What’s your nude?

Adding yet another thing to the list of stuff white people take for granted: Undergarments that more or less match their skin tones. While I distinctly remember thinking the “nude” crayon in my big box of Crayolas seemed strange (and indeed, after public outcry, it was changed), and that “skin-colored” bandaids were anything but for darker people’s scraped knees or banged thumbs, I never thought about lingerie. That’s probably because I’m white.

If you are like most (white) women, you probably have white bras, black bras, riotously colorful bras, and at least one or two “nude” colored bras – they’re as great for tees as the classic white button down. There’s the NuBra that’s just two cups that adhere to each breast and attach in the middle – but it only comes in white women’s skin tone (though evidently, only Caucasian women buy this product anyway, according to their customer page).

But NuBra’s not the only guilty party here; Victoria’s Secret’s new BioFit bra comes in both nude and buff, in case you are a really pale white woman instead of a normal pale one. Look at any conventional or boutique brand of bra and you’ll see plenty for white women to cover up with – but little for women of other skin tones.

So what’s a bra-wearing black woman to do? Make change herself, of course. Tara Raines is an African-American psychologist who decided to lobby for darker-hued nude bras. This came not only after her own fruitless searches, but when she discovered that friends and family would buy buff and nude colored bras and dye the bras themselves.

Raines says: “Women of color have tremendous spending power in the U.S. and it’s absurd to think that in 2012 we are essentially disenfranchised when we shop for lingerie,” says Raines. “It’s my hope that this campaign will drive not only awareness, but swift action by bra makers.”

The What’s Your Nude campaign has a simple aim: To get lingerie manufacturers to make bras in a wider variety of skin tones. The campaign is asking women of all colors to “contact their preferred bra manufacturer or bra retailer on February 1st via phone, email, social media or snail mail.” However, you can still call in and participate in social media. Follow the What’s Your Nude campaign on Twitter and spread the word by using the #WhatsYourNude hashtag.

“I don’t think it’s too much to ask that bra makers include darker hues when manufacturing their collections,” says Raines. “Women of color deserve to look and feel sexy, and a big part of that is looking like ourselves.”

Perhaps brands should do away with the “nude” descriptive entirely. As Alexandra Phoner-Faury writes in Essence (regarding the nude trend for F/W 2011), “While beige may be ‘nude’ for most white women, ‘nude’ for me would be brown. This isn’t the first time this loaded word has been used in the pages of glossies, but it is the first time that the fashion world’s hidden racism has been exposed on such a large scale and caused many to finally take a closer look at the ingrained language of fashion.”

Image: tanakawho

Five style mistakes you should never make.

You know how, at the beginning of each new season, you vow you’re going to break your habits from last year? You’re not going to wear that shapeless cotton dress because you can sleep in it. You’re going to wear those new sandal thongs even though they serrate the inside of your big toe. Vows are made. Hands are clasped earnestly. But then the summer begins, and you’re soon collapsed in a heap of sweat, barefoot and clutching at your cotton shift dress. Because it is hot out. And your big toe hurts.

This year will be different! Check out five style mistakes never to be voluntarily made outside the confines of your own home.

Leggings with a short top
Leggings are awesome. They are comfortable, they are affordable, and they make slipping on a pair of boots as easy as a pair of slippers. (They also help you avoid the fantastic folding of jeans into your boots, usually resulting in loss of circulation and near collapse onto a sidewalk.) But what leggings are not meant to do is to make you look like a living sex doll. Enjoy your leggings always with a longer shirt or tunic. Leave a little mystery to your fabulous derriere.

Slippers as shoes
Slippers aren’t meant to be taken out onto city sidewalks. Or as recently spotted, they should not be taken into a Victoria’s Secret store paired with a bottom-grazing baby doll dress and a pony-tail atop one’s head. Comfort can be great, but it does not mean dress as if someone caught you on the way to the bathroom in the middle of the night.

Nipples
Your breasts are beautiful, but so is the art of subtlety. Just because it’s cold outside, doesn’t mean you have to give a greater meaning to “headlights” when you step out in public. All hail lined and padded bras!

Letting your pants hang below your waist
Pants. They are important, right? So why push them down so far you’ve given new meaning to a whale tale? We all know thongs are practical and sexy. But they are still underwear and deserve to be mysterious. (See: granny panties flapping out of jeans. Yes, we WILL go there.)

ALSO CHECK OUT:

8 Things to Consider if You’re Getting a Tattoo

How to Wear Leggings and Tunics and Not Look Pregnant

20 Foods to Boost Your Sex Drive

Images: 37206010@N07, sarahrosenau

Tired of that thong song when your sexiest undies collapse from too many wash machine beatings?

One way to lessen the damage is my mom’s method of washing her lingerie in a mesh bag on the delicate cycle of the wash machine, keeping the fabrics separated from towels and other heavier cottons. Bags also help protect fragile fabrics from too much machine agitation. Sadly, Mom still uses Tide detergent on everything. I wheeze from the chemical odor and wince at the notion of wearing tender garments marinated in Tide!

Mesh bags with green detergents are a good way to clean sturdier cotton undies and camisoles  in the machine, and for those who like using bags, Good Housekeeping has some great tips.

But when it comes to silks, I prefer to hand wash and hang undergarments, hose, bathing suits and work-out gear, finding it goes further to sustain these daily necessities while also rushing them through the wash and wear cycle faster.

Here are some safe and gentle products for soaking our most fragile garments:

1. Baby Shampoo

Even before having babies, I began soaking my delicates in the sink with a thimble-full of baby shampoo. My late Aunt Lorraine, one of the best knitters in the Midwest, taught me this trick for handwashing knitwear. For my hose, good thongs and bras, I use organic products, like California Baby , $20, finding a very small amount goes a long way in making suds. I add about a tablespoon to a sink full of water (lukewarm for anything that doesn’t need stain removal and warmer for garments that are spotted). I rinse in clean water and drape the wet garments over a towel to air dry. Experts say not to hang hose or they stretch out, so I usually fold mine over the bathtub rim on a dry towel.

Another reason I love gentle baby shampoo is that I’m highly allergic to most scented shampoos and lingerie washes, and I have no reaction to this gentle alternative. When out of the shampoo, I have also used gentle baby soaps, simply lathering the bar a bit with my hands under the tap to make suds for soaking.

2. Forever New Fabric Care Wash

A product that has been on the market for 25 years, Forever New , $15 – $17, has several organic formulas that address various garments from lights and darks to swimwear, work-out wear and items in need of stain removal. It works great for hand-washing bras. I have a friend who is quite well endowed and she washes a dozen bras at a time and then strings them to dry inside her shower. The site is something to behold. It’s important to remember to reshape the cups when hanging to dry. The washing is easy: you just fill the sink with lukewarm water, add the liquid and swish with your hand to mix the soap. Rinse twice and dry. Your bras will have a longer life if you avoid the tumbling of the machine.

3. Hanky Panky

The maker of organic thongs and undies, Hanky Panky has introduced a biodegradable lingerie wash powder that is hypoallergenic, fragrance free and made in the USA. It’s sold at site like A Brief Affair for $8.50 for an 8 oz. jar. Be sure to follow the directions for mixing so you don’t make the wash too potent.

Main image: Daniele Butera