Weddingbee Blog

As an artist and designer who avidly studied life drawing and fashion illustration, and as a girl with a serious obsession with lingerie, I have always loved the concept of boudoir shoots. Have I mentioned that (one) of my dream jobs would be designing intimate apparel? Had I not gone straight into automotive design after fashion school, I would have most definitely been cranking out the undies (and hopefully still will someday!).

As most designers like to build collections for reference and inspiration, I have accumulated vintage pin up calendars, centerfolds and books over the years. I have been slowly building my lingerie collection for about the same time, and have found some really great pieces. While I’m not prepared to show you my undies, I will gladly share my pin up/burlesque references with you for boudoir shoot inspiration.

“It’s All in the Eyes” by Joe Demers. Scanned from my copy of The Great American Pin Up.

From a life drawing perspective, I love the poses and play of light in vintage pin ups. From a fashion illustration perspective, I love seeing how the hair, makeup, and different fabrics are rendered, especially the sheer fabrics and any embellishment details. From a boudoir perspective, the poses, hair styles, expressions and colors can be a fun source of inspiration.

Let’s start with Alberto Vargas, a very well known pin up artist. I tried to choose the least raciest images for this post, but it still is not safe for work.

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I love the poses in his illustrations. I will be referencing these images for my own boudoir shoot with my fabulous photographer, a girl in love. I can hardly wait until the shoot next week!!!

This is a scan of one of my vintage Vargas calendars from April, 1948.

My second favorite pin up artist is George Petty. The original prints that I have are too large to scan, but I have found some other fun examples. One of George Petty’s trademarks is leaving part of the illustration just as a sketch in red lines… in this case, it is the record, but most of his other work has sketches of phones and phone cords. This record album cover is too cute, especially considering Mr. Taffy’s love of vinyl!

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This album cover would be so fun to recreate with some Photoshop help!

Most pin up artists also did commercial work for lingerie or hosiery companies, and even the US Army! Here is a sassy stocking advertisement by Petty:

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One of my favorite aspects of vintage pin ups are the expressions. Most of the time the girls appear to be very happy and are smiling brightly, which is maybe a little different than what most people today might consider to be a “sexy face”. I am a very cheerful, optimistic person, and I intend to smile like crazy during the boudoir shoot, instead of feeling weird trying to look sultry.

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I really love this next one, and will definitely use this for pose inspiration. This illustration is by Pearl Frush, one of the somewhat rare female pin up artists.

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This cheerful and patriotic illustration by Rolf Armstrong was recently referenced for the cover of Vanity Fair, shot by Annie Leibovitz:

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I love how they interpreted the costume! I squealed with delight when I saw this in my mailbox! I’m a huge Tina Fey fan.

I am also a huge fan of the lovely, classic pin up queen, Bettie Page. There will be a great nod to her in my own boudoir shoot. I even found a never worn, vintage black lace “bullet” bra in my size a few years ago that I could use. It’s amazing what they did without wires in the fifties… that thing could stand up on its own!

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Oh, Bettie. So cute, yet so sassy.

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And who could forget Marilyn? Her wardrobe from the film “Some Like it Hot” had some amazing boudoir inspiration… I love the lace on the number she is wearing here:

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And the beaded fringe is so much fun on this famous dress:

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I am such a sucker for anything black, sheer and sparkly.

This is one of my favorite press shots from the film Gentlemen Prefer Blondes. I absolutely love Jane Russell! In the film, they have cute Dutch-girl headpieces instead of top hats with these outfits. They also have a double wedding, which is fun, and in an earlier scene, Jane Russell’s character sports a fabulous black mantilla veil.

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Another costume that was used in promotional shots for the film (and shown in paper doll form below) inspired a Moulin Rouge costume:

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Yes. I am a huge dork when it come to this kind of thing.

In addition to my obsession with lingerie and vintage pin ups, I am also an enormous fan of burlesque. I love the whole idea of the show - from a fashion and costuming perspective, to the fun dance routines and music, to my love for all things silly, sassy, clever and humorous. When I lived in New York, I regularly attended Starshine Burlesque. Those shows are the single biggest thing that I miss about NY! My favorite performer is Little Brooklyn, but there are many more that are wonderful and hilarious. I try to catch a show every time I go to NY to visit, which hasn’t been much recently with all of the wedding planning.

For a nod to my love of burlesque, I will be using a pair of black feather fans in my boudoir shoot, similar to the pair that Dita is holding here:

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I have been trying to practice with the fans when I get some time alone, only to frantically vacuum tiny stray feather bits afterward. The boudoir shoot is my wedding gift to Mr. Taffy, so I am trying to keep it a surprise! Thank goodness we received the Dyson hand held vacuum at our shower! (So far he has only noticed one stray piece!)

I feel like I am pretty prepared for the shoot next week. I have been working out regularly, and after a couple of months I am surprisingly pleased with how I’ve toned up. I am 90% sure which lingerie pieces that I will wear, and have my stockings and shoes ready to go. My hair appointment is set, and I have some fun sassy mixed CDs and old burlesque records for a soundtrack to the shoot. I know Melissa is going to do an absolutely amazing job with the photography, so now worries there.

How did you prepare for your boudoir shoot? Did you keep it as a surprise for your fiance? Any tips that you would like to share for the shoot itself?