Video shows how women’s lingerie styles have evolved over the last 100 years

Vintage clothing lovers who wish they could go back to a previous decade just for the fashion often forget the along with cute frocks of the ’20s, gorgeous skirts of the ’50s, and funky cuts and colors of the ’80s came a whole lot of weird underwear.

So a new video from Glamour did away with the vintage clothes and instead focused on vintage lingerie, taking viewers through a history of over a hundred years of undies.

In the clip, a model tries on ’20s chemises, ’40s bloomers, ’70s thongs, and ’90s Calvins, showing that while some elements of underwear have come a long way over the last century, a few things haven’t really changed at all.

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History: A new video explores the way lingerie trends have changed over the past century

Dance the night away! In the 1920s (pictured), women often wore slip-in chemises, which were popular with flappers

The Evolution of Women’s Underwear video includes a gorgeous array of throwback lingerie from Helen Uffner Vintage Clothing.

At the turn of the century, most women had much more elaborate undergarments, as the first brassiere patent wasn’t issues in the US until 1914. 

To demonstrate the trends of the day in 1925, a brunette model comes on screen with a cute bob. She shows off a ‘step-in’ chemise, a style that was popular with flappers.

The undergarment is lacy, with thin straps and a thigh-length skirt, which comes complete with garter straps. It doesn’t much play up the model’s curves, since during the ’20s the desired shape of a woman was slim, flat, and boyish.

But that doesn’t mean it isn’t sexy — in fact, today a similar slip might be worn as a slinky dress. 

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Less fabric: In the ’30s (pictured), ladies switched to Spanx-like bottoms, which they wore with point bras

Upgrade: Cup sizes A through D were first introduced in the ’30s; before then, women bought bras in sizes small, medium, and large

Hoisting those babies up: Underwire was first introduced to some bras in the 1940s (pictured)

Contraband: Women wore silk bloomers, and some had to steal the silk from World War II parachutes 

A make-up artist and hair stylist then step in to transform the model for her next look, adding shiny curls, red lipstick, and bold lashes.

Her new lingerie — for the year 1934 — includes a bralet and ‘French knickers in a short boxer style’, which look a whole lot like Spanx but seem less constricting. Glamour explains that these were made out of delicate, sheer fabrics and were often decorated with lace.

This was also the decade that adjustable bands were first introduced, and when cup sizes A through D began to be used by stores. Before then, bras were mostly sold in sizes small, medium, and large. 

For 1940, the model gets the Rita Hayworth treatment, with bouncy curls and bedroom eyes. To match the look, she changes into short silk bloomers. Because the fabric was sparse during World War II, British women sometimes stole parachute silk to make their underwear.

On top, the model wears a matching silk bra, which connects to her undies with straps. The bra has a pointed, old-fashioned cone shape, which was the look of the day.

The 1940s saw the introduction of underwire to some bras, as well as a greater desire by women to be buxom — thanks in part to actresses like Jane Russell. 

Sucking it all in: In the 1950s (pictured), many women wore girdles under their clothes

Everything’s connected: Most of them had garters to help hold up women’s stockings

Switching it up: Nylon was introduced in the 1960s, which added more variety to undergarments

Brief, bikini, and hiphugger underwear became available in stores, offering more choices to shoppers

Bras still had a pointed look by 1950, but the video model’s bra for this decade is, for the first time, strapless, with a bit of lace trim on top.

She also wears a girdle, which women used to get that coveted hourglass figure. While hers has garters, though, she isn’t wearing stockings along with it.

Not much changes to the 1960s — that is, except the model’s hair, which is now styled in ringlets with a headband.

The silhouette of her underwear still has the same shape, with a pointy lace bra and waist-high bottoms, which are now made of nylon.

The video shows that in addition to briefs, bikinis and hiphuggers were now a popular choice in stores, and were often made of stretch lace, much like styles available today. 

Ooh-la-la! In the ’70s, thong bodysuits and bathing suits hit the market (pictured)

Work it out! Women in the ’80s were influenced by Jane Fonda and aerobics, favoring high-cut briefs and sporty tank tops (pictured)

Look familiar? Calvin Klein rose in popularity in the ’90s (pictured) and shoppers clamored for brand clothes, which became status symbols

The ’70s get more covered up in the front — but not so much in back. The model dances in a black thong bodysuit, the first of which was invented by Rudi Gernreich in 1974.

Rudi also designed the first monokini, a term which today means a one-piece suit with cut-outs, but back in the ’60s and ’70s meant a topless one-piece.

Interestingly, this was also around the time the first sports bra was invented and patented. 

For the 1980s, the model switches into baby blue hues, wearing a form-fitting tank top knotted at the waist and matching granny panties. The high-cut style had become more popular thanks to Jane Fonda’s aerobics videos. 

Stripped-down: In the early 2000s, celebrities paved the way for a trend that saw G-strings visible above clothes (pictured)

Oh no! ‘Whale tails’ were seen in public, and girls wore push-up bras regularly

Slim down: Spanx were introduced in the 2000s as well, seemingly bringing back the girdle

Functional: These days, the trend is moving toward full coverage again, with brief and bikini bottoms and supportive bras

The 1990s, remarkably, look a lot like today, as the model shows off a pair of branded-waistband Calvin Klein briefs and a matching sports bra.

Visible brand names had become a status symbol, Glamour explains, and Calvin Klein in particular had achieved must-have status thanks to campaigns with Brooke Shields and Marky Mark.

The look for the 2000s is, of course, all too familiar. With pink streaks in her hair, the model flaunts lace fuchsia G-string and tiny floral push-up bra.

She then zips up a pair of low-riding jeans, allowing the panty straps — and whale tail in back — to show.

Luckily — or not so luckily, depending on how you look at it — trends looked backwards as the ’00s wore on, with Spanx rising to popularity. The video also notes that today, younger generations are looking back to full-form underwear, picking briefs over thongs. 

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Lingerie Has A Diversity Problem. Here’s What One Brand Is Doing About It.

The brand’s decision to use women who don’t typically work as models had an impact on those involved. Christine Minji Chang, second from left above, who works as both an actress and the executive director of a non-profit promoting diverse Asian-American artists, told HuffPost that while she has not personally struggled with finding nudes for her skin tone, starring in the ads taught her a thing or two about finding her own confidence.

“In the process of my work, I’ve come to understand the impact of damaging marketing and cultural norms, and how it has played a part in my journey as a woman, a person of color, a leader, an artist and just a human being,” she said. “Being part of this campaign was pretty much the scariest thing I could’ve imagined for myself, getting down to my skivvies in public and doing it with confidence I’m still building up.”

Rodriguez, who joined the brand in 2015 but has long advocated for diversity — whether of body, ethnicity or otherwise – said getting people like Minji Chang involved helps push inclusion forward.

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