KissMeGoodnight
Article Series: Lingerie
Wearing Lingerie: Sizzling Secrets
What
Is The Evolution of the Bra?
Bras, or some type of device similar has been
used as far back as the time of the Cretans. One can be assured
it served a different purpose but never the less existed in
some shape and form. The year 1907 was the first year
the word “brassiere” or bra was ever used in the fashion world. It has
never been any other way since. Good or bad the bra is always
with women in some way. Brassieres were originally named from
the French word for “support”, but since the word was completely
out of use a new name was made. Even though these devices had
been around thousands of years, they finally had a title that
has lasted centuries. Women have never looked past a bra since
and still try to figure out what is so fabulous about them.
The early bras of the 1910s were when many designers tried
to lay claim on the new market trend. These companies spent
their time promoting a breast garment that promised to retain
and control the bosom. Most of these so-called bras were more
like the camisoles of later years, not what we would think
of as a bra today. It was Mary Phelps-Jacobs who patented the
bra in 1914 that made the bra what it is today. It was a simple
design of two silky handkerchiefs with baby ribbons for straps
and a seam in the front. They didn’t sell as well as she thought
they would so she sold the company to Warners who is still
making bras to this very day. Shortly thereafter, breasts were
now being measured as small, medium, and large.
Once 1918 came to pass, bras were now made of lace bands with
straps. The best bra at the time was the Symington Side Lacer
that was a reinforced bodice. The side lacing was meant to
flatten out the bust when tightened. This was also the time
period that bra became the appropriate term instead of brassiere.
In the 1930s bras changed forever through the expertise of
the chemists from Dunlop. They transformed latex into an elastic
thread. This thread was woven together to form an elastic fabric
that was washable called Lastex. There was no more need for
uncomfortable boning and lacing in bras, girdles, and corsets.
All the major support areas could now be made of this material.
Women could now hold their stuff up and in with comfort instead
of torture. During this time, all the well-known names we hear
off today began producing and selling bras with specific cup
for the breasts to fit in. They used cotton, lace, latex, and
net fabric in their designs.
It was Warners production of the first actual cup sizes for
bras in 1935. They had the four standards A, B, C, and D cups.
This new method of describing breast fullness was the trend
that followed worldwide. During the World War II era of the
1940s, bras were now being manufactured bearing a utility seal.
These bras, known as Utility bras, were extremely limited and
made of cotton backed satin that was a pinkish color. Padding
in bras was also added at this time period. The pads were more
of a way to cover the nipple more so than to make one look
larger. These bras were very popular all the way into the 1950s.
This time was also know for paper bra patterns that allowed
women to make their own bras at home. As the 1950s went on,
the changes in textile technology revolutionized the over all
underwear industry. This is when costumes bras began to show
up on the market. The conical shaped bras started to become
the hottest trend as well during this time. This is time frame
that bras became lighter, more attractive, and easy to wash.
The bras of the sixties took many twists and turns and even
became non-existent for some smaller busted women. Going braless
was not as common as we are led to believe. The women who still
need support with larger busts still used theirs more than
not. It wasn’t wearing bras that changed it was the attitude
of women in the 1960s that changed. The concept of choosing
when and what kind of bra rather than being told she had to
was the main idea. Women were starting to remove their bras
at night and no longer believed their breasts need support
at night in bed. In 1964 the “no bra bra” that was made of
see through netting. Smaller busted ladies as it had very little
support mostly wore this. The first Wonderbra was also a product
of the late 1960s that is still with us today. Since the 1960s
and 1970s, bras have continued to keep the same designs. It
is the addition of laces, color, and sexiness that have swept
the market since.
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KissMeGoodnight.com
: 2006
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