For hundreds of years, undergarments have been a curse and a blessing to women everywhere. From Victorian-era boned corsets to the braless late ’60s to the high-tech fabrics of today.
For “Mad Men” costume designer Janie Bryant, undergarments have almost become an obsession.
That’s because “without the foundation garments, it’s not going to happen.”
The “it” is the look. That perfect silhouette of the hourglass figure — a curvy, nipped-in waist, body-hugging skirts and perfectly shaped breasts underneath clothes with an impeccably smooth fit — never a bra or panty line in sight, no sloppy fashion, no “muffin-top” bellies hanging out.
The undergarments of that early-’60s era were true foundation garments, meant to shape and lift. Take a look tonight when the new season of “Mad Men” premieres at 10 p.m. on AMC.
Finding such pieces capable of doing so these days has proved to be a challenge for Bryant, who sings the praises of Rago Shapewear, the only company in the United States that still makes the girdles and long-line bras of that era.
Rago Shapewear President Justin Chernoff says the appeal of these garments is simple: “They just work.” They feel as if they are firmly “hugging” you and holding you in.
Bryant says the “hugging” feeling left many actresses unsettled. Everything changed: their posture, their walk — even their breathing. But she insisted that the actresses wear such clothes and undergarments so they could experience the time frame they were portraying.
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