How to Choose Your First Chemise: A Beginner's Guide

A chemise looks deceptively simple — a slip, two straps, some lace if you're lucky. That simplicity is exactly why most people buy the wrong one first.

Walk into the lingerie section of any department store and you'll see the same shape repeated in fifty fabrics. The cuts blur together. The price tags swing from $25 to $500 with no obvious reason. Most beginners pick by colour or by what's on sale, and end up with something that doesn't sleep well, doesn't lounge well, and doesn't quite work for anything else.

This guide is the opposite of that. It walks through what a chemise actually is, the five things that matter when you're buying your first one, how to size it, and which Openme pieces are worth considering at every price tier. By the end you'll know the difference between a piece that gets worn weekly and one that lives in the back of your drawer.

What a Chemise Actually Is

A chemise is a loose, sleeveless garment cut between mid-thigh and just below the knee, traditionally worn next to skin. The word comes from the French word for shirt — and that lineage matters, because the chemise is one of the oldest pieces of European intimate wear still in continuous use. What changed over the centuries was the fabric (linen → cotton → silk → silk-blend) and the function (undergarment → nightwear → standalone piece).

The confusion most beginners run into is that "chemise" gets used loosely to describe anything that resembles a slip. It isn't quite that flexible. There are three pieces it's often confused with, and the differences matter.

Chemise vs Nightgown

A nightgown is built for sleep. It's longer (usually ankle-length), looser through the body, and made from breathable cotton or modal blends. A chemise can sleep, but it isn't only for sleep — and a nightgown almost never crosses into evening or intimate wear. If you only need something to sleep in, you want a nightgown. If you want one piece that stretches across sleep, lounge, and intimate moments, you want a chemise.

Chemise vs Slip

A slip is technically underwear — it's worn beneath a dress to smooth the line of the outer fabric. It tends to be thinner, more fitted, and shorter than a chemise. The line between the two has blurred in modern wear (some pieces work as either), but the rule of thumb is: a slip is built for under, a chemise is built for with or as.

Chemise vs Babydoll

A babydoll is shorter — typically hitting just below the underwear line — and almost always has an empire waist that makes the lower portion flare out. A chemise hangs straighter and longer. A babydoll is pure intimate wear; a chemise is more versatile.

Five Things to Consider in Your First Chemise

These five dimensions shape every chemise on the market. Once you've decided on each, you'll be able to walk into any lingerie collection and instantly narrow it down to the three or four pieces actually worth your time.

1. Length

Chemise length falls into three buckets, and each one signals a different occasion.

• Mini (mid-thigh, 18–22 inches): The most overtly intimate cut. Best for date nights, photoshoots, and anyone who wants the piece to read sensual at a glance. Less practical for sleep — the fabric rides up.
• Midi (just above the knee, 24–28 inches): The most versatile length. Works for lounge, sleep, and intimate wear without leaning hard into any one of them. If you only buy one chemise, buy a midi.
• Maxi (mid-calf or longer, 32+ inches): The most romantic cut, often associated with bridal or honeymoon wear. Beautiful, but limited in everyday rotation.

For a first chemise, a midi is almost always the right call. It rotates across more situations than either of the other two.

2. Fabric

Fabric is what separates a chemise that feels like silk from one that just looks like silk. The four most common options:

• 100% silk (mulberry or charmeuse): The benchmark. It's cool to skin, drapes more elegantly than any synthetic, and lasts decades if cared for. Also the most expensive — a real silk chemise starts around $130 and easily climbs past $250.
• Silk-blend (silk + viscose, silk + modal): Most of the look and feel at 60–70% of the price. The drape is slightly heavier; the shine slightly more controlled. For most people, this is the sweet spot.
• Satin (polyester or rayon): The visual cousin to silk. Looks similar from a distance, but feels different (warmer, less breathable, more clingy). Cheap to make, which is why most under-$50 chemises are satin.
• Lace (Calais, Caudry, or machine-made): Lace adds visual texture and a sensual finish. Look for Calais lace or Leavers lace on labels — those are the real, hand-finished French lace pieces. Anything labelled simply "lace" is most likely machine-made and stiffer.

3. Cut

The cut is the silhouette. Three main families:

• Loose A-line: Falls straight from the bust, widening slightly toward the hem. Forgiving, easy to wear, doesn't cling.
• Bias-cut: Cut on the diagonal of the fabric, which lets it skim the body in a flattering, fluid line. The classic French chemise cut. Slightly more expensive to produce.
• Fitted: Tailored through the bust and waist, often with darts or a cinched waistband. Sexier silhouette, less forgiving fit.

For a first chemise, a loose A-line or bias-cut is more useful than a fitted one — you want the piece to work across a wider range of body shapes and moods.

4. Function

Be honest about how you'll wear it. Most beginners over-buy on the intimate dimension and then realize the piece doesn't comfortably do anything else.

