There’s the old saying that we all put on our pants one leg at a time. However, when it comes to bras, this is not the case. Over the years, we women have come up with a couple of clever techniques for putting this uniquely feminine garment in its proper place. The Hook and Spin Method: This way of putting on a bra is the most common among women with smaller breast and who also have a small or average waist. Also, women who have dexterity issues find this method simpler as well. Simply put, you wrap your bra around your back and hook it in front of you. You then turn your bra either clockwise, or counterclockwise (depending on the way the label is sewn so as not to bunch up) until the two cups are underneath your breasts. Adjust your bra band so that it is directly under your breasts, and the underwires are properly placed in your breast crease, then slip your shoulder straps up onto your shoulders. Though your bra is on, you are not done. There are a couple more steps that you need to do to insure you have your bra in the proper position so that it will remain comfortable throughout the day and give you proper support. Run your finger under the back hook to make sure the label of your bra, if there is one, is laying flat. Tug down on the back of the bra while looking in the mirror to make sure the front and back of your bra are parallel with the floor, and that the bra back is tucked just under your shoulder bones. Next, bend forward at the waist and with your right hand, go under you left breast and lift it into the bra cup. Then repeat this on your right side. Look inside your cups and make sure your nipples are front and center. If you have a seamed cup, make sure your nipple is directly behind the seam. This will help reduce nipple show-through. Now, stand up and look at yourself. If you are happy where everything is, you are good to go. The Upside Down Hook and Spin Method: This method is almost the same as the prior method with the exception of the start. You fasten your bra in front of you, but your bra is upside down and inside out. After spinning your bra around so that the cups are in the center, you now flip your bra up to put it in place and then follow all the same steps as above. This technique is a great one for today’s contour bras that already have pre-shaped cups. It prevents the cups from getting smashed or creased before putting your bra on. If you haven’t put your bra on this way before, it may take a few tries to get it right, but once you learn to hook your bra inside out in front of you, it’s a very simple method to use. Front Loading Method: Large breasted women, women with apple figures, soft cup bra wearers and women in a hurry tend to use this technique to put on their bra. You begin by putting your arms through the straps of your bra, you then hold the back wings of the bra in each hand and wrap your arms behind you to hook your bra together. Once the bra is hooked, you really need to bend forward at the waist and place your breasts into your cups to make sure they are centered and pulled up into the cups before standing up. Again, a check in the mirror should be made to make sure the back of your bra is pulled down and even with the front of your bra, your tags are flat, and your breasts are up and in your cups. If you have cup seams, you should make sure they are resting on top of your nipples to reduce nipple show though. An important note here. This technique can be very challenging for women who are not limber enough to put their two hands behind their back. So, as we get older, this technique will become harder. It is also difficult to tell if the bra is on the proper closure without checking in the mirror. For modesty reasons, many women use this front loading technique because it immediately covers your breasts. I know that I use it when I’m in a dressing room and the sales clerk can be heard coming down the hall. But when using this technique it is also very easy to not get your breasts correctly into the cups and have the back of your bra resting too high on your back. So, this technique more than the others needs the final steps to insure proper fit. Over the years, I have heard lingerie experts state that the Hook and Spin method wears down your bra. The thinking is that the spinning process on your body breaks down the elastic and causes your bra to age more quickly. I think this is absolute nonsense Our bras are not designer gowns that need to be preserved for our daughters. They are underwear that will go through many washings and wearing before being replaced. The convenience of the Hook and Spin method far outweighs any minor stress put on the elastic as you spin it around your waist. A note on underwire bras. However you put it on, you must make sure to check that your underwires are resting in the natural crease where your breast begins on your chest. The underwire should be resting on your ribcage. If your underwire is resting on breast tissue, your breasts need to be pulled up and into your bra cups until this is not the case. If you can’t do this, you are in the wrong size bra. I would also be remiss if I did not speak of “The Jiggle” technique for getting your breasts into the proper place in your bra cups. I personally use this technique more than putting my hands inside my cups to adjust my breast tissue. To perform the jiggle, bend forward from your waist, pull down on the center of your bra and jiggle your bra back and forth until you feel your breasts are resting appropriately in the cups. When you stand up, you will see that your breasts are sitting higher in your cups, are fuller looking and look more youthful.
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