The History of the Modern Brassiere
Contrary to popular belief, the bra was probably not invented by a man. This urban myth originated in the early nineteen seventies and perpetuated through to the modern day and probably has a few year yet before it dies altogether. He supposed inventor was a man named Otto Titzling, however had this name became as common as the rumour, I doubt it would have enjoyed the mileage it gained due to the supposed inventors surname sounding very similar to ‘tit sling’. With this urban myth dispelled for good (hopefully), the actual inventor of the brassiere isn’t as obvious as one would expect. This is because a variety of people, both male and female were looking at ways of modernising or improving the corset, the then common method of breast support.
It is widely accepted that the first modern bra was developed in 1889 by one Herminie Cadolle, a woman! This garment appeared in a corset catalogue as two piece garment, the lower part being a waist corset and the upper being a support for the breasts by means of shoulder straps as opposed to the stiff boning which gave support in the more traditional corset. By 1905, the upper half of Herminie’s two piece corset was being sold separately; she is also credited with introducing the use of ‘rubber-thread’, more commonly known as elastic, a fundamental aspect of the modern brassier. Also, in 1893, another woman called Marie Tucek was granted a patent for a two cup brassiere with metal supports and the now ubiquitous hook and eye fastening. This was the predecessor to the under wired bra, however this garment failed to take of due to inadequate marketing.
Large scale production of the bra didn’t begin until the 1930′s. Prior to this they were manufactured by smaller underwear and garment makers, or made at home from a variety of ready made patterns. It was only after World War II that the bra gained the popularity it has today. The post war baby boom created a demand for maternity bras and nursing bras, being more comfortable and more convenient than the designs from the 1930′s. Maternity Bras were developed to accommodate the changing shape of a woman’s breasts during pregnancy and featured more forgiving designs and less ‘under bust’ support from steel wires. The Nursing bra was designed to allow women to breast feed without having to remove the garment altogether,. This was achieved by adding a fastening to each cup which enabled access whilst still giving support.
These days the bra is as much a fashion garment as it is a support garment; with multi strap, halter neck and strapless versions available to allow them to be worn beneath plunging necklines, halter neck tops, backless dresses and along with nursing bras and maternity bras, the brassier industry is now worth several billion pounds a year.