A brief history of the Bra

The first modern bra was created by Mary Phelps Jacobs, who got so annoyed at the bones of her corset sticking out around the plunging neckline of a sheer gown she had bought that she covered them with a couple of silk handkerchiefs and some ribbon and attached it all together with some cords.

Her friends loved the idea and those who expressed their admiration of this lightweight fashion were given one to try out. Many people asked her to share her idea, but when she got a letter from a stranger, with a dollar and a request for her “contraption”, she drew the line. She immediately sent sketches of her design to the patent office. The patent was granted in November, 1914 for the “Backless Brassiere”. Mary named her new creation the Caresse Crosby.

But Mary’s talents were in fashion design, not business, and she had a hard time managing her venture. So she decided to sell her patent to Warner Brothers Corset Company for $1,500, an investment for the company which, over the next 30 years, made $15 million.

The bra gain sizes

The woman who was responsible for sized bras was Ida Rosenthal, a Russian-Jewish immigrant. During the roaring Twenties, when the flat-chested boyish look was in, Ida Rosenthal’s invention wasn’t too popular. However, Ida had spunk, and she continued to promote her bust-flattering bras. With her idea of sizing, she started to market bras to girls and women of every age, from puberty to maturity. A huge advantage to this plan was brand loyalty – if she could get teens, she reasoned, to wear training bras, then they’d stay with her as they developed and grew. She’d have a customer for life!

A dream is born

Ida Started a company which marketed the brand Maidenform and became the industry leader in bras. Their ad campaign, “I dreamed I…” did very well. The seed was planted – women could be anything they wanted if they wore a Maidenform Bra. The image was secured. The bra had become not only a method of supporting the breasts, but of displaying them in a variety of stages of dress and undress leading to the type of advert we see today.

Practicality was important, too. Different types of bras were designed for different types of women’s activities. If you were pregnant, you could buy maternity bras. After you had your baby, you could buy a nursing bra. After you finished nursing, and before you lost your “baby weight”, you could buy a full figured bra. And for those women who were a little bigger than most, there were plus size bras. And not only plus size bras. For the active women, there were athletic sports bras, giving extra support. For those evening gowns, there were strapless bras and backless bras. And the teenage girl could proudly say, “Hey, I got my first bra.” And training bras would help her adjust as she grew and matured and got ready for regular bras. As for men well, they watched with wonder and increased interest the development of this part of women’s attire and started to learn how to take it off!


