日本传统男性内衣成女性新宠

Whether you're a g-string girl or prefer granny-style knickers, a Japanese lingerie maker is inviting women to liberate themselves from conventional, body-hugging underwear and don loincloths instead.

Loincloths, called "fundoshi" in Japanese, were worn by adult men in the past, but they are now a rarity.

Kyoto-based lingerie firm Wacoal, however, has brought them back into fashion, this time for women seeking "emancipation" from the tightness of conventional underwear.

"We wanted young women to have a more sense of freedom and release. And as we tried to come up with the ultimate liberation item for women, we thought of a fundoshi," said Tomoka Okamura, merchandise director for Wacoal's Nanafun female loincloths.

The loincloths for women come in seven different colors and two designs -- plain and chequered. Prices are about 1,260 yen ($13).

Wacoal has sold more than 5,000 since December, three times more than it had expected, officials said, and the company now plans to start selling them in Hong Kong, Taiwan and Singapore.

"It's easy to wear and is quite nice. It's also good for summer. And since it's getting warmer, I figured it would be good for that," said Hiromi Iwamura, a 28-year-old shopper who was buying a patterned loincloth and matching bra.

无论你是爱穿丁字裤的时尚女郎，还是偏爱老式平脚裤的保守女性，日本一家内衣制造商正鼓励女性将自己从传统的束身内衣中解放出来，穿上（它们新推出的）一款女士“兜裆裤”。

这款内衣在日语中被称为“褌”（fundoshi，中文读KUN），是过去日本成年男性常穿的一种内衣，但现在已经很少见了。

而位于京都的Wacoal内衣公司则将其重新带回时尚舞台，不过这次是为了欲从束身内衣中寻求“解放”的女性。

Wacoal公司负责Nanafun女士褌销售的主管Tomoka Okamura说：“我们希望年轻女性能感受到更多的自由和放松。当我们想到为女性设计一款可以彻底解放她们身体的服饰时，我们想到了‘褌’。”

女士褌有七种颜色以及一色和棋盘格两种款式。每件褌的售价约为1260日元（13美元）。

据公司官员介绍，从去年12月至今，Wacoal公司已销售五千多件女士褌，为其预期销量的三倍多。目前公司正计划在香港、台湾和新加坡开辟市场。

28岁的Hiromi Iwamura买了一条格子款的褌和一件配套的文胸。她说：“这款内衣穿起来很方便，感觉很好，而且适合夏天穿。现在天气慢慢转暖，穿起来应该不错。”

Vocabulary:

body-hugging:束身的；紧身的