Bras are a wonderful invention that many women across the globe have been wearing for centuries. Bras have been trendy throughout history since they can give the person wearing them numerous advantages. Wearing a bra can give you an additional layer of coverage that your specific clothing attire might require to be more appropriate for outings. Another benefit is that with bras, you can slightly modify your appearance, in that you can wear one that is flattering and slimming, or instead opt for a bra that accentuates your figure and enhances the bust area on your body. Here, we will explore the history of bras and how this is significant to the current, modern, contemporary bras we often see.
Understanding the Relevancy
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The formation of bras has been an evolution many people have contributed to throughout time because bras are constantly evolving and innovating, drastically changing from what their original design and formation once were to adapt to the current trends worldwide. When discussing the origins of bras, it can often be somewhat challenging to pinpoint precise details, including who precisely invented the undergarment, along with when exactly they did so. Regardless, here we will break down and discuss the evolving timeline of bras. We will go over the period at which bras first appear in the world, from accounts of bras throughout history that span centuries across the globe. We will follow this to the current place of bras in the world today and look at how the history of bras has contributed to and impacted the modern, contemporary version we currently have.
Where It Begins: Exploring the Origins of Bras
In the early 1500s, the corset began to rise in popularity as an undergarment many women in France wore. The corset had the aim to help provide women with a way of achieving a particular look. The look these women intended to achieve was what they generally considered the ideal, perfect figure at that time, described as an inverted cone-like shape. For centuries from that point on, the corset would remain a popular undergarment for many women everywhere in the world.
Tracing Back the Term’s Origins
In 1907, American Vogue created the term “brassiere” to refer to a split corset. In 1911, the word gained official recognition by eventually being added to the Oxford English Dictionary. The invention of today’s modern bra can be traced back to 1914 when New York socialite Mary Phelps patented the first contemporary bra with two silk handkerchiefs and a pink ribbon. The Warner Brothers Corset Company later acquired this patent.
By the 1930s, many people switched from the term brassiere to simply bras. Further, during this period, the S.H. Camp and Company would make the first of its kind sizing scale for cups, which matches the size of a woman’s breast to that of corresponding and compatible varying letters, leading to the current A, B, C, and D scale that we use today. With this, bras could advance from a one-size-fits-all design to a more suitable and personal type of fit and style.
The Relevance of Bras Throughout History to Today’s Modern Version
Several other significant inventions during the 1930s that are important to mention also include the addition of cups with padding inside them, adjustable straps, and hook-and-eye closures. The first bra with padding was revealed to the world in 1947 by Frederick Mellinger. Around a year following that, he also introduced the first push-up bra. Both bras became highly popular afterward, even to this day, wherein you can still find that many women from all over the globe wear bras with padding or push-up bras for various reasons and on different occasions.
In the 1950s, bra manufacturing companies began producing undergarments using various shapes, colors, patterns, and fabrics. Hollywood often began using and popularizing the iconic bullet bra during this time. The bullet bra is a bra with a shape resembling that of a cone, with spiral-like stitching on it. Many famous Hollywood starlets and actresses, including Marilyn Monroe and Jane Russell, are captured sporting the fashionable, trendy bra style during this period on numerous occasions. The sports bra was invented in 1977 as fitness was on the rise culturally. The sports bra aims to provide women additional support when they are active.
Conclusion:
Throughout history, the bra evolved and adapted, eventually becoming the modern, contemporary version of bras that we typically see today. When we trace back the origins of the bra throughout its history, it is clear that bras have innovated as a concept to best suit the needs of the women wearing them all over the globe over time.
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