THE UNDERWEAR ECONOMY.

Hemlines shrink in prosperous times and grow during recessions. But what of lingerie? Bull or bear, an exposed bra strap plays all markets.

We've all had this nightmare. One minute you're snoring in flannel jammies, comfy under your 800-thread-count duvet. The next, you're speaking in public in a lace negligee or less. So. Awkward. It would be a good time to wake up, except this isn't a dream. It's a fashion trend. A major one. And it's coming to stores near you.

You may not have missed Kourtney Kardashian's wedding to Travis Barker in May. Very touching, those photos of her being fitted into her corset by none other than Domenico Dolce, one of Italy's finest gown designers. But at the altar there was no gown. Kourtney tied the knot in her underwear.

Kendall Jenner wore skivvies (very pretty ones) the same month to a party following the Metropolitan Museum of Art's annual costume gala. And Kim Kardashian these days shifts seamlessly from Balenciaga catsuits to her own wildly successful Skims label, which is valued at $3.2 billion. Lest we blame America's first reality family for this fad, consider how many designers went all in on lingerie dressing in their fall 2022 collections. Are they tapping into a post-pandemic decadence in the culture, or are they returning to a well-worn staple of women's wardrobes? The Roaring Twenties gave rise to the hemline index theory, which holds that skirts get shorter in boom times and longer during downturns. Fashion, meanwhile, has always known that exposing a bra strap is one styling move that has nothing to do with the state of your stock portfolio.