Underthings at Kent State 2

I wrote yesterday about some of the older undergarments on display at Kent State.  As we move through the 20th century women progressively got freed from much of the confinements of earlier days, but perhaps not as quickly as we might have wished.

A corset from 1910, silk with steel front closures and stiffening.  No wonder gentlemen would leap into action to pick up a lady's dropped hankie -- she sure couldn't do it herself!

Here's a brassiere from about 1915.  Silk and elastic stiffened with four horizontal rows of steel across the front, with a hook to attach to the girdle.

The famous nose-cone bra of the 1950s.

Emilio Pucci girdle from the 1960s; lycra was the whalebone of the hippie era.

On to 1985 and a fashion oxymoron: a girdle with extra fanny padding.

But ladies, don't despair!  It's not just us who are marketed into boa-constrictor costumes!  Check out this equal-opportunity torture for guys:

The show continues through next September 1.  I haven't shown you all the gorgeous negligees, slips, nighties and other lingerie but you'd love them.  Check it out if you're in northeastern Ohio anytime in the next year.