Light cream Ooh La La plunge bra £15.00	Bodybliss soft skin lace bra £15.00	Body bliss soft skin lace padded bra £15.00
Body bliss flora microfibre bra £15.00	Spirit two pack heart bra £15.00	Spirit 2 pack stripe t- shirt bra £15.00
Secrets pintuck and ribbons t-shirt bra £15.00	Simply smooth lace trim nonwired bra £15.00	Bodybliss spring broderie bra £15.00
Bodybliss softie t-shirt bra £15.00	Simply smooth tailored spacer bra £15.00	Simply smooth lace non wired t-shirt bra £15.00
Secrets Kate satin spot jacquard gel t-shirt bra £15.00	Secrets fleur t-shirt bra £15.00	Voluptuous satin rick rack t-shirt bra £15.00
Charnos cherub classic brief £15.00	Minimiser Bra £15.00	Purple Wild plunge bra £15.00
Underwired Padded Bra £15.00	Black gel bra £15.40	White gel bra £15.40
Benedicte D - F T Shirt Bra £15.40	Triumph claudette bra £15.50	Black mesh silk mix longline bra £15.75
Nude gel bra £15.80	Fashion First Aid Boostits Half Cup £15.95	Fashion First Aid Boostits Half Cup £15.95
Natural moulded multiway bra £16.00	White moulded multiway bra £16.00	Eden T Shirt Bra £16.00
Post Surgery Total Support Non-Wired Bra £16.00	Black moulded multiway bra £16.00	Black sequinned multiway bra £16.00
White lace detail bra £16.00	Purple spotted balcony bra £16.00	Voluptuous anabella bra £16.00
Ultimate light multi way bra £16.00	Voluptuous embroidered padded multiway bra £16.00	Simply smooth lace clear front multiway bra £16.00
Spirit 2 pack spot t-shirt bra £16.00	Spirit 2 pack stripe multiway bra £16.00	Secrets decadence padded bra £16.00
Simply smooth animal jacquard bra £16.00	Simply smooth animal print bra £16.00	Secrets zebra print t-shirt bra £16.00
Olivia lace longline bra £16.00	Simply smooth lorna balcony multiway bra £16.00	Secrets margaritte half cup bra £16.00
2 pack diamaond mesh t-shirt bra £16.00	Limited Collection Satin Stripe Padded Bra £16.00	Limited Collection Gingham Check Padded Balcony Bra £16.00
Limited Collection Spot Satin Padded Bra £16.00	Limited Collection Floral Chambray Balcony Bra £16.00	Limited Collection Broderie Embroidered Padded Bra £16.00
Second Skin Full Coverage Bra £16.00	Black Connie plunge bra £16.10	Dark pink Martina plunge bra £16.10
Panache fern brief £16.50	Mid blue floral print balcony bra £16.80	White Carriwell Lace Feeding Bra - Large £16.99
White Carriwell Lace Feeding Bra - Medium £16.99	Carriwell Large Black Lace Feeding Bra £16.99	Carriwell Medium Black Lace Feeding Bra £16.99
Light cream Ooh La La longline strapless bra £17.00	Natural microfibre non wired bra £17.20	Black microfibre non wired bra £17.20
Underwired Bra £17.40	Underwired Bra £17.40	Black lace trim balcony bra £17.50
Underwired Bra £17.50	Ivory Tigerlily plunge bra £17.50	Black Delphine balcony bra £17.50
Underwired Bra £17.50	Underwired Minimiser Bra £17.50	Ivory droplet embroidered multiway bra £17.60
Black Jasmine mastectomy bra £17.60	White Jasmine mastectomy bra £17.60	Black droplet embroidered multiway bra £17.60
Dark green satin balcony bra £17.60	Black snake print balcony bra £17.60	Secrets greta beaded bra £18.00
Portfolio Waves Texture Lace Non-Padded E-GG Bra £18.00	Portfolio Waves Texture & Lace Balcony Bra £18.00	Portfolio Waves Texture & Lace Non-Padded Balcony Bra £18.00
Nearly Naked T-Shirt Bra £18.00	Limited Collection Longline Floral Lace Padded Bra £18.00	Limited Collection Vintage Style Spot Mesh DD+ Bra £18.00
Limited Collection Vintage Style Spot Mesh Bra £18.00	Limited Collection Vintage Style Spot Mesh Padded Bra £18.00	Limited Collection Floral Chambray Longline Bra £18.00
Elm D - F T Shirt Bra £18.00	Elm T Shirt Bra £18.00	Edelweiss T Shirt Bra £18.00
Wonderbra black lace push up £18.20	Nude D-G strapless bra £18.20	Black D-G everyday bra £18.20
Wonderbra D-G white everyday £18.20	Ivory spotted lace trim balcony bra £18.50	Nude D-G T-shirt bra £18.60
Shock Absorber white Pump bra £18.90	Black chic lace push up bra £18.90	White chic lace push up bra £18.90
Leg Avenue 81199 £18.95	Disco DD bra £19.00	Atlantis enhanced t-shirt bra £19.00
White sports bra £19.20	Black sports bra £19.20	Purple and black lace balcony bra £19.20
Black satin plunge bra £19.20	Wonderbra black Multiplunge £19.30	Underwired Bra £19.50
Portfolio Stripe Embroidered Padded Memory Foam Bra £19.50	Dark pink Gangster balcony bra £19.60	Dark pink Gangster balcony bra D-G £19.60
Lace Sensation Classic Underwired Bra £19.60	Black D-G lace push up bra £19.60	Wonderbra D-G white lace push £19.60
Ivory Coco balcony bra £19.95	Elegant Moments 1451 £19.95	DreamGirl 4088 £19.98

Light cream Ooh La La plunge bra