MARCH2–15, 2020 |THECUT 25theseundergarments,mostagreedthey hadseen
betterdays.
“Most ofthemare inreallysadcondition,” one
womanwrote.“Oldoutlinesfromsweat,under-
boobgalore,andevensomestretched-outbands.”
“Toolong” wasalsohowlongbra sellerssaid
peoplekeeptheirbras.“I’vehada girlcomein,
shewasinher50s,andshesaidshe’d beenwear-
ingherbrasinceshewas16.Thesamebra,”said
RebeccaApsan,theownerofGreenwichVil-
lage’s famed lingerie boutique La Petite
Coquette.WhenI visitedherandhersisterat
thestore oneafternooninJanuary,they showed
methetrashcanwhere they sometimesinstruct
customerstodepositthelooseoldbrasthey
comeintothestore wearing.
Howlongyoushouldkeepyourbra depends
inpartonhowyoucare forit,Apsansays.Ide-
ally,oneshouldownsixtoeightbrasandrotate
themevery singleday. “Ineverwearthesame
bratwodaysina row,” shesaid.“AndI havemy
brasfora decentamountoftime.I havethem
foryears.”
LoriKaplanofBraTendersinmidtownsaidthe
reasonmany peoplekeeptheirbraswellpast their
primeis thatthey formanemotