The Definitive Guide to Living in the Capital , Cairo , Egypt

With branches in Citystars, Mall of Arabia,
Mohandiseen and Golf City Mall in Oboor City, Bodique is a women’s lingerie and
nightwear shop that offers sedated, wearable designs that don’t hurt the eye or
feel too young and edgy. If you like your basic underwear to be breathable and
in pretty but not flashy colours, this is a good shop to check out.

This reviewer’s visit to the Citystars
branch (on the first floor of Phase 2) was made during a seasonal sale, but the
shop usually has a buy-two-get-third-free offer or similar deals on throughout
most of the year.

The front of the shop is flanked by a
display table with container boxes carrying satin pyjama sets (around 350LE),
and pyjama tops and bottoms in different designs that you can match. A cute pink camisole top with a lace neckline and a grey dotted print
(around 115LE) can be paired with a pair of pyjama trousers in a pink floral
print (150LE). Both items are made of cotton and there’s a matching t-shirt if
you want something more demure. There’s also a pile of thick gingham pyjama
trousers (around 200LE) and other prints if you want less feminine designs.
There are also a few pairs of velour pyjama sets if you’re still inclined
towards the Juicy Couture trend, and you can pick up a terry cotton robe in
nautical stripes for 490LE.

On the other side of the table, navy blue
and white striped slipper booties (around 200LE) hang next to some very pretty
and dainty slippers – one design had a large black bow on the side and was
irresistibly cute for indoor wear.

Bodique carries the standard collection of
sexy lingerie and practical bras and briefs. We were impressed with the
collection of camisoles, bodices and garters because they were all quite
tasteful and classy compared to the garish designs usually displayed at other shops. For example, a black-lavender lacy negligee had a subtle lace
detail around the décolleté (270LE), and if you like the combination of
colours, you can pick up a matching bra (250LE) and lace briefs (125LE) as well
as a garter (148LE). On the other side of the shop, we came across the most
expensive item at Bodique: a beautiful black bodice with impeccable broidery
detail and black gauze for a whopping 700LE. As lovely as it was, the price
seemed incredibly steep.

Bodique’s forte is in its bras: available
in a wide range of sizes from A to F, and offering a selection of larger sizes
up to 45D, the collection may have something for every woman who has difficulty
finding her size in Egypt. Bras come padded, wired, strapless and with
changeable straps, and the colours range between nudes and whites to wine red,
grey, pink and a few prints. The push-up bras are both sturdy and comfortable;
no wires digging into your skin or giving you awkward shapes under your
t-shirt. You can also buy a Spanx-style control top that covers your stomach
and thighs for 295LE.

A row of briefs is displayed, with most
items priced between 50LE and 70LE. You can find see-through black mesh briefs
with bright pink detail, as well as floral briefs with a tiny ribbon sash at
the front.

The shop also stocks swimwear, but seeing
as our visit was made in winter, we weren’t surprised to find a very limited
selection. Still, some of their swimwear designs look attractive, so we’d
definitely come back here when summer comes around again. Pay a visit to
Bodique when you’re in need of comfortable but pretty lingerie on a budget and
want more subtle, sedated designs.