Slips: A Closet Necessity

As a lifetime lover of all things vintage, of course I have a small collection of vintage slips, but unlike most of my vintage stock, the slips actually get worn and often.  Growing up in the 80s-90s thrift stores in small towns weren't loaded with cool vintage items, they were full of dead people's stuff.  Old dead people.  And, not cool old dead people, sad old dead people who bought ugly clothes in the 70s and apparently having lost faith in fashion proclaimed unanimously, never again!   But there were a few things that I managed to find while scouring those shops for something cool way back when that I have kept to this day.  I found vintage full slips that unlike their modern counterparts actually fit my frame.

My vintage full slips are something that I bought because I loved and held onto even though I spent my 20s and half my 30s while never wearing a slip.  I bought them not of necessity but because they were pretty and I thought they might come back around one day.  Although they didn't come back around in the fashion world at large, I learned when I began wearing dresses most days of my week , which was right around the time this blog began, that slips are an essential addition to any dress lover's wardrobe.

What can a slip do for you?  There are a couple of reasons that slips have become essential in my wardrobe but the number one reason is:  They Slip!  When I lived in Japan, I chose to walk and take public transport over driving.  And when I say I walked, I mean I walked a lot, daily and in all seasons and all kinds of weather, including very windy days or days that started out mild and then turned windy.  I realized after the first unexpected gust of wind lifted my skirt, startling an elderly Japanese woman, that I needed leggings under my dresses.  I immediately ducked into a shop and purchased a pair of shorts to tide me over.  You can read that post and take a trip down memory lane by clicking here. 

Thinking my problem was solved, I walked back outside to finish the two miles I had to go before reaching my destination only to feel my cotton dress bunching up as it rubbed against the shorts.  Every third step I had to pull my dress back down.  Instead of solving my problem, I had just created a new one.  Fortunately there was another shop at the end of this journey, where I ducked in and bought three half slips: one white, one beige, one black, all in various lengths, and Voila!  No more stickage!  The nylon slip when placed between layers of fabrics like cotton allows them to slide against each other instead of bunching up.

Reason # 2 to wear a slip: Smooth Lines.  Whether it's a bulky lace bra showing through your chiffon blouse, the wind blowing your skirt so that it leaves nothing to the imagination about what's under it either by blowing your skirt up or pressing it directly against your legs, or the dreaded panty-line, no one wants things showing that shouldn't be.  A slip creates an extra layer to smooth out the lines between your under things and your outer things.  Suddenly that silhouette is as sleek as you hoped it would be, no bulk, no bunching.  Slips are also a nice extra layer of insulation if you work in freezing temps like I do, but that's really just a bonus.

Slips, as I see it, are just as much a necessary part of a woman's wardrobe as they ever were, especially as fabric has become cheaper and thinner, hiding less than in by gone eras.  The trouble is that slips are hard to find nowadays.  Good luck finding them at any standard department store, even their availability online is mostly limited to brands you have never heard of and with names that appear to be a string of random letters.  How is a vintage-loving, dress-wearing girl to find a trustworthy slip in these modern times?

Well, while Maidenform has gone the way of mostly shapewear and underwear, (hey you gotta go where the money is, right?!) Vanity Fair still carries a full selection of half and full slips as well as camis and yes, even shapewear.  You can find a full range of items on Amazon or on their home site where you'll save 25% by signing up for their newsletter.  They may not be as beautiful and glamourous as in their glory days, but Vanity Fair's slips are still pretty and more importantly functional.  

If you need a little extra pizazz in your slips, why not get a few from one of those inexpensive and unpronounceable Amazon brands and then dye them yourself to make something uniquely yours.  Although I do recommend if you want that vintage glamour, just buy vintage.  There's really nothing today quite like those slips of the 1950s and 60s.  Whichever way you decide to go, you really cannot go wrong with a slip.  They add so much to your wardrobe for very little investment, and maybe together we can help them make a much needed mainstream comeback.