Following on from my pre-Christmas blog on buying lingerie for your girlfriend, a male reader recently asked if I had any further advice for Valentine's Day.

The original tips were:

* Look in your partner's underwear drawer to get an idea of what colour she normally wears.

* Think about what style she - as opposed to you - likes.

* Think about her skin tone. 

* Know her size.

And here, after a bit of a think, are 10 more tips.

* 1 Buy something else instead. Lingerie is a very personal thing and most women have two sorts: everyday stretch stuff in black, white and flesh colour, and sexy stuff. If you buy her the former, she'll think it's boring, and if you buy her the latter, you're telling her how to express her sexuality, which is a no-no.  Instead, get her a beautiful nightgown or dressing gown or scarf, or chocolates, or dinner out, perfume etc. (And if you get perfume, don't get her what your ex used to wear just because you liked it). 

* 2 Never, never, never buy a woman shapewear of any kind unless she specifically asks for it. 

* 3 Camisoles and slips are nearly foolproof and so are nighties (except baby dolls) - most women will appreciate a pretty camisole, a slip or a nightie with a matching negligee. Unless it's see-through - in which case, you've boobed again. All of the slips shown on this page are from Figleaves and are sexy without being sleazy. Buying this kind of clothing also mean you don't have to worry so much about bra size or degree of push-up - she wears the same size in a slip or nightie as she does in a dress.

* 4 Buy silk lingerie. Many women don't treat themselves to this kind of luxury.

* 5 Listen to her. Does she complain that thongs cut her in half? Does she complain that lace itches? Not much point in buying her a lacy thong then, is there?

* 6 Buy her a voucher to spend at Figleaves, Victoria's Secret, Agent Provocateur or somesuch. The thought really counts, and you're not telling her what to get. If their prices make you wince, try British Home Stores - it has a fantastic lingerie department.

* 7 Leave lingerie advertising lying around and see what she says. Or, gazing at an Aubade ad, say whether you like it and see what her reaction is. PS: don't try this trick with Playboy...

* 8 Note what she wears on her top half, especially colour and transparency. There's no point at all in buying a coloured bra for a woman who lives in white blouses. 

* 9 Buy something she can wear outside the bedroom. If she can't, it's really a present for you...

* 10 Take it down a notch. If you like her in red, buy rose pink. If you like her in black, buy silver grey.  If you like see-through, buy something with lots of lace. Above all, buy a print - hookers don't wear prints.

Did you know that every major lingerie range brings out a black and red bra for Christmas?

No, neither did I. 

The customers they're aiming at, apparently, are clueless men, who at this time of year, high-tail it to the department stores at the last minute to get something for the wife or girlfriend. 

A red bra, points out Peter Jones saleswoman in this promo video on the Guardian site, will be worn by very few women, as it's not a practical colour.

I must be an exception here, though, because most of my bras are brightly coloured. Living, as I do, a rather grubby life, constantly covered in mud, soot and dog hair, my outer clothes all have to be dark or they're completely ruined in five minutes. I pretty much live in black, chocolate brown, khaki and various shades of taupe, beige and denim blue.

But to make up for it, my bra drawer is zinging, with bras in red, yellow, green, coral, shocking pink, black, white, lemon, sugar pink and lilac. They all go perfectly well under a black t-shirt, if you ask me - a white blouse is something in my dim and distant past...

The Guardian video highlights the Peter Jones department store, which has set up a men-only section this Christmas, where - it is hoped - men will not feel intimidated and can get some advice. The saleswoman featured says men get three things wrong:

* Size

* Colour

* Level of sleaze. 

So here's a clue, guys: crotchless knickers, boned basques, Santa Outfits and knickers with cartoon characters aren't generally women's cup of tea.

She then adds several tips:

* Look in your partner's undie drawer to get an idea of what colour she normally wears.

* Think about what style of undies she - as opposed to you - likes.

* Think about her skin tone. 

* Know her size.

Happy shopping, fellas. Still one day left to get it right. 

The reason I am having so much trouble finding knickers is that I am a boyshorts wearer. I used to wear French knickers, in the style Americans call tap pants, but for some reason these now seem hard to find - and they're difficult to wear under jeans. But the problem with boyshorts is that they've changed style in the past five years. This is the kind of thing that drives me nuts in fashion. I know why it's happened too - it saves the manufacturers money.

Once a design that grabbed hold of your bum and stayed there (thank you Sloggi shorts), boyshorts now all seem to be low-waisted and cut up both cheeks of your behind so that you spend all day pulling a wedgie out of your crack. Great. The Sloggis are still wonderful, but they're a bit of a passion-killer. Why, I wondered, could nobody come up with a prettier version?

Enter Elilia's 'Cheeky' panty, which looks to me like the perfect knickers I've been looking for.

They have a lace back, lace sides and a microfibre front, and reviews show them to be 5-star, invisible under clothing and budge-proof. Yehey, I thought. But no sooner had I found them, at Figleaves.co.uk, than they were discontinued.

I was gutted. I tracked them down on Amazon.com, but no joy - the shipper wouldn't send to Europe. And Figleaves' US site stock them, but they won't ship international orders, which have to come from the UK. The same went for several other US sites, and although the pants turned up occasionally on Ebay, they were never in my size (Large, which is the smallest they do - equivalent to a UK 14).

But now I've found them. Once again on Amazon.com, but from a different vendor, so I've ordered three pairs and they'd better be good - £16-odd a pair is more than I've ever paid for knickers in my life, as I am a devotee of the pack-of-five cotton cheapies from M&S.

Anyway, I look forward to having my buns properly harnessed very soon. Ladies, I'll let you know how I get on. :)

"first of all it is important to put the thong on with the wide part in front. if you don't, and many have made this mistake, you will, i promise you, get far more than you bargained for...."