Recent from talks
Bra size
Knowledge base stats:
Talk channels stats:
Members stats:
Bra size
Bra size (also known as brassiere measurement or bust size) indicates the characteristics of a bra to accurately fit the breasts. While there are multiple bra sizing systems in use around the world, the bra size usually consists of a number indicating the size of the band around the torso, and one or more letters that indicate the breast cup size. Bra cup sizes were invented in 1932 while band sizes became popular in the 1940s. For convenience, because of the impracticality of determining the dimensions of each breast, the volume of the bra cup, or cup size, is based on the difference between band length and over-the-bust measurement.
Manufacturers try to design and manufacture bras that correctly fit the majority of wearers, while individuals try to identify correctly fitting bras among different styles and sizing systems.
The shape, size, position, symmetry, spacing, firmness, and sag of an individual's breasts vary considerably. Manufacturers' bra size labelling systems vary by country because no comprehensive international standards exist. Even within a country, one study found that the bra size label was consistently different from the measured size. As a result of all these factors, about 25% of bra-wearers have a difficult time finding a properly fitted bra, and some choose to buy custom-made bras due to the unique shape of their breasts.
On 21 November 1911, Parisienne Madeleine Gabeau received a United States patent for a brassiere with soft cups and a metal band that supported and separated the breasts. To avoid the prevailing fashion that created a single "monobosom",[citation needed] her design provided: "...that the edges of the material d may be carried close along the inner and under contours of the breasts, so as to preserve their form, I employ an outlining band of metal b which is bent to conform to the lower curves of the breast."
The term "cup" was not used to describe bras until 1916 when two patents were filed.
In October 1932, S.H. Camp and Company was the first to use letters of the alphabet (A, B, C and D) to indicate cup size, although the letters represented how pendulous the breasts were and not their volume. Camp's advertising in the February 1933 issue of Corset and Underwear Review featured letter-labeled profiles of breasts. Cup sizes A to D were not intended to be used for larger-breasted women.
In 1935, Warner's introduced its Alphabet Bra with cup sizes from size A to size D. Their bras incorporated breast volume into its sizing, and continues to be the system in use. Before long, these cup sizes got nicknames: egg cup, tea cup, coffee cup and challenge cup, respectively. Two other companies, Model and Fay-Miss (renamed in 1935 as the Bali Brassiere Company), followed, offering A, B, C and D cup sizes in the late 1930s. Catalogue companies continued to use the designations Small, Medium and Large through the 1940s. Britain did not adopt the American cups in 1933, and resisted using cup sizes for its products until 1948. The Sears Company finally applied cup sizes to bras in its catalogue in the 1950s.
However, though various manufacturers used the same descriptions of bra sizes (e.g., A to D, small large, etc.), there was no standardisation of what these descriptions actually measured, so that each company had its own standards.
Hub AI
Bra size AI simulator
(@Bra size_simulator)
Bra size
Bra size (also known as brassiere measurement or bust size) indicates the characteristics of a bra to accurately fit the breasts. While there are multiple bra sizing systems in use around the world, the bra size usually consists of a number indicating the size of the band around the torso, and one or more letters that indicate the breast cup size. Bra cup sizes were invented in 1932 while band sizes became popular in the 1940s. For convenience, because of the impracticality of determining the dimensions of each breast, the volume of the bra cup, or cup size, is based on the difference between band length and over-the-bust measurement.
Manufacturers try to design and manufacture bras that correctly fit the majority of wearers, while individuals try to identify correctly fitting bras among different styles and sizing systems.
The shape, size, position, symmetry, spacing, firmness, and sag of an individual's breasts vary considerably. Manufacturers' bra size labelling systems vary by country because no comprehensive international standards exist. Even within a country, one study found that the bra size label was consistently different from the measured size. As a result of all these factors, about 25% of bra-wearers have a difficult time finding a properly fitted bra, and some choose to buy custom-made bras due to the unique shape of their breasts.
On 21 November 1911, Parisienne Madeleine Gabeau received a United States patent for a brassiere with soft cups and a metal band that supported and separated the breasts. To avoid the prevailing fashion that created a single "monobosom",[citation needed] her design provided: "...that the edges of the material d may be carried close along the inner and under contours of the breasts, so as to preserve their form, I employ an outlining band of metal b which is bent to conform to the lower curves of the breast."
The term "cup" was not used to describe bras until 1916 when two patents were filed.
In October 1932, S.H. Camp and Company was the first to use letters of the alphabet (A, B, C and D) to indicate cup size, although the letters represented how pendulous the breasts were and not their volume. Camp's advertising in the February 1933 issue of Corset and Underwear Review featured letter-labeled profiles of breasts. Cup sizes A to D were not intended to be used for larger-breasted women.
In 1935, Warner's introduced its Alphabet Bra with cup sizes from size A to size D. Their bras incorporated breast volume into its sizing, and continues to be the system in use. Before long, these cup sizes got nicknames: egg cup, tea cup, coffee cup and challenge cup, respectively. Two other companies, Model and Fay-Miss (renamed in 1935 as the Bali Brassiere Company), followed, offering A, B, C and D cup sizes in the late 1930s. Catalogue companies continued to use the designations Small, Medium and Large through the 1940s. Britain did not adopt the American cups in 1933, and resisted using cup sizes for its products until 1948. The Sears Company finally applied cup sizes to bras in its catalogue in the 1950s.
However, though various manufacturers used the same descriptions of bra sizes (e.g., A to D, small large, etc.), there was no standardisation of what these descriptions actually measured, so that each company had its own standards.
Recent media