Here's What Lingerie Ads Would Look Like if They Were Realistic

Last month, Cora Harrington​ of lingerie blog The Lingerie Addict ​got together with three of her fellow lingerie bloggers to take part in a photo shoot celebrating the diversity of women too often overlooked by the mainstream lingerie industry. "It's about showing that lingerie is for everyone to enjoy," said Cora on her blog. 

Joining Cora on set were Rose Wednesday, also of The Lingerie Addict, Elisabeth Dale of The Breast Life, and Sweets of Sweet Nothings. ​

The women wore lingerie from independent, woman-owned lingerie brands Harlow & Fox, Evgenia Lingerie, and Between the Sheets​. "They are all accomplished artists who work with precision and clarity on bold design choices in beautiful, feel-good fabrics," said Sweets of the three brands. "They also practice ethical manufacturing and have actively sought to showcase diversity and support social justice movements, whether in their lookbooks, their social media channels, or their press kits."

"I hope that this shoot helps to show that indie designers are capable of creating pieces that work for a variety of body types and personal styles," said Stephanie Bodnar of Evgenia Lingerie. ​​

"Young girls who do not see themselves represented grow into women who do not understand their own value and beauty," said Layla L'obatti of Between the Sheets​. "Women who have passed a certain age are also rendered nearly invisible by an industry that chases youth and ableism — you rarely even see glasses in ad campaigns.​"

At nearly 60 years old, Elisabeth Dale was nervous at first about the prospect of being photographed in her underwear for the Internet. "To be perfectly honest, I wasn't all that excited about doing the shoot," she told Harrington. "But as a more mature woman who adores lovely lingerie, I felt it important to represent my generation. Older women are mostly invisible in today's fashion world. That's why I decided to participate."

"There's such a lack of age diversity in mainstream lingerie advertising" said Leanna Williams of Harlow & Fox​, who designed all the lingerie worn by Dale in the shoot. "To have the chance to illustrate how beautiful she looked to other women, who may think more luxurious lingerie isn't for them, or who are so used to seeing only younger women portrayed in this way, was a great honor." ​

"Even though I'm larger than many brands' target customers, surely it's more likely I'm in the majority of consumers, not the minority," said Sweets. "I want to see lingerie imagery that better reflects, celebrates, and illuminates the full range of people who wear it.​"

Not that these women expect their shoot to turn the lingerie industry on its head overnight. "I'm not sure if one shoot can do anything to change commercial ideals of beauty," said Dole, "especially in the mainstream lingerie world." But, as Harrington points out on her blog, shoots like this are at least a ​start​, and you've got to start somewhere.

"I hope it encourages more and more people to make their own imagery," said Sweets. "The more cool, smart, interesting people I meet and whose work I read, the odder it seems that brands and advertisers seem to design for such an absurdly narrow demographic. I'd love to see the definition of what's 'commercially appealing' expand exponentially."

Here's hoping she's right!​

Check out the full story at The Lingerie Addict. 

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