Is your cleavage leaving? Has your décolletage decamped? Last time you looked in the mirror, did your boobs seem just a little less perky than before? Think your girls are sagging before their time?
Well, before you run off your friendly neighbourhood plastic surgeon for a lift or augmentation, take a look in your lingerie drawer for the most likely culprit: your bras. Now everybody knows that the right bra can do wonders for lift, bounce, and creating a titillating view of some of your finer assets. What most of us don’t know, however, is that a bra actually has a shelf life, typically less than one year and, depending on how often it is worn and how it is laundered, possibly as low as three months.
Gravity is not your friend
Let’s face it, unless your breasts are so small you can wear a bra for its fashion value rather than its function, at some point in time you are going to start seeing some sag. And while you can’t prevent your girls from following the pull of gravity, you can help keep them looking their proudest by wearing a well-fitting bra that is in good condition.
Fit is everything
Properly worn, a bra should be clasped on its tightest set of hooks, even when brand new. This positions the cups in their proper place against your rib cage and under your arms, assuming you are buying the proper size. Straps should be adjusted so that they fit snugly against the shoulders without digging in. Once the straps are adjusted properly, it’s a good idea to take a small stitch through the layers of strap to prevent the straps from shifting and lengthening. This secures the straps at their proper length, which ensures that your breasts stay supported and look properly perky.
The first clue that your bra is reaching the end of its useful life is when the elastic in the back begins to stretch out and the bra no longer fits snugly around your rib cage. If the elastic at the end of the straps is crinkled along the edges, the straps can be tightened, but if the elastic on the back of the bra is stretched out, the bra belongs in the bin.
For a longer life
There are a few things that you can do to make sure your bras last as long as possible. First, buy the correct size. Elastic that is too tight around the ribs will be under extra stress, causing it to fail more quickly
Second, wash your bras frequently (after no more than two wearings), but wash them gently. Soak them for a couple of hours in a basin with cool water and a gentle liquid detergent, rinse thoroughly, squeeze dry in a towel (no twisting or wringing!) and hang to dry out of direct sunlight. If you simply cannot spare the time to wash them by hand, then put them in a lingerie bag and machine wash in cool water on the gentle cycle. But do not put them in the dryer…dryers are death on elastic!
And third, rotate the wearing of your bras. That way you won’t have one all stretched out and saggy in three months and a fistful of others sitting in your drawer, crisp and pretty as the day you bought them.
So, to keep your finest assets perky and proud, discard those sad, stretched-out, sagging brassieres and pamper your new ones with gentle hand washing and drip drying. Your girls will stand up and salute you for it!
