Dallas Voice (Dallas, Tex.), Vol. 24, No. 47, Ed. 1 Friday, April 11, 2008 Page: 32 of 64

                                
life+stylefashion
The Parity
Christ
The messiah of immaculate
unmentionables does Dallas.
Queer designer Andrew Christian
says he almost never
skid marks his underwear
By Daniel A. Kusner Life+Style Editor
He's only 30 years old, but casual-wear
designer Andrew Christian is
doing a whirlwind tour of
Texas like a rockstar politician.
On Friday he's in Houston.
On Saturday he'll be in
Dallas (with three gay
borhood events). And
on Sunday he's in
Austin,
Although his
grandmother is from
Mercedes, Texas, the
Fresno, Calif., native
says this weekend will
be his first time in the
Lone Star State, where
nine retailers carry his line
of contemporary, sporty
swimwear, undies, T-shirts and
accessories. And Christian recently
started a women's line, too.
His story is a "from rags to britches" one. At
19, Christian moved to Los Angeles. He attend-
ed a design school and worked very hard at
keeping costs down to make his company grow.
One tiling that set his line apart from a multi-
tude of other underpants manufacturers was
Christian's Hashback Butt Lifting Technology
innovation — an invisible support feature that
helps give the appearance of a bubble butt.
His ads are also rather eye-catching. A recent
savvy marketing strategy involved hiring Janice
Dickinson's modeling agency to shoot a new
campaign. Last season, Christian got heaps of
on-air time when Dickinson's reality drama
unfolded during his shoot (when some of
Janice's models worked through nudity issues
and getting their butts shaved.).
Dallas Voice recently caught up with the
Pimp of Panties.
32 I dallasvoice.com I 04.11.08
KING OF BRITCHES:
On Saturday, Andrew
Christian, far right
stops at Union Jack
JR's and Rush
ft
i
SATURDAY'S
JNDERWEAR BLITZ
On April 12
Andrew Christian
Union Jack: 3 p.m.-5 p.m.
Sip champagne, meet Christian and
see models in Christian fashions.
3920 Cedar Springs Rd. 214-528-9600
JR's Bar and Grill: 7:30 p.m.-9:30 p.m.
Fashion runway show featuring Andrew Christian under-
wear and swimwear. 3923 Cedar Springs Rd.
Rush: 10:30 p.m. Andrew Christian fashion show
directed by Whitney Paige.
3903 Lemmon Ave.
You're rather attrac-
tive. But there are no
pictures of you pos-
ing in your own
underwear? Never,
I have to be pre-
sentable.
Are you an eligible
bachelor? Yes.
At Sue Ellen's, Andrew Christian
features his women's line.
3903 Cedar Springs
214-559-0707.'
Are dudes dropping
their drawers just to
get to you? Yeah, It's
crazy. People will be iike,
"Oh my god, I'm wearing your
underwear." And they'll pull down
their pants just to show me.
That must be a cool position for a single guy? I can't
complain. However, the most fun is when people
tell me their personal stories — like how their
friend stole their favorite pair of underwear or I-
shirt, and how they want to get another to replace
it. But this year, I didn't have a Valentine.
If someone wanted to get into your panties, what's
best route? Well, it does help if they're wearing
my underwear. But what turns me off is when
people are too pushy, too much of a fanatic about
my line.
Your price point of underwear can be $30 a pop.
Yeah, well, there's a lot of work that goes into the
underwear— like printing and embroideries. All
of our garments are manufactured in the U.S.
And we're one of the few companies making
underwear in the U.S.
Your demographic seems very much aimed at 20
year olds. When you were in your 20s, how much
did you spend on underwear? You're right. But
back in that time, there really weren't too many
fashion underwear choices. It was your basic
whitey-tighties. Or Calvin Kleins, which were
about $15 a pop.
Speaking of age, when do you think one is too old for
gay underoos? That's a tricky one. It's knowing
what's age appropriate and what isn't. There are
older people who can pull it off and those who
can't. Maybe erring on the conservative side is
best. We're introducing these knit boxer-briefs.
They're a little bit longer with buttons down the
front and horizontal stripes. They can appeal to a
younger customer, but they're definitely more age
appropriate for an older gentleman.
Do you do thongs? We played around with it, but it
didn't seem iike it was going to fly.
Ever worn a thong? One time — I wearing white
pants, and I didn't want panty lines.
ALEKANDSTEPH
What thought goes through your mind when you open
your underwear drawer in the morning and are
trying to decide what to wear? I try to match my
underwear to my outfit. So if i'm wearing some-
thing sporty, I pull out some iifeguard underwear.
If I'm flying somewhere, I usually wear my bam-
boo fiber underwear because they're really soft
and comfortable.
On what occasion do you go commando? I can't. Can
you imagine Andrew Christian without underwear?
I always have to flash my waistband.
When should one throw away a pair of underwear?
When they have holes in them or when they start
bagging.
How do you remove stains from your drawers? I don't
really have problems with stains in my underwear.
You've never stained a pair of underwear? (Laughs)
No — not in a really, really long time.
Last year, the Dallas Legal Hospice unveiled its
new name — the Legal Hospice of Texas — at the
Fashion-Cited spring fashion show. On Thursday, the
show returns in bigger style. It wiil be held at the
Scott+Cooner showroom in the Dallas Design
District, and local designer Francisco Flores' work
will be featured on the runway. Crowd favorite
Natalie Woodley (diva-waitress at Market Diner)
returns to stomp down the catwalk. Natalie and her
famous sister, Barbara, (diva-waitress at Mama's
Daughter's Diner) will wear creations by Flores. And
it all goes toward a fashionably good cause: Legal
Hospice of Texas provides legal assistance to North
Texans living with HIV.
Scott + Cooner, 1617 HiLine Dr., Suite 100.
April 17, from 6:45 p.m. to 9 p.m. $30. Appetizers
and beverages served.