From slip dresses to sleepwear: Survival tips for the underwear-as-outerwear revival

What type of underwear can you wear outside?

Underwear-as-outerwear proponent, actor Dakota Johnson, at New York Fashion Week last September.Credit: WWD via Getty Images

According to the terms of your fashion-insurance policy, in the section beneath wearing horizontal stripes, only an act of God of the fire or flood variety can save you from a hefty premium for stepping outside your front door in a lace bra or Y-fronts. Before you bring up Madonna’s pointy bras, Beyoncé’s high-waisted knickers or Troye Sivan’s peek-a-boo pink boxer shorts, remember that celebrities are not like us: they don’t need to worry whether their seat is clean while wearing a pearl-encrusted thong, or about what will happen should they drop a scalding French fry in their unprotected lap.

Nevertheless, the underwear-as-outerwear trend, along with sleepwear in daylight hours, has been revived by overexposure to Sabrina Carpenter’s peignoirs, Dakota Johnson’s slip dresses and countless Dolce & Gabbana runway shows. But before attempting a style striptease, this approach to dressing needs a protective layer of practicality.

You’re looking for items that are inspired by private attire, but constructed to withstand the glare of overhead lighting. Most underwear-inspired bralettes, camisoles and slip dresses capable of withstanding daylight or street lights are double-lined in potentially revealing areas. Shop for these pieces in the clothing section, not the underwear aisle.

And if you’re going to follow actor Paul Mescal and model Kendall Jenner in their preference for wearing boxers as shorts, be sure to take precautions into your own hands – and nether regions: aim to wear underwear beneath your outer-underwear to prevent any unwanted attention.

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