WARNING: You WILL see my bra. If you wish to be spared this, please do not read!
This post is dedicated to boobs....big, droopy ones.
Before my 2 darling children, my boobs were a wonderful perky large handful. After breastfeeding them both, they resemble something along the lines of:
Minus the cigarette.
Do you remember my King Kong boobs from
this post??
It wasn't until I saw those photos that I knew something had to be done about them. I have NO WAIST for goodness sake!! It's all BOOB! The husband won't let me reduce them surgically (surprise) so the next thing I can only do is somehow change the shape of them. What to do? Minimizers don't really work and I've tried pushups but they send my cleavage into hyperspace.
I had been wanting to try a bullet bra for awhile, as a few of my Vintage dresses are darted at the front and made for a point so I ideally would like to wear them the way they were meant to be worn.
But do I dare? Would my non Vintage friends think I was even weirder than before? What if I looked like
Madonna??
Then I saw this video on Youtube:
It made me realise that I need to be ME and I didn't really care what anyone thinks about me or about the shape of my breasts. I truly hope I look as fabulous as Lynn Dell when I'm 78 years old.
After much research and trying to nut out the conversion of my Australian bra size into USA sizing and 1 failed incorrectly sized purchase, I finally struck gold. A Vintage 40's longline bra on Etsy.
And it FITS me really, really well!! And no more lumpy back fat!
And I have never felt better. Which is the main thing isn't it? How we feel about ourselves is the only thing that matters. And yes, you may think I look a tad silly but I don't really care. I feel sexier and it makes me happier. The only important male is my husband and his opinion is the only one I care about. FYI, he LUVS it so it's a win win all round!
They are also extremely comfortable. There are no underwires yet your boobs naturally stay in this shape and DO NOT MOVE OR JIGGLE. No more jiggle!! The straps are not elasticated so they STAY IN PLACE...no more straps forever falling down my shoulders and embarrassing hoiking it back into place every 5 minutes. And no more cold pointy nipples showing through my clothes!
For your History pleasure:
Although designed in 1939 -before the war broke out- ‘The Bullet Bra’ (also known as ‘The Torpedo Bra’ or ‘The Cone Bra’) only came into production in the late 40’s.
The Second World War had a major impact on clothing, in particular on the development of the Bullet Bra. During the war military women of lower rank were fitted with uniform underwear. Advertising at the time appealed to both patriotism and the concept that bras and girdles were somehow ‘protection’.
Dress codes appeared at the time which required that female workers wear bras on the grounds of
‘good taste, anatomical support, and morale’. Military terminology was used to describe the highly
structured conically pointed Torpedo or Bullet bra, designed for ‘maximum projection’.
By then, the image of the ‘Sweater Girl’ was born, a busty and wholesome ‘girl next door’
whose tight fitting outer garments accentuated her artificially enhanced curves, created
using a secret weapon of mass destruction: the bullet bra.
Fashion’s best kept secret, the spiral stitched bullet bra helped women like Marilyn Monroe and Jean Patchet become the ultimate style and sex symbols of their time. The bullet bra provided full support and coverage to the breasts, as well as giving them great lift and showing off a wonderful décolletage.
A bit more information you don't really need to know:
My Australian bra size is a 12F. After contacting repro lingerie manufacturer
What Katie Did, they instructed me to measure my underbust and overbust to get my sizing. Your underbust is directly underneath your breasts, measure while wearing a bra. Mine is 31". Your overbust measurement is your breast size while wearing a bra. Mine is 38". According to the conversion chart, I am a 36D. However, the bra above is a 38D and it fits perfectly. As I mentioned, I had 1 failed purchase, a size 34D. This is the size What Katie Did told me go with and when it arrived it looked like something Kate Moss could have fit into. I was quite angry as these people should know better, especially when I emailed them my measurements.
The 2 vintage bullet bras I purchased in
Ballarat last weekend are sized 16CC. In a modern Australian sizing a CC no longer exists so I tried one over my clothes at the booth and it seemed to be OK. However after trying them on properly at home, they are a little snug, which means when looking for vintage Aussie bras I need to search for something one or 2 sizes larger than a 16CC. If anyone knows of an online conversion chart for vintage to modern sizing, PLEASE email me the link!
I have since purchased another Deadstock vintage bra, but this time from the 60's, in a size 38D and it is slightly too big in the points. Maybe by the 60's women were already starting to slowly morph into bigger body sizing? I'm going to try and find a 36D and see if that's any better.
Unfortunately it's all proving to be a bit of trial and error. I will prevail!
A longline bra is great when you are wearing a firm fitting garment and don't want lumpy bits showing. They are boned all the way down and therefore encourage smoothness and correct posture. I have since purchased a couple of non longline bullets which are my everyday ones, while saving the longline for dresses with nipped in waists or tight tops.
Till next time Beauty Queens.....may your boobs always be looking up.
