My underwear is teeming with an organic substance – and, boy, is it invigorating!
Twelve hours ago, I had the honor of slipping into a pair of vitamin-infused skivvies.
The spanking-new apparel, called Essence, comes from trendy Australian underwear maker aussieBum, whose fans include actor Ewan McGregor and soccer star David Beckham.
It’s made from a blend of polyester and lycra that company founder Sean Ashby says was developed by health-are giant Bayer to “trap organic substances, which are then released slowly by natural body heat.” The pair I’m sporting contains acerola, a plant rich in vitamin C and antioxidants.
The company says the underwear have “dermo-protective properties” and “give your whole body an overall feeling of well-being.”
Moments after I snapped them on, I felt a cooling sensation not unlike the one you’d get from Vicks VapoRub – but without the wet, greasy feeling.
There’s also a ginseng version, and Ashby says, he hopes to get a Viagra version up and running as well.
The briefs, which were launched Down Under and in Europe last month, debut here next month at Universal Gear, a men’s retail chain in Chelsea, at about $24 a pop.
According to Ashby, they hold their salubrious infusion though 15 washings, at which point they should be soaked in “Essence Extender” to reactivate them. (That’ll run you another buck.)
To date, about 25,000 pairs have been sold worldwide, many through aussieBum’s Web site.
The concept, he said came from “a bunch of us sitting around the pub last year, having a few beers, when I asked, ‘What can we do with our knickers that’ll be the next big thing?’ ” Ashby told me.
“One of my guys joked that we should put vitamins in them – and everyone laughed. But the next day I realized what a great idea that was.”