The Almighty Nightie

In this column, I have often alluded to nightwear. To recap, one spends one third of one’s life in bed so, logically speaking, one third of one’s attire should be for the night. If you have ever gone shopping, you will know... nightwear brings out the fantasist in designers, more than any other kind of attire… the nighties I viewed seemed to have been made for ladies with Personal Services Plc after their names…the only alternatives to these sparkly, see-through itsy-bitsys were voluminous, Victorian, lace-trimmed behemoths with in-built chastity alarms…

And so on, and so on. The reader who doesn’t want to live out a Hollywood movie star/Victorian matron/happy hooker fantasy while in bed, this summer, ought to head for Marks & Spencer. I have just picked up and purchased an adorable, knee-length number. The nightie is light as swansdown and could fold easily into the shell of a walnut, yet offers ample cover to the body while in the land of nod. Made of 95% viscose and 5% elastane, its label is in a place that doesn’t chafe or irritate. The metal eyelets that allow for strap adjustment are rounded gently and won’t prod the restless sleeper awake. Indeed, this feature echoes the entire, kind design of the garment; with its contoured bust yoke and flared skirt. The garment is feminine, with a frill detail and a soft bow decorating said bust yoke, and made of a slumber-friendly pale blue and brown polka dot print. I have already spent one night in it – the hottest of the year, in fact – and never once woke up in a sweat. Yet, the garment is inexpensive, to say the least, at £9.50. But this is only one item of M&S’s more wonderful current pieces of sleep tailoring; the body in search of a good night’s sleep should get down there – now.