Many women* wear them, and expectations are high. It should look good, be comfortable, and ideally invisible and supportive. What are we talking about here? A bra, of course. Fabrics have covered women's breasts for centuries, but where do bras actually come from, why do we wear them, and what should we look out for?
The origins of the bra date back to the 4th century. Mosaics show young women wearing bandeau tops while exercising. The modern version of today's bra, with two cups around the chest and two shoulder straps, is the descendant of the reform clothing from the 19th century - with the English term "bra" as an abbreviation of the French word "brassière".
Cup sizes sorted by letter or clothing size, adjustable straps and fasteners with hooks and eyes - these were the details that the bra received in the 1930s. In the decades to come, improvements to the patterns, different styles, etc. followed, so that the bra became more and more popular with young women*.
There are an incredible number of years of development and perfection behind the bra. But honestly: did you know that almost 49% of women* are wearing the wrong bra? How crazy is that number, even though the selection on the market actually makes almost every dream come true?
Bralettes, wireless bras, bras with underwire, bra tops, tops with integrated bras, top bras - okay! The selection is simply huge and sometimes overwhelming. So let's try to shed some light on the matter together: This way we can be sure that we will soon no longer be among the 49% of women* who wear the wrong size.
Of course, it's never wrong to get advice from a specialist shop, but what if you can only find your dream bra online? Most shops have size charts on their website. This way you can quickly find your fit and shape. Here you can find out exactly how to measure yourself correctly. Try out a few models and find the right one for you. If you're wearing the bra for the first time, make sure that the straps aren't too tight. Then we'll say goodbye to neck pain and never come back - at least if the strap caused it. And now hand on heart, who hasn't experienced it: We come home in the evening and the first thing we do is take off the bra. But why? The cups are too small and minimize the breasts and the circumference is sometimes too tight. And OMG, the seams - when you see an imprint exactly where the bra was sitting in the evening. Phew, the next point could be unpleasant: Old bras should be cleared out and replaced at some point. And spoiler: Not until they really fall apart.
And now drum roll:
“Our new all-you-need bra is the perfect bra for every day: wire-free, seamless and feels as comfortable as a second skin. The perfect addition to your ooia panty!” Kristine Zeller, ooia co-founder
Wow! We are so proud. Over the past year we have worked hard to fulfill your wish of a bra from ooia. We quickly realized that some aspects were particularly important to us: Our bra top should be seamless, so we used as few seams as possible. We also decided not to use underwire to offer maximum comfort.
So, curtain up for our " all-you-need bra top ":
It should be clear to everyone that the female body is our focus. With the development of the bra top, the topic of breasts has taken on a completely different meaning for us. While we were working on new samples for the perfect bra top last year, we received a request for sponsorship through great contacts. It couldn't have been a better fit, because Juliet Kothe & Natanja von Stosch have put their love into a really cool boobs project over the past few years. It is a collection of pictures and works of art by over 100 artists, all of whom have dealt with the female breast. Each depiction shows the construction and deconstruction of "femininity". The book brings new ideas and conversations from the art world and aims to contribute to reinterpreting conventional interpretations of the female body. We were immediately enthusiastic and set a lot in motion to make this sponsorship possible. Because one thing is certain: this project is a further step for femininity.
Natanja von Stosch loves art and really knows her stuff! After studying art history and business administration at Humboldt University in Berlin, she worked for various art venues. In 2018, she started the Instagram account @boobsinthearts . This account was created because she wanted to share her research on images of women's breasts in art and culture with others. But that wasn't easy because women's breasts still struggle with clichés, oversexualization and social control. Together with Juliet Kothe, Natanja published the book "Boobs in the Arts" last year. We think everyone should take a look at the book. It makes us really proud and happy to support such a great project.
Image: © Lukas Staedler
