The History of the Bra

One hundred years ago, women were wearing corsets that caused a plethora of health problems but gave them tiny waists and confined their breasts. In 1914, the first bra was made out of two hankies and a long pink ribbon. Women won the right to vote in the 1920s and they also threw out rigid corsets and chose bras that flattened them. Seeking separation and support, women of the 1930s were indulged in luxurious silk, satin, taffeta and lace; screen sirens like Greta Garbo starred in beautiful lingerie, but cleavages were a no-no. The pre-war era demanded strong, durable underwear for the women to do their duty in factories and bullet shaped bras with target stitching became the essential underwear for their changing lives. The sweater era of the 1950s saw breasts receiving more attention than ever before. Curvaceous Hollywood divas Jayne Mansfield and Sophia Loren set the pace and less shapely women were given push-up and padded options. Bras were seen as objects of oppression in the 1960s when women threw them away with their high heeled shoes. Feminists accused lingerie designers of ˜packaging breasts according to men