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Raunchy, sexy, and intimate: Corsets are the ultimate underwear item

Corsets, a core fashion piece of lingerie has been the foundation of women's fashion for centuries. While the corset was the most intimate of women's underwear at the start of the twentieth century, it has become the flamboyant, rebellious and sexy 'underwear as outerwear', associated with fantasy and eroticism by the end.

Corsets, bustiers and basques enjoyed a revival in the eighties with punk fashion and Vivienne Westwood fetishist corset made from leather and rubber, and in the nineties with Jean-Paul Gaultier sculptured costumes for Madonna, whose fans adopted a diluted versions, wearing an array of basques and bustiers as well as corsets, with jeans and other modern day items.

Historically the corset has always been a woman's underwear support, which was boned and close fitting and usually hooked and laced. The corset starts either above or just below the bust and continues down to the waist or below the hips, generally with garters attached to its base. The corset has effectively evolved into a body-shaper, derived from sportswear, and featuring under-wiring of the breasts and elasticised control panels with popper fastenings at the crotch.

A Basque is the name given to any tight-fitting bodice garment worn by women. Examples of Basques include the corselette. The bustier on the other hand is a bosom-to-hip corset-like garment, usually trimmed in lace. Other features can include detachable garters, flexible boning, shoulder straps, and lace-up closing.

Often these garments are worn for the visual enjoyment of a partner and are made from myriad of fabrics and materials including, lace, fine cotton, eyelet lace (broderie anglaise), matte and shiny silk and silk imitations, crepe de chine, georgette, and satin as well as more modern materials such as lycra, leather and rubber.

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