The author, right, with Santa Barbara lingerie designer Noelle Wolf at Jenni Kayne in Montecito. Wolf wants to inspire a modern woman’s relationship with lingerie, believing that many have lost their love of it. 
Red — and ready — for Valentine’s Day. 
The Noelle Wolf Lingerie line blends a vintage vibe with a modern-day classic look. 
The Noelle Wolf Lingerie lineup is ready for browsing at Jenni Kayne in Montecito’s San Ysidro Village.
Trunk shows are a staple in Santa Barbara, giving locals a chance for a personal shopping experience with merchants as well as an opportunity to hear directly from designers showcasing their lines and creations.
Last Thursday afternoon, Jenni Kayne opened her shop in Montecito’s San Ysidro Village for a trunk show with Noelle Wolf, a Santa Barbara resident and designer of a new, namesake lingerie collection.
Guests were able to preview the beautiful selection of lingerie — some to buy and some to order — while chatting with Wolf, who, in addition to her apparel creativity, is a philanthropist, producer and former fashion public relations executive.
She and her former husband, TV producer Dick Wolf, have been very active in the community since putting down roots here with their two children. They’ve taken generous leadership roles in MOXI, The Wolf Museum of Exploration + Innovation; the Ridley-Tree Cancer Center; and other nonprofit organizations.
Wolf told me she designed her lingerie for body and mind, to celebrate a woman who dresses for herself. She even included motivational sayings in the inside label.
She said her passion was sparked as she collected new and vintage lingerie on trips around the world. Created in an unmistakable era of female empowerment, Wolf wants to inspire a modern woman’s relationship with lingerie, believing that many have lost their love of it.
“I always felt this sense of private soft power when I put on beautiful matching lingerie in the mornings, even if no one else saw it — and often they didn’t,” she said.
“I liked the sense of confidence it gave me. I really wanted to impart this feeling to other women. That feeling was the impetus for me to create my own label.”
While so much of the lingerie business today is fixated on smoothing and curve-deleting items, Wolf’s compact collection of sensual romantic and lacy items are delicate, well made and just plain beautiful.
They are form complementing, not form changing. The most popular shades are nude, but black, red and some spirited novelty colors are available.
The beige embroidered silks and lace bras, slips, bikini briefs and teddies bring a vintage vibe to their modern-day classic look.
Perfectly timed for Valentine’s Day, the trunk show offered a, well, intimate shopping experience for guests, whether they were shopping for themselves or for gifts. Homemade cookies and Folded Hills Lilly Rosé only added to the ambiance.
“Noelle’s collection is everything you would want in lingerie,” said Mimi Doll, Jenni Kayne’s manager and merchandiser.
“Not only is it comfortable, it’s delicate and sexy.”
— Judy Foreman is a Noozhawk columnist and longtime local writer and lifestyles observer. She can be contacted at news@noozhawk.com. Click here for previous columns. The opinions expressed are her own.