The more I invest in adding beautiful and unusual pieces to my lingerie collection, the more I find myself trying to think up outfit ideas that will show them off to the world. After all, if you can wear something as both underwear and outerwear, that makes it doubly good value for money, right?

I may only own a handful, but bodysuits are one of my favourite lingerie styles – if you can get the fit right, they’re an incredibly versatile type of garment. In fact, they’re often the first thing mentioned when discussing ideas to wear lingerie as outerwear.

LoveSuze is a newly-launched brand founded by Suzanne Macbale, who was previously Associate Vice President of Design at Victoria’s Secret. In case you’re wondering how similar this fledgling label is it to the lingerie giant: it’s not. There’s not a push-up bra in sight at LoveSuze.

These two bikinis are made from 88% recycled polyester, created from plastic bottles and textile waste. It’s a process that both finds a use for plastic waste, and saves water and energy compared to creating a similar fabric from virgin materials.

SADA by Sarah is a relatively new brand to come to my attention, but that I hope to see featured a lot more in the years to come. Designer Sarah Dawson creates her signature pieces in Brooklyn, New York, after realising her passion for designing intimate apparel while studying the city’s Fashion Institute of Technology.

Have you ever been so excited to receive a parcel that instead of tearing into it the moment it arrived, you actually waited a day or two, because you wanted to savour the anticipation of knowing you were about to unwrap something truly special? That’s how I felt when my Love & Swans package arrived.

Created by Karolina Kobets, JTM Noir Lingerie focusses primarily on satin robes, though they also offer nightgowns and pyjamas and have a small range of linen pieces. Some designs tend towards a fairly minimal look, but it’s the swishy, lace-trimmed garments where the brand’s decadent vision truly shines.

Launched in Russia in 2000 and now based in Czechia, PS-Ling focusses on creating a very unusual product – T-front bodywear. Neither a full gusset nor totally crotchless design, they instead use a narrow string that runs from the front to back.

I’ve been following Primrose & Pixie for years now, ever since I first discovered this “lingerie and sleepwear for modern daydreamers”. The designer behind the brand, Sarah Richards, creates beautiful, unapologetically-girly lingerie inspired by nature, fairy tales, magic and Gothic styling.

I first featured Apilat on the blog in my 2017 round-up of brands making incredible robes, and they’ve only gotten better since. Couture techniques and luxury fabrics are central to their design process, and how could they not be when this label got its start designing wedding dresses?