the edges or on the seams of clothes either to prevent them fraying or to serve as decoration.
Plunge bra / Plunging cleavage
Bra shape enhancing the cleavage of generous chests. Syn. Plunging cleaveage bra (P).
Pouch
Clutch bag, small sack or small envelop.
Push-up bra / Uplifting bra
Bra offering a deep cleavage, whose straps are close to the shoulders, enhancing the breasts by pushing them to the centre and upwards. Balcony bras do generally not contain foam, unlike the uplifting or push-up bra. See syn. Balcony Bra (B).

Quartem (Pantoufles)
We create and make court shoes, ballet shoes, slippers, mules, moccasins in our workshops of Villars, in Périgord since 1924. Over there we draw, we model, we prick, we embroider, we sew, we stick. Our team is composed by 50 people. It realises with passion all these items to answer the needs and the expectations of our customers. Recognised by professionals for its serious, its know-how and its quality, Marquet & Cie is certified ISO 9001 on its whole activity (conception, manufacture, sale of slippers and footwear items).

Saint-Tropez Brief
Brief by Aubade. Low-waist boxer shorts, worn low on the hips. It offers a transparent look and makes the hips look slimmer.
Scarf
Triangular-or quadrangular-shaped piece of cloth to be knotted on the head or around the neck. Syn. Bandana Scarf (B).
Sexy Brief
Name sometimes given by the Lise Charmel group (Lise Charmel, Eprise, Antinéa, Antigel) to refer to a shorty.
Sexy string (mini string)
Type of string covering only the genitals. Unlike the tanga, the sexy string is only composed of a very thin band of material of a few millimetres wide above the buttocks. See String (S), Tanga (T).
Shirt
Loose-fitting and light garment covering the higher part of the body, from the waist up to the neck.
Short skirt
Short skirt cut above the knee.
Shorts
Piece of clothing similar to trousers, but very short, only covering the top of the thighs. It is generally loose-fitting, unlike boxer shorts (underwear).
Shorty
Underwear intended to hide the pubis. These very short shorts stop just above the buttocks, and not like the boxer shorts (that entirely cover them).
Simone Pérèle
As the incarnation of an elegant, refined and lively Parisian, Simone Perele was gifled with a deep intuition of fashion. She endowwed the label with the "made-to-mesure" look typical of fashion housse. Every line is an invitation to art, travel and culture : embroidery, lace and ribbons are selected with infinite care to enhance feminines curves. All creations illustrate the idea of elegance. Meticulous attention is paid to the tiniest detail, to achieve perfection and to respect women ...
Slippers
Shoes to be worn at home to be more comfortable.
Soft bra
Model with clean lines and a triangular shape. He has no underwiring. Flimsy, discreet, seductive and comfortable, it is more specifically aimed at smaller cup sizes. It makes for a natural look. See Full-cup bra (F).
Sport bra
The sport bra supports the chest, transferring its weight onto the shoulders. Unlike a bra, the sport bra does not generally comprise two individual cups, but rather more a global supporting band. In Quebec, the word is a synonymous of bra.
Stocking
Thin and long sock covering and fitting legs. Generally made of silk or nylon, it can be very thin (8 or 10 deniers) and nearly transparent (voile stocking), with or without seams, or lightly heavier (thicker) and elastic (15 to 20 deniers). A stocking sheathes the leg from the foot up to the top of the thigh, unlike tights that include an adjoining brief. See Deniers (D), Tights (T).
Any kind of garment covering feet and legs.
Stole
Fashion accessory, often made of fur.
Strapless bra
Strapless band-shaped bra model. It enables to loosen the shoulders (photo).
Bra shape covering the chest without providing any form.
String
The string is a type of underwear designed to hide the pubis and the genitals, but leaving the buttocks bare. It is often reduced to the strict minimum. See Sexy String (mini string) (S), Tanga (T).
Sublim'Up bra
Bra by Aubade. Surprisingly shaped, it suits any type of cleavage, including the most plunging of necklines. It boasts a covered silicone shape, whose extremity covers the tip of the breasts. The silicone hugs the breasts and is practically invisible under clothing. This bra makes for a lightly shaped, rounder cleavage. Ideal for wearing under clothing with very low necklines for a seductive effect.
Suspender
Elastic strap with a hook at one of its extremity to keep stockings attached to the girdle or the suspender belt. It is adjustable on the thigh. Strap is a modern version of the garter.

Tanga
A tanga is a type of underwear designed to hide the pubis, but leaving the main part of the buttocks bare. It differs from the string by the fact that the string at the back is wider and covers part of the buttocks. It covers more of the buttocks than a string, but less than a Brazilian. See String (S), Sexy string (mini string) (S).
Teddy
Loose-fitting body, flimsy and adjusted to the waist.
Tee-Shirt ou T-Shirt
Vest generally made of cotton.
Short sleeves: sleeves generally end at the half of the arms.
Long sleeves: sleeves stop at the wrists.
Three-quarter-cup bra
Bra model providing a good support and pushing up the chest, without shaping it too much. Unlike a classic half-cup bra, it covers the breasts more and is more adapted to larger cup sizes.
Three quarter pants
Renaming of trousers when the leg stops at mid-calf.
Tights
Tight unisex underwear, but generally worn by women, nevertheless by more and more men. They are composed of a brief or panties attached to stockings. They particularly emphasise the legs in toning down their curves. Their purposes are threefold: source of heat, look and comfort.
Top
Flimsy garment covering the higher part of the body, but not serving as a bra. See Camisole (C), Vest (V).
Triangle bra
Triangle-shaped bra. Generally with no foam and underwiring.
Trousers
Unisex garment worn on the lower part of the body, both legs being separately covered.
Tulip bra
Three-quarter-cup bra. It is called as such because of the stitching which takes the form of a tulip.
Tulle
Transparent and gauzy fabric formed by a network of regular mesh made of fine yarns of cotton, linen, silk, wool or, more recently, synthetic fibres, providing a honeycomb look.
Tunic
Loose-fitting shirt, without collar and having a variable length.

Underwiring
Set of elements (gen. wires) maintaining the form given to a body, to a piece of clothing. See Wire (W).
Underwiring (Bra)
Semi-circular piece of plastic supporting the breasts in some kinds of bras. See Bra (B).

Vest
Article of clothing or underwear low-cut on the front, on the back or on the shoulders. See Camisole (C), Top (T).

Wire
Flexible stem used as underwiring. Formerly made of whale bones and then of metal, it was used to make umbrella frame and corset trimming. Today, in lingerie, wires are made of plastic and are slipped into bustiers, basques (guepieres), the lower part of bras, etc. See Underwiring (U).
Wrapover top
Cardigan crossed over the chest, whose front consists of two triangular parts, each part ending with a string fixed at the end. It fastens by overlaying these parts one over the other and pulling the strings around the bust and then knotting them in the back or side according to their length.

Zsport
Zsport est le spécialiste de la réalisation de sous-vêtements de sport à partir de fibres techniques. La technologie médicale mise au service du sport.

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¹ www.wikipedia.org, referred to on December 14, 2009

² ABC de la lingerie sur www.aubade.com, referred to on January 2010

³ Tino Belleli - Michel Husson, Fashion Dictionary, Paris, L'Industrie Textile, 2001, p.129 to p.155