The story behind my iconic straps

Black stockings on creamy thighs; is there a more iconic erotic image? (my mouth is watering as I type this!) I could hardly imagine, but still, that’s what I set out to create when I started designing lingerie: new mouth watering icons, based on a similar contrast between skin and fabric. By unlocking more erogenous zones on a woman’s body, I wanted to give us more ways to feel beautiful, strong and sexy.  

According to French philosopher Roland Barthes, the sexiness of stockings is in the unveiling, the interplay between what’s seen and unseen. That became the key to all my designs. And the strap turned out to be the perfect tool to create this delicious tension! 

Maybe you’re familiar with my Dame de Paris bra. I designed it what seems like a life time ago, but it’s still very popular. It’s worn by sexually confident ladies like Rita Ora, Nicki Minaj and Shakira, which says a lot, don’t you think? The first thing you notice is the play of lines adorning the top of the cups; three thin straps following the curve of the breasts.  

Now imagine the bra without these straps. It would be less tantalizing, don’t you think? So by covering something, I actually uncovered an erotic area! (In the same way that adding black stockings to bare legs makes them much more mysterious and exciting).  

The first time I saw the Dame de Paris bra come to life on a woman’s body, I was mesmerized. Through the visual rhythm of the design –skin, black strap, skin, black strap- the body actually became part of the design. This is exactly what I wanted! Traditional underwear, -let’s say a lace bra- stops where your skin starts. My lingerie is interactive: the wearer completes my designs with her body and being.  

This play with erotic contrast has very much become my signature look, and when people ask me why I use ‘those straps’, I show them how they frame the beauty of the wearer. But the best way to understand this dynamic, is try it out for yourself. So go ahead, put on my Spider bra, or my Leading Strings slip. Admiring yourself in the mirror you’ll see that only 10% is my design. 90% is made up by your own body and being! More importantly: don’t you look mouthwateringly good?