Shop of the Month - Boudiche

I'm going to pull now, explains Fiona McLean who, with co-founder Clare Thommen, created Boudiche, a fabulous new haven of underwear just off Princes St. I suck in, brace against a wall, and feel for all the world as though I'm recreating a scene from Gone with the Wind. She tugs, and with a large sigh of relief from her and a slightly more constrained one from me, we're done. I am in a corset, with a figure Marilyn Monroe would envy. If this is luxury underwear, I'm sold.

The product of two ex-accountants who saw their futures in cup sizes rather than compound interest, Boudiche is tucked away on Frederick Street, just around the corner from a realm of high street bras but in a world of its own. Sure, you can blow £244 on a matching set but there is also a range of more affordable options and an even larger range of sizes. If your first question in most underwear shops is, "Do you stock a double D?", fear not. Boudiche has previously unseen sizes that range from 30DD to 32G and just about any other combination you can imagine. They're also specialists for wedding lingerie, a market that's barely catered for in Edinburgh.

Despite the corsets and the fact that they carry the underwear proudly sported on Desperate Housewives, Boudiche is the kind of lingerie shop you can take your mother to without worrying you'll have to explain why anyone would buy edible pants. It's also an ideal shop to take your man to, or better yet, send him alone. Boudiche keeps a database that effectively spies on you when you shop, noting your bra sizes in different brands, what you drooled over the last time you were in, and what you already have. As long as your significant other knows your last name, you are guaranteed to get something you like, and in your size.

Although they might have been accountants this time last year, creators and owners Fiona and Clare have lost no time learning the language of lingerie. Ever wondered the difference between a thong or a string, or what a balcony bra is? These girls know. They also know exactly how a bra should fit and it's more complicated than you may have thought. Chances are, even if you think you've got it right, you haven't. If you've been scared off bras forever after being fitted for your first one by a matronly type with a cold measuring tape, Boudiche will fix you. They can size you up pretty much on sight and the plush changing rooms, complete with brass bells, are a far cry from the unflattering fluroscent lighting of a department store. All products are hand picked from a variety of sources, from big names to obscure boutique lines, all guaranteed to make you feel pampered, posh, and pretty.

Elegant but not intimidating, stylish and maybe a little impractical, Boudiche is a must for anyone from desperate housewives to footballers wives and anyone having sex in this city.