The Fashion Culturist: Slipdresses of the 1990s

I own a wrap dress. And the tricky thing about them is, when you sit down the dress opens up smack dab in the center, revealing a very unflattering side of any woman in a casual setting. I have worn this dress before sans slip but today, I decided to try it. I only have a half slip but moral of the story is, I must invest in more.

And then it got me thinking - why don't women wear slips anymore? I remember going to Walmart one time looking for a cheap full length slip, thinking I'd be overwhelmed by the colors, designs and varieties I'd procure (I wanted something sexy for the after party, folks). Instead what greeted me was one of two varieties: the beige tone girdle slip (HELLZ NO) and the polyrayon blend, virginal white with rosettes disaster (rosettes have never been sexy, ftw). I left, dismayed - did this mean I'd have to wear someone ELSE'S underwear in order to achieve a throw-back-in-time design?

The answer, is yes. The only decent slips are the ones you find in a thrift shop.

Now this goes without saying, you don't want to pick up your slips at the Salvation Army. Granted I did my research and will soon be trotting off to Midtown to some shops that specialize in vintage lingerie. These places dry clean or wash by hand personally last decade's skivvies. I think I'm in the clear.

But this also got me wondering about the evolution - and ultimate death - of the slip as a practicality. The 90s made a comeback of the slip dress and I am very interested in this topic. Thus, potential topic of study:

Slipping into something more comfortable: Critical usage of the slip dress in film of the 1990s.

Think about it: Clueless, Scream, Wild Things, even the Naked Gun moves. All used the slip dress mainly as a form of seduction.

I think I'm on to something here.