The History of Shapewear

The earliest record of shapewear dates back to around 1,600 BC in the Mycenaean Greek times. The ancient Crete people who lived on the island of Crete before the Athenian invasion celebrated the female form in all its glory. They created undergarments that would accentuate the waist, hips, and breasts. Artwork from this period suggests that Minoan, or Cretan, women would have their breasts out and they would use corsetry to push them up and to bring in their waist. It's documented that women of this time already had an hourglass shape figure but had strong and broad features. The dainty shape that today's shapewear aims to give would not have been desired back in this time period. 

As time progressed, the Hellenic Greeks of 356 to 323 BCE introduced metal to their shapewear. Decorative metal girdles became an essential part of womenswear, and there are numerous mentions of girdles in ancient text, such as Homer's Iliad and the Odyssey. Girdles were made from linen and leather as well, and started to facilitate the desired hourglass look of the era.

As we switch countries and look at Ancient Rome, the shapewear is completely different. Ancient Roman women did not want their decolletage on full display, unlike the Ancient Cretans. The beauty standard for Ancient Rome was slender, with small breasts and large hips. Therefore, Ancient Roman women wore breast binders to minimize the appearance of their breasts. We see this minimization in sculptures of women from this time. 

Fast forward to the time between the 5th and 15th centuries, the desire for an hourglass figure becomes the main focus for women. Tightly laced bodices covered in paste were the shapewear that helped women of the Middle Ages achieve the desired figure. There's little evidence to suggest that weight loss was a principal goal, therefore making the shape of a woman's body the focus rather than its size. This era of shapewear was one of the most painful, as the tightness of the bodices prevented healthy airflow. The women of the middle ages really stuck to the "beauty is pain" ideology. 

Hips were all the rage in the Elizabethian Era. Women wore large petticoats underneath their dresses to create the illusion of wide hips. Steel corsets helped to flatten and conceal the chest, and molded the torso into a cylindrical shape in order to not give off an hourglass shape. These shapewear practices hid the more sexual parts of a woman's body and highlighted the childbearing qualities, i.e. wide hips. 

The Victorian Era was all about sexual restraint and morality for women. However, the desired look for a woman's body was a big bust and a tiny waist. The two ideals do not always see eye to eye, but nonetheless, women of the time forced themselves into corsets to mold their figure to fit the beauty standard. The corsets of this time were made from steel or whalebone and were covered in heavy canvas. This combination created an extreme hourglass shape and required assistance to get into.

Typically, women would have to lay down on the floor and have someone put a foot on their back while they simultaneously pulled the corset strings as tight as they would go. The hourglass figure was still the beauty standard. Towards the end of the Victorian Era, around 1917, America advised women to stop buying metal corsets as the metal was needed to make ammunition and other military supplies for World War I. As a result, the modern-day bra emerged. 

As the First World War required lots of steel, shapewear was on the back burner during this time. The Flapper Girl aesthetic was the key look at the time. Shapeless and svelte silhouettes were in, and the hourglass figure was out. Camisoles, panties, teddies, and bras were used to hide curves and breasts. 

As the Second World War put a financial hold on the world, cost-effective shapewear was what every woman was looking for. Lightweight girdles were made of elastic or boning to give a slimmer appearance to the abdomen, buttocks, and hips. Girdles were often attached to thigh-high pantyhose with lace detailing. The lightweight nature of this shapewear and its minimal fabric requirement made it ideal for the financial struggle of the time. The elasticity of this shapewear influenced the shapewear of today. The figure-hugging design made the body look as thin as possible, and we see that same effect in modern-day undergarments. 

The era of the pinup girl brought the hourglass shape back. After years of hiding their breasts, women began accentuating them with the shapewear of the '50s. Bullet, cantilevered, and padded bras defined breasts, while waists were cinched in with nylon and polyester whalebone girdles. The desired hourglass figure of the '50s was a flat stomach with a big bust. 

The problematically named "heroin chic" aesthetic of the '90s was all about slimming the body. The supermodel era imposed a desire for extreme thinness on women. Elastic fabrics got more intense, as they were designed to be tight enough to suck the body in to give an unhealthy look. While dieting and weight loss programs were all the rage during this era, the marketing ploy of making you look two sizes smaller without working out made shapewear immensely popular amongst women. 

Shapewear of today finds itself in an odd position. While we're in a time of body positivity, the desire for thinness and an hourglass shape is still very prevalent. Some companies are focused on making shapewear a tool for self-confidence and practicality, but there's still an underlying sense of perfection and desire rooted within the larger shapewear industry. Certain shapewear brands are still pushing the slimming ideal, while others are promoting a self-love ideology. As we begin to see the fashion industry and society shift from a prominently thin superiority through the inclusion of plus-sized models and extended-size collections, we're interested to see where the future of shapewear is headed.