admin It’s possible that it was Miuccia Prada who planted the seed of exploring what men’s underwear could do for women’s fashion first with her Miu Miu spring and fall 2022 collections, which both brought back the ultra-low waistbands of the aughts along with enough exposed underwear for a delicately sewn Miu Miu label to peek out front and center. Though neither one of the collections explicitly showed the garment in question, they certainly seemed to have suggested it. If you wanted to try the trend at home, showing off the thick elastic waistband of men’s underwear would more quickly, and obviously, deliver the intended sartorial vision. Soon after, stylists and influencers began to be photographed with that familiar ballooning of the boxers above their denim waistbands. At the same time, the pull of the exposed thong trend, which had its moment in the sun at Tom Ford’s spring 1998 collection for Gucci was also making a low-key comeback among the very stylish and the very bold. Soon “exposed underwear” became the buzzword for trend trackers. But why should it just be about sheer and lacy lingerie looks? An exposed cotton boxer works two-fold: it takes the piss out of an expected, maybe even played-out trend (Exposed lingerie! Being sexy!), and adds to it a layer of inclusivity.
Surprisingly, it was The Row who took the first step in not only legitimizing, but elevating the cotton boxer. In September of last year, they opened their pre-fall collection with a model wearing one of their exquisitely tailored two-button jackets with a white button-down shirt. But then, as you scanned down the body—a glitch. From the waist down, the vibe was the opposite, a pair of simple white cotton boxer shorts and black flip flops.
Now on the fall 2023 runways and beyond, boxers are officially having a moment, and just like in real life (or in real TikTok life), their styling is equally diverse. At Bottega Veneta, Matthieu Blazy, who is famously inspired by real people in the streets, sent a model in white cotton with a subtle maroon stripe and a matching-but-not button-down shirt. On her feet were chunky red knitted socks pulled high, except of course they were made of leather. If there needed to be further proof that Blazy intended to take the bedroom out into the real world, she was also carrying one of the house’s woven leather bags. Marc Jacobs’s lighting-flash ’80s-inspired show also featured a model in a pir of thin knit boxers—complete with a fly and jock cup!—that anchored a delicately flower-appliqued silk blouse. Jacobs completed the look with black cutoff sheer leggings, and pointy-toed flats with white ribbed socks. In Paris this summer, Julie de Libran showed a couture take on the style, embellished with sequins and worn extra-slouchy with a lingerie-inspired (ha!) corset top, and black leather opera-length gloves.
