Vegetables inspire designers at Japan lingerie competition

Cabbage-inspired underwear wins a lingerie design competition in Tokyo.

TOKYO, JAPAN (MAY 25, 2009) REUTERS-
Japanese designers are finding that veggies can be sexy.
Fashionable underwear inspired by vegetables took the center stage at a lingerie fashion show held in Tokyo on Monday (May 25), which was joined by student designers aspiring to take their creativity to the world stage.

At the competition, organised by underwear manufacturer Triumph, judges gave thumbs up to a piece of work that adapted the unusual theme of a "budding cabbage."

Its designer, Sachino Kurozu, 20, a Tokyo fashion design student, said she hoped to express women's "blooming beauty" with layers of garments in fresh green color.

And cabbage was not the only vegetable that has given inspiration to the young Japanese lingerie designers.

Another one came up with underwear titled "onion" with round, brown frills attached to it.

In non-organic style, some showpieces adapted Japanese traditional kimono fashion, while others got inspiration from Joan of Arc to spider webs.

Hundreds of people in the audience were asked by organisers to wear masks in fear of the spreading new influenza.

"The cabbage underwear was so cute. Many of them adapted Japanese themes, but the cabbage one was so unique and catchy," said Haruna Hirasawa, a fashion school student who was in the audience.

Some others said, however, that more sexy or even "erotic" underwear might come into fashion in Japan in the near future.

"Nowadays, a lot of Japanese women are on a so-called 'marriage-hunting' mission. So I think lingerie that's somewhat erotic would be in high demand," said Mirei Suzuki, another fashion school student in the audience.

Kurozu, who designed the cabbage-themed lingerie, won the Tokyo competition and got the ticket Milan to compete in the Triumph Inspiration Award 2009 in September.

The winner at the Milan competition will receive 15,000 Euros, along with an opportunity to adapt the winning design into a commercial underwear set.

Last year, a Japanese student designer won the international award and had her showpiece - titled "Under Skin" - turned into a commercial product.