Elaine Thi Plays Tradwife Wearing Highly Liquid

Apr 8

**Shrug:** Gigi Los Angeles **Silk Slip & Teddy Bear:** Vintage via VanJane **Skirt:** Comme Des Garcons via Wild West Social House **Necklace:** That Girl That Did Your Hair

*Sailor Moon’s Princess gown is modeled off the Christian Dior Palladium Dress from their 1992 collection (Source:* *Coming Book Resources*)

Growing up in Los Angeles, Howell was seeing and influenced by the world of Kitson and Juicy Couture, while simultaneously loving Sailor Moon. “I grew up watching her. The creator, Naoko Takeuchi, was obsessed with haute couture dressing characters in Mugler and Dior.” These references come through in Howell’s signature pink hair and her cult of women shopping her brand Highly Liquid. “They stand out, they speak their mind. They don’t want to look like everyone else in the room,” says Howell of her customer. They aren’t satisfied with little bows and ruffles alone. They want the ironic ‘Tradwife’ and other mantras of today. They also know that true success lies in a perfectly folded lingerie drawer of matching sets.

This underwear edgelord has facets; Howell is obsessed with the French Revolution and simultaneously would love to trade bodies with Eminem. Highly Liquid, like its founder, is unpredictable and most importantly, fun. The brand, borne from a cheeky start in the crypto world, is now fully rooted in the real one, and feels like it’s bound to live many lives.

Photography: Emily Malan

Producer/Creative Director/Stylist: Amy Mazius

Makeup: Katelyn Patty

Studio: Chloë Park

We’re predicting a Highly Liquid Spring. Izzy Howell is a woman with a plan, and an arms dealer?! Her brand, Highly Liquid, is not-so-quietly building the weird girl supremacy, and we’re obsessed. She can’t help but wonder… WHY WON’T THE INTERNET SHUT UP ABOUT MY UNDERWEAR?

Howell was always intrigued by underwear, well before her Trad Wife thong went viral. “I fell in love with the whole world [of lingerie and underwear] because everyone had something to say about it. The conversations about which pieces to wear for date night, the office, there’s this whole culture around women’s intimates that was really fascinating to me,” said Howell. And of course, she’s right. Certain underwear has a time and a place. Howell felt that making decisions about lingerie was a sign of being an empowered, successful woman. Lace for a board meeting means something vs. cotton for a day at home. Howell also observed something missing from the general selection of intimates. “I want to make something hardcore.” Hardcore, yet everyday wearable, is exactly what she’s making available, sustainably.

**Jacket:** Vintage via Macy Eleni Archive

**Collar:** vintage via VanJane Skirt: Margiela via Wild West Social House Underwear: Highly Liquid Necklace: That Girl That Did Your Hair Shoes: Vintage Bottega Veneta via Fashion Avenue

What Howell has highlighted via Highly Liquid is something cheekier than thongs alone. The big questions and concepts printed on the front, hidden beneath one’s favorite jeans or sundress are truly revealing. We’re all scared or seeking or wondering what is real. The Trad Wife thong pokes at the hypocrisy of making Froot Loops from scratch while being Chronically Online. Are we doomed? The manufactured versions of ourselves we constantly portray on the outside don’t necessarily match what’s underneath.

And then there’s the opposite: the organic, the offline, the tangibly handmade for the sole purpose of being actually made by hand. Elaine Thi, Merde’s Spring coverstar, is a multifaceted creative with one of her disciplines being ceramics. Thi says, “In a time where instant gratification and mass production are the norm, working with clay feels grounding and empowering. Pottery reminds me that I have the power to slow down and create something meaningful from nothing. It brings me back to myself when the world feels overstimulating or confusing.” This is the true juxtaposition of a digital trad. True trad takes place when we slow down, act intentionally, push the energy shifting around us into something real. “Clay has a memory, so every touch matters—what you put into it is exactly what you get out. There’s something incredibly rewarding about using a piece I’ve made with my own hands, or seeing it become part of someone else’s daily routines. With everything shifting toward digital, I’ve been leaning into analog habits—writing letters, burning CDs, keeping an address book—just as a way to remind myself that I exist beyond the screen. These slower, more tangible practices help me stay rooted in the real world. The medium becomes the metaphor,” says Thi. We are more than our digital footprint, what we do, say, and make matters. Our honesty matters.

So why not be a little more honest with ourselves – starting with our underwear. Highly Liquid is a reminder that what lies beneath matters. Perhaps it’s time to layer sheer pieces–or hell, just wear thongs in lieu of pants– with The Existential collection this Spring. “Underwear is outerwear,” says Howell, “I want the brand to transcend where and when we’re wearing it, calling back to different moments of lingerie history and bringing it to the present. Intimates can be a symbol of oppression or empowerment. I want to bring that to the forefront.” We have much to be excited about in the world of Highly Liquid, with the launch of swimwear on the horizon.