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Maillot I-front The I-front maillot is a novelty species that emerges during the early 1990s during the tanga breakout. It is possible that the I-front is catalyzed by the exercise phenomena; and like some exercise wear, it is not obvious how to take it off or put it on. The version seen here is modeled by veteran Thrust performer Kelly Webb, as part of her contributions to the outrageous (KA93E0BS). The silhouette is still viable when dancer Janessa Brazil showcases it at a bikini contest in 2010 (EXB0GK). Related Species In the past researchers have confused the I-front maillot with the T-front maillot, something that is easy to do considering both letters have a central stroke in them. And considering that both rise up the body before they widen out. And both easily mirror their front letter on their backside. But aside from getting drawn into a prolonged discussion about the precise evolution of the nomenclature, the differences between the the T-front and I-front are deep: The T-front is primarily a topless design; the body of the T rises up from a culotte brief before dividing around the neck. The I-front takes it name from the strong vertical "I" that rises from the crotch up the center of the body (BSD8881, BSD8882). For decades now, an obscure discussion has raged as to whether other similar silhouettes should also be identified as I-front Maillots. Some of these problematic costumes include what is also called the maillot strapped I-front (BSD8883, also seen worn by Kelly Webb here (KA93E0BS), and the maillot strapless I-front (BSD8884), a strapless maillot with a narrow front vertical that it is a single band of fabric from the groin to the underbreast area. It's backside, like most I-front, is tanga. Like the torpedo, the pure I-front contains but three edges, and this factor plus a similarity of exposures have caused some experts to demand that the I-front is really a variation of the torpedo. Unlike the pure I-front, the strapped I-front contains five edges, and this difference is one of the arguments that this cannot possibly be the same silhouette. By comparison the strapless I-front contains again but three edges; it has no shoulder straps that resemble the torpedo, and any argument that it is an I-front variation lie again in the vertical treatment of the lower half of the maillot. A Layering Relationship It has also long been realized, that even if the I-front is a "catch-all species," that in pure form it is an ideal garment for layering. As a vertical "tube" the maillot is most naturally combed with a horizontal tube, and in this example that is a tube bandeau (BSD8885). |
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