They were one of the most uncomfortable garments made by man. No wonder we burned them in the 1960's!
First of all think of a bra you are probably wearing right now. Now think of your bra without an ounce of elastic or stretch material. You can not imagine how uncomfortable that is. And to think I could not wait to wear one. My first bra was a 30 AAA. I know why bother but you could tell if a person was wearing a bra or a tee shirt when you wore your St.Fidelis uniform, and the boys would make fun of you if you wore a Tee.
I went to Flushing and bought my first bra and then called my mother from a phone booth and told her I bought one. I was not sure how this subject would go down, so I did it this way in case I had to return it. But all my mother said was...what for?
The back of the bra was about the same today, different hooks to adjust the size. The bra's were all cotton and shaped into a point. Yep, a point. The straps were a BIG problem. You could adjust the strap, the thing is, if you had to reach up for something, the strap was too tight. But if you left it looser, the strap would fall off your shoulder. A rub burn from the strap was a pretty common thing. Even the part under your bust could cause a rub burn. I am not sure if expensive bra's had any elastic but I know mine and my families had none.
No padding in the cups, tissues were a filler. Some girls would cut up undershirts or socks for fillers too because no one's breast filled a cup evenly. I searched but can not find the bra's I wore. Here is just an example.
The back of the bra was about the same today, different hooks to adjust the size. The bra's were all cotton and shaped into a point. Yep, a point. The straps were a BIG problem. You could adjust the strap, the thing is, if you had to reach up for something, the strap was too tight. But if you left it looser, the strap would fall off your shoulder. A rub burn from the strap was a pretty common thing. Even the part under your bust could cause a rub burn. I am not sure if expensive bra's had any elastic but I know mine and my families had none.
No padding in the cups, tissues were a filler. Some girls would cut up undershirts or socks for fillers too because no one's breast filled a cup evenly. I searched but can not find the bra's I wore. Here is just an example.
My bra's were not this pretty and the straps were thinner around the back. But in this picture you can see the clips and how you adjusted the straps.
When elastic was being introduced, they still had those type of clips for adjustment.
So even though bra's got better, much, much more comfortable, I still never liked wearing them.
AND don't get me started on Nylons and Girdles! That will be another post. :)
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