Italian lingerie: Victoria's Secret or Rosa the Riveter's Revenge?

I’ll never forget the first time I came to Italy as an adult. Long before Victoria let out her Secret, I’m afraid. I was absolutely shocked by the store windows, littered with the sexiest silk and lace I had never seen. In places that would make people in Peoria start picketing, people just passed them by, not even feigning indifference. In the place of the Popes, La Perla was a household name.

And so, I would like to know, at what point, exactly, do woman who start out their adult life (okay, pre-pubescent life) wearing things like that (see above), morph into Aunt Bea from Mayberry RFD donning hot fashions like this:

Travel to any small town, you’ll see young tarts looking like the Veline they aspire to become, and yet there is not a market stall in Italy that does not offer a huge assortment of these flowered dresses. There must be a market for them. In fact, wander around those same small towns, and you'll find desperate housewives in all their flowery splendor. So, what gives?

If anyone can offer an explanation, I’d be appreciative.