“Open gusset” is one of those phrases that appears on shapewear labels without much explanation. It describes something practical, and it can decide whether a full-length piece is comfortable to wear through a long evening. Here is what it means, why it matters, and which of our pieces have one.
First, what is a gusset?
In sewing, a gusset is a piece of fabric, usually triangular or diamond-shaped, set into a seam to add room or to take stress off a tight-fitting garment. Gussets were used at the shoulders, underarms and hems of traditional shirts and chemises, which were cut from rectangles of linen and needed help to follow the body.
In modern tights and pantyhose, the gusset is the piece set in at the crotch seam to add width there. Wikipedia notes that these gussets are often made of breathable fabrics such as cotton, to keep the area dry and ventilated. So when people talk about the gusset of underwear or shapewear, they mean that crotch panel.
So what is an open gusset?
On an open-gusset garment, that panel is left open. The garment is open at the crotch, so it can stay on when you use the bathroom. There is nothing to unfasten and nothing to pull down.
That is the whole point, and it is a big one. Think about what the alternative involves with a bodysuit or a short that runs from under the bust to the knee: to use the bathroom, you would have to take off or pull down a close-fitting garment, often from under a dress, and then work it back into place. With an open gusset, the shapewear stays where it is.
How other garments handle it
Open is not the only design. Many bodysuits use a fastening instead; Wikipedia’s example is the infant bodysuit, with a buttoned opening at the crotch. Older foundation garments used fastenings too: girdles were sometimes done up with hooks and eyes.
Each approach is a trade-off. A fastened crotch gives full coverage when it is done up but has to be undone and refastened each time. An open gusset needs no handling at all.
Which of our pieces have one
Four of our pieces are open at the crotch. Each one says so on its product page:
- The Open-Gusset Bodysuit with Legs: bust to just above the knee, molded cups, a hook-and-eye front.
- The Tank-Strap Open-Gusset Bodysuit with Legs: wide tank straps, a high covered back, legs to just above the knee.
- The Hook-Front Open-Gusset Short: a very high waist that reaches to just under the bust, worn with your own bra, legs to just above the knee.
- The Pull-On Open-Gusset Short: a high-waisted pull-on piece with legs and no hooks or zipper.
Three pieces are not open, and we say that just as plainly:
- The Strapless Hook-Front Bodysuit fastens at the crotch with two small hook tabs.
- The High-Waist Hook-Front Brief is fully covered at the crotch, with no opening.
- The Bow-Waist Smoothing Brief is a full-coverage brief with no opening.
The two bras, the Long-Line Underwire Bra and the Hook-Front Wide-Strap Bra, stop above the waist, so the question does not arise.
When an open gusset makes most sense
- Long events. Weddings, dinners, a full day out. The longer you will be dressed, the more an open gusset is worth.
- Full-length pieces. The further a garment reaches, from bust to knee, the more trouble it would be to take down.
- Dresses and jumpsuits. When undressing means taking off an outer garment too, being able to leave the shapewear alone matters most.
For a short evening in a skirt, a brief with no opening may suit you just as well. It is a question of comfort and convenience, not of how the piece looks under your clothes.
What you wear with it
Because the garment is open at the crotch, what you wear underneath, if anything, is your choice. Either way, wash the shapewear after each wear, as with any piece worn against the skin.
Before you choose
An open gusset only helps if the piece fits. A bodysuit that is too short in the torso can pull the opening out of place, and it will be uncomfortable whatever its design. Our sizes are chosen by height and weight, and the fit guide shows how.
Sources
- Wikipedia. Gusset. Accessed 2026-10-02.
- Wikipedia. Bodysuit. Accessed 2026-10-02.
- Wikipedia. Girdle (undergarment). Accessed 2026-10-02.