Every fashion-conscious woman is on the hunt for the next luxury good, and lingerie is definitely redefining itself in that same category. As lingerie charges forward as a market to be reckoned with, more and more customhouses are looking to leverage their expert knowledge into a mass-market phenomenon. Stateside we’ve reported on Jean Yu and Deborah Marquit, who have made a niche for themselves creating gorgeous wearable versions of their lines — now hawking their wares at Barneys on Saturday afternoons and online, respectively. Following suit in the UK, the young but well-established PPQ, in addition to their bread and butter sportswear, have been creating special lingerie confections for an exclusive list of celebrity clientele — Jade Jagger and Angela Lindvall among them — and are now bringing their saucy, skimpy, and sexy looks to the masses. Naughty peacock green and ripe peach in silks and chiffons dominate the spring 2004 offering of cutie camisole tops, short nighties, scant delicate bikinis bedecked with ribbon ties, and even matching eye masks to complete the look for at home friskiness. Formerly the provenance of the French (after all they did spend $2.9 billion on lingerie last year, more than any other country in the EU), it looks like lingerie is making serious moves across channels and oceans. So slip your panties on, ladies.

- Meghan Cleary
Photo: PPQ spring 2004 collection