With the
"nip slip" rapidly taking over for the "crotch shot" as the paparazzi photo op du jour amongst the attention-addicted young Hollywood set, it was only a matter of time until the beauty industry caught up with our need to preserve our modesty while sporting clothing prone to wardrobe malfunctions. Enter the Nippie. This new fashion-accessory-meets-wardrobe-tool molds a mix of fabric and adheasive into a range of shapes. The purpose? To cover our important bits should our clothing decide to go the "nip slip" route and to keep us otherwise undercover when sporting shirts sans bra. Hmph. Interesting.
I wasn't sure what to think of Nippies when they first hit the market. Would they work? Are they necessary? And, most importantly, are they really a modesty-enhancing device or just a modern-day pastie? I called in the
Stiletto Jungle Girl Talk panel, a group of modern, real-world women who aren't afraid to give their two cents on fashion and beauty issues. I supplied each of them with a selection of Nippies and told them to get back to me in two weeks with their honest opinions.
"At first I was thinking it might be hard to sample these items, but it was no problem at all. I think the fact that the Nippies are so glitzy can gear some away from these products, but I absolutely loved the fact that they come in bold and fun sparkly designs," says Kim, a 23-year-old recent college graduate from La Jolla, California. "However, I did look on their website and see that they have semi-conservative versions. The Nippies served their purpose as far as covering my nipples under my backless shirt. The main problem for me is that they were not seamless, so you could see some uneveness under my shirt. I began to think maybe I should be wearing this under a blazer and have the bright blue butterfly Nippies (photo top left) being revealed... nah... it was too
Lil' Kim for me-- but I did try it."
So, Kim, how would you suggest using Nippies?
"The item is great for Halloween or females that can handle the freedom of showing their breasts minus the nipple, but it was not realistic enough for me!" Kim offers. "... But, as I have mentioned before, I love the way the nippies looked physically. A good way to keep the funk and make them more practical would be to have the Nippies plus more material around them-- less thick because you have already covered the goods-- and wear it under a blazer. That way you are not wearing a bra, your nippies are covered, and it almost looks like you have lace miraculously comming from underneath your blazer. I was curious to see if they had something for me to give me more cleavage or perfect round breasts under a tight tank top-- I discoved they do! I saw that they make Nippies in silicone (photo right), which I'm very excited to try. Even though I have big breasts, its nice to wear evening gowns with a lil' bit of cleavage while doing the job of covering you nipples and not exposing bra straps."
28-year-old Po, an attorney in Ceres, California, found that Nippies were perfect for her more petite frame. "These products are AWESOME! Every woman needs ...Nippies in her arsenal of beauty products!" says Po. "I've never used these before but am now totally stoked that there is now a product that hides precisely what I want to hide. I love the many shapes [of Nippies available]."
Nippies Basic
$10.00
Variations: Cream, Tan, Black
Available at: Bristols6.com
While Kim and Po had positive experiences with Nippies, not all of our Girl Talk ladies found Nippies useful. For Pearl, a 28-year-old LA-based music industry coordinator, it was simply a matter of logistics. "Unfortunately for girls with bigger boob sizes, wearing the Nippies just won't cut it. We need more support!" Pearl laments. "It would be awesome if they came out with a product that provided a little more support for the, ahem, 'bigger' girls. That being said, I do LOVE the array of styles they offer and they are really cute and make me WISH I could use them."
For Michelle, a 40-year-old nurse in Huntington Beach, California, Nippies just didn't fit with her current lifestyle. "... as for the nipple shield/ pastie, I would have loved them about 15 years ago," says Michelle. "They're not my thing at 40, but for all those 20-something girls: I think you'll love them!"
Jennifer, a 31-year-old Long Beach, California, nurse, found little use for Nippies. "The Nippies were not very practical," Jennifer offers. "They did not solve the headlight problem whatsoever. Although my husband found them to be very entertaining, I probably would not wear them outside of my bedroom or a strip club."
"Random Chick," a 31-year-old executive assistant and founder of Random Chick Thoughts humor blog, tried to like Nippies, but felt that the product just came up short in the usefulness department. "Well, I can honestly say that never in a million years did I ever think that I would one day write a product review about pasties, and that's what these are: pasties," says "Random Chick" rather matter-of-factly. "Allow me to explain. The slogan on the package is 'Wear what you like without showing more than you want.' One might therefore expect to be able to run around in the cold cold air with just Nippies under that extra thin backless/strapless shirt without making the statement, 'Hello! I'm here! Who wants to party, I brought the hats!' Alas, no such luck. Smaller party hats are still party hats, and you're not going to fool anyone into thinking otherwise wearing these things. Lack of real function leaves only decoration, which equals pasties."
Sounds like Nippies really did nothing for you, "Random Chick." Was there anything redeeming about Nippies, in your opinion?
"They do come in a variety of very fun shapes and colors, thus enabling you to decorate your breastal region in new/exciting/attention getting/sexy ways, which can be fun even if it does involve adhesive and an animal print. Just remember to have your Captain Jack go slowly when he's removing them, or 'X' might permanently mark the spot since they use good adhesive. Don't get me wrong, good adhesive is a plus here. One should never ever be in the position of having to explain the sparkly, teal, zebra print, nipple sized, 'sticker' that just fell out of their shirt, or why they've suddenly upgraded from a size 2 party hat to a size 4."
Fair enough. So, it's a mixed review for Nippies. Looks like the bottom line is that if you are small-breasted or find yourself wearing backless or otherwise hard-to-wear clothing you may find Nippies useful. If not, then the wide variety of colors and designs that are available from Nippies may be fun as a "decorative" item. As one reviewer, who wished to remain anonymous on this particular portion of her review, said: "some shapes are cute enough to wear alone-- meaning without a top-- in the bedroom!" Hmm. A new found use for Nippies.
Click on any Nippies product photo to link directly to where you can purchase that Nippies product online, or
visit the entire selection of Nippies products at Bristols6.com. Don't miss any Girl Talk Reviews.
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