Bras

Sonicrainboom - I'm sorry, but I have more important things to worry about in my life than my bra - things like struggling with depression, losing weight (for the sake of my health, not because of pressure from the patriarchy), my sons and their upcoming Higher and Advanced Higher exams, ds1's university applications, the fact that my pfb will be leaving home in the autumn (and how do I know if he's going to eat properly, go to bed on time, get his work done, bathe regularly and not fall in with the Wrong Crowd), and how in heaven's name we are going to afford to support him and his brothers at university over the next 6 years.

Frankly, all those things are, as far as I am concerned, of far greater importance than delving into my motivations for wearing a bra - other than the fact that it makes me more comfortable and I like it. And it pisses me off that there seems to be an implication that there are some women who are intelligent and thoughtful and consider the feminist history behind every single decision they make, and then there's the rest of us, who are just ignorant slaves to the patriarchy. I have read threads in the feminism section, and contributed to some, and that is the feeling that I have overwhelmingly got from them.

I loathe bras and hardly ever wear one. Which has annoyed people for decades. I am not even really sure what my bra size is: somewhere between 38c and 40b I think.
However, I did buy a few bras when PG as my norks got bigger and did feel more comfortable strapped up, and I do find I need one for morris dancing; it is genuinely more comfortable to wear one than to leave it off for that particular activity.
But so much depends on the size and shape of the individual woman's norks as to what feels most comfortable.

The amazon thing is a myth.

What about the Amazons, cutting one breast off so it didn't get in the way of their archery?

Allegedly

:o at napdamnyou - Ayla invented everything, including the sports bra.

It's always a bit frustrating to see posts like "I do x because I want to!!" and no further thoughts in the Feminist section.

In the past - like the Victorian age - women had to be covered for "moral" reasons.
Now women can wear very little clothes in western societies (and are encouraged to do so) but we must still hide the nipples and natural shape of our breasts. Probably because the female breasts have been fetishized so much.
Men do not have to hide their nipples. It's the same thinking that leads to Page 3 OK - breastfeeding in public not OK.

Surely women with big norks in primitive societies would strap them down with a bandeau top thing if they were getting in the way of hunting, gathering, pounding grain etc etc.

Tis is what ace hunter and ample breated superwoman Ayla does in Clan of the Cave Bear series of prehistorica and there was research done for the books and everything...

I quite often go without one in the summer if I'm not wearing something made of too thin a material to get away with it. But then I have relatively small B/C breasts. In the winter I alternate between bras and vest tops as an extra layer because I feel the cold. My best bra is my sports bra, as running/working out without it is actually painful.

Hmmm.... I wear one because even with a b cup I feel yuck without one.

i wear a bra because i want to
the act of bra wearing ,underwired and non wired doesn't define me.
nor am i subjugated by my under wear

I like matching sets cos they look nice! I always wear my best bra if i am going out anywhere special!

I live in a hot country and cotton bras stop sweat pooling under my breasts and staining my clothes. Which is nicer for me, frankly.

I also like wearing brightly coloured bras with a contrasting vest.

I have never seen them as oppressive, any more than knickers are oppressive.

If some women say they wouldn't willingly go through normal activities without a bra on, I wonder what women in a primitive society would say, especially as they probably have to be physically active. Are they living their whole lives muttering through gritted teeth "Ow ow ow, my boobs hurt"? I think more likely they work out a combination of knowing how to move in order to stay comfortable, and being used to the situation. But if you lent a bra to a woman who'd never worn one, and then asked her a week later how it felt, would she say, "Hey, this is great, can I keep it?" or would it be "Useless thing, take it away"? One wonders.

If bras are uselful to you, great, wear them.
But I hate how bras are kind of mandatory since visible nipples and non-spherical, bouncing boobs are a no-no. (Not my opinion, general fashion and patriarchal opinion)
Anything that fits tight over my ribcage hurts me, so I can't wear bras. Which makes it difficult and annoying to hide my sinful female nipples, grrr. it's such a stupid thing to constantly worry about during the warmer months - but I do. People stare or react negatively.

Birds - I am a 44F and have never bought a minimiser bra. They are available, obviously, but it is wrong to imply that all bras for larger sizes are minimisers - and, whilst I haven't checked, I don't believe that all bras for smaller sizes are padded either. Some are, some aren't.

And to return to my central point - how do you explain the fact that I don't see Barbie's bustline everywhere I turn - because I don't.

As long as the topless man in question is fit of course! IMO

Dunno, but my indecent dresses are indecent cos you can see down the neckline owing to the way they're cut rather than being able to see through them.

Admittedly no-one objects to topless men, but I don't think I'm up for challenging societies norms to that extent, certainly not when going to parties in my best frock . . .

I have never understood why women are so obsessed with not letting their nipples poke through their clothes. So what if they do? Men don't worry about their nipples - they are just as erectile as ours and you don't see them wearing padded bras to conceal them.

Maybe it's because I spent my youth in the brafree carefree 70s.

If I wore a homespun linen shift and a woolen bodice I would definitely want a bra! Just think how scratchy!

I have very small breasts (34AA) - I wear a crop top style bra some of the time though not always.

Certainly I would say if you are wearing something scritchy then the smooth cotton of a soft bra or crop top is much pleasanter on the breasts - soft old t-shirts fine without, new ones not so good, for example. But I don't wear one in summer if it is hot & sweaty weather.

I have a fancy lacy bra with a bit of padding to wear under a couple of dresses which are cut wrong for a crop top and are definitely indecent with nothing under them

I've always worn bras - I simply didn't fancy ending up with my boobs round my waist. And it's worked.

No, no and thrice no to linen shift. Think of the extra ironing!