• For sleep: Prioritize breathable fabric (silk, silk-blend, modal), midi length, and minimal lace contact at the bust.
• For lounge: Same as sleep, but you can lean into adjustable straps and slightly more decorative detailing.
• For intimate wear: Mini or midi, more lace, lower neckline. Fabric matters less than fit and finish.
• For outerwear (yes, the slip-as-dress trend is real): Midi or maxi, structured straps, opaque fabric, no exposed lace at the bust line.

The most-worn chemises in any drawer are the ones that span at least two of these. A pure intimate piece gets worn occasionally. A piece that sleeps and loungewear-doubles gets worn weekly.

5. Detailing

The small finishes are where French construction shows up.

• Lace trim placement: Bust, hem, both, neither — each changes the read. Bust lace reads more sensual; hem lace reads more romantic; both reads more bridal.
• Strap construction: Adjustable spaghetti straps are most common. Look for matching satin-bound edges and reinforced stitching at the bust seam.
• Neckline: V-neck reads classic, square reads modern, scoop reads soft, halter reads bold.
• Slits: A side slit adds movement and intent. Common on midi and maxi cuts.

Sizing Your First Chemise

Chemise sizing trips up more first-time buyers than any other lingerie category, because the cuts are looser than bras but more shaped than nightgowns — and brands handle size differently.

A few rules that hold across most labels:

• Measure your bust and hips first. Chemises are typically cut around bust + hip; the waist is usually loose enough that it doesn't drive sizing.
• Fabric matters. Silk and silk-blend chemises have less stretch than modal or lace. If you're between sizes, size up in silk and size down in lace.
• Length scales with size. A size M chemise is usually 1–2 inches longer than a size S in the same style. If you want exact length, check the brand's size chart for the specific piece, not the size category.
• The bust drape is the real fit signal. If the bust drapes flat with no pulling at the straps, the size is right. If it pulls or gapes, the size is wrong — regardless of what the chest measurement says.

If you're new to a brand, order one piece in your normal size and one a single size up. Wear both. Keep the one that drapes correctly at the bust. (Most lingerie brands accept returns on unopened pieces.)

Five Openme Chemises to Consider by Tier

Five pieces from the Openme collection, spanning every price tier. Each picks a different point in the framework above.

• MATIN — $82. A cozy morning chemise in soft modal blend, midi length, loose A-line cut. The most forgiving entry point. Reads more lounge than intimate; works as actual sleepwear in a way most chemises don't.
• Midnight Rose — $99. A lace V-neck on silk-blend, midi length, with bust lace and hem lace both. Sits squarely in the romantic read. The most classically chemise-shaped piece in the collection.
• Daydream — $128. A white flowing slip, bias-cut, maxi-leaning length. The cut that turns into outerwear most easily — pair it under a slip dress or wear it as one. Bridal-adjacent without being bridal.
• RIPE — $142. Pure silk, midi length, fitted through the bust with adjustable straps. The closest thing to "buy once, wear for ten years" in the Openme catalog. The drape on this piece is the brand's clearest argument for why silk justifies its price.
• The Lotus — $199. Silk-lace midi, hand-finished Calais lace at the bust and hem, bias-cut. The flagship. A chemise made the way the French houses have been making them for two centuries — and the piece that anchors what Openme is actually trying to do.

FAQ

Is a chemise the same as a slip? No. A slip is built to be worn under outer clothing to smooth the line of a dress. A chemise is built to be worn on its own — for sleep, lounge, intimate wear, or as outerwear. The two have similar shapes but different purposes. (Some pieces are flexible enough to do both, but they're the exception.)

Can I sleep in a chemise? Yes — if the chemise is the right fabric and length. A silk or silk-blend midi chemise is one of the most comfortable things to sleep in, especially in warm weather. A heavily laced mini chemise will not sleep well. Match the piece to the use.

What length is best for a first chemise? Midi (just above the knee) is the most versatile length. It works for sleep, lounge, intimate wear, and the slip-as-dress trend without leaning hard into any one of them. Mini is more occasion-specific; maxi is more bridal.

How do I know if a chemise is real silk? Check the label for "100% silk" or "100% mulberry silk" — anything else is a blend or a synthetic. Silk feels cool to the touch (synthetic satin feels slightly warm), drapes heavier than it looks, and has an irregular, soft sheen rather than a uniform shiny finish. The price is also a signal: a real silk chemise rarely sells for under $100.

What's the difference between Calais lace and regular lace? Calais lace (and its sister, Caudry lace) is woven on Leavers looms in two specific French towns, using techniques that haven't fundamentally changed in 200 years. The pattern is finer, the threads are softer, and the lace itself ages better. Most "lace" lingerie is machine-made stretch lace, which is stiffer, less detailed, and degrades faster with washing.

Where to Start

If this is your first chemise, the answer is almost always a midi-length, silk-blend, A-line cut from the $80–$130 range. That single piece will work across more situations than any other configuration. From there, you build outward — adding length variation, fabric variation, and occasion-specific cuts as you discover what you actually wear.

Browse the Openme chemise collection when you're ready.