California Apparel News

The winding hills of San Francisco are treacherous for the novice driver. You’re better off being the passenger of someone with a quick clutch foot and years of experience.

Likewise, fitting the curves of a woman’s body with properly sized lingerie also requires the advice of a local—in this case, the owners of four of San Francisco’s leading independent boutiques for lacy underthings.

Specializing in service and selection, the owners of Toujours, My Boudoir, Dollhouse Bettie and Alla Prima are finding that the American woman is gradually taking on a more European sensibility, seeking a middle ground between underwear with everyday practicality and put-it-on-then-rip-it-off anniversary costumes.

And with a growing sense of lingerie-as-fashion fueled by seasonal novelties, these niche-driven retailers say business stays comfortable and supportive all day long.

Remember the good old days of the Internet, say four years ago? Michelle Athanasiades does. Pursuing a master’s degree in theater performance at the time, Athanasiades dropped out and began liquidating her large vintage lingerie and costume collection on eBay. She replenished her wares by acquiring dead stock and soon had up to 500 items on eBay at any given time. “At that time, the eBay market was very active,” she said. “Now it’s not as vibrant as it used to be. I think the market got watered down because so many people jumped on the bandwagon.”

So in March 2007, Athanasiades opened a bricks-and-mortar retail store, Dollhouse Bettie, on San Francisco’s shop-laden Haight Street. Her merchandise is 70 percent new and 30 percent vintage and includes such lines as Lejaby, ID Sarrieri, Letters of Marque and Rago.

Whether old or new, all the designs share a classic look from the ’30s to ’50s that appeals equally to a mainstream and retro shopper. “The thing that stands out with the vintage pieces is that they’re classics,” Athanasiades said. “If you put them beside new items, they share something about their elegance and form. There’s no reason to reinvent the wheel.”

Women love them, she said, because the shapes are flattering. Dollhouse Bettie’s prices start at $15 for a panty to $250 for a Victorian-style bloomer for the burlesque crowd. Five hundred dollars gets you a two-piece dead-stock nightgown and peignoir from the 1930s.

Some of the vintage items are used, but Athanasiades does not sell used underwear because that would be icky. “We draw the line there,” she said. “The only vintage panties are dead stock.”

Dollhouse Bettie’s customers have grown increasingly sophisticated in what they want from their unmentionables. “American women are starting to get more of a European sensibility about their lingerie in the sense that it’s not just for function but also the feeling you get from wearing it,” Athanasiades said.

And business has remained brisk this year thanks to her unwavering commitment to the Bettie Page look. “The most important thing is to stay true to your aesthetic,” Athanasiades said. “When you try to please too many people, you lose focus, and that will dilute your customer base.”

And although she abandoned her eBay store for a retail storefront, the Internet still remains good to her. Without even trying, Dollhouse Bettie is the number-two Google search result for the terms “vintage lingerie.”

Alla Prima has made only moderate efforts to sell online because lingerie fit can sometimes only be accomplished by trying on items and getting the advice of a savvy staff. “We’re all about fit, and it’s hard to do that on a Web site,” said owner Yolaida Duran. “We’re fitters, so that’s what we’ve always done. Long before people became aware of fit, we were struggling to get women in the right size bra, as they were fighting us tooth and nail.”

Most women choose bras that are too big in the band and too small in the cup, she says. The result is uncomfortable, doesn’t provide support and “looks horrible,” according to Duran. “It does absolutely nothing for the silhouette,” she said.

Alla Prima opened in 1998 in the North Beach neighborhood, adding a second store in Hayes Valley a year later. The high-end shop is focused on European brands such as La Perla, Eres, Andres Sarda, Dolce & Gabbana and Prima Donna. Prices run from $90 to $425 for bras alone.

Duran agrees that the American consumer is looking for more than just practicality. “Overall, the American woman has come a long way with lingerie, from the basic nude or white bra to seeing lingerie as part of fashion,” she said. “So they’re shopping the same way they do for ready-to-wear. Women shop seasonally and look for the colors and trends of the season.”

A black satin set by La Perla features a bra with a bow in the back that women are wearing with backless dresses that show off the bow. “Women are much more open to experimenting now and making lingerie a fashion statement,” Duran said.

In Pacific Heights, two boutiques are dedicated to giving shoppers’ skin a French kiss.

Toujours owner Beverly Weinkauf was inspired by the tiny lingerie shops she saw in Paris; her store, founded in 1986, is only 350 square feet. That makes careful buying a necessity, and Weinkauf remains focused exclusively on French-style lingerie made by small designers with an attention to detail. And whereas other shops are more willing to embrace the looks of the season, Weinkauf keeps everything classic. “Toujours means ’always,’ and my vision was to have lingerie that would stand the test of time and have a quality that’s not going to wear out,” she said.

“Classic” means a judicious use of lace rather than a plethora. Featured lines include Chantelle Thomas, Simone Peacute;regrave;le and Bay Area–based Underwriters. Prices run from $18 for a thong to $398 for a bra set.

At My Boudoir, customers are encouraged to try a lacy alternative to the ubiquitous “T-shirt bra”: the “smooth, ugly, molded bra worn under a T-shirt,” said owner Geraldine Nuval.

A lingerie maven since the age of 16, when she took a part-time job at Victoria’s Secret, Nuval carries bras exclusively from Europe, though camisoles and other items come from American designers. Top lines include Aubade, Cosabella and ID Sarrieri.

My Boudoir still carries a small selection of “T-shirt bras” because that’s what many women are looking for. “But then we tell them that lacy bras still lay flat. In Europe it’s understood that you wear a pretty bra under everything, not an ugly molded nude bra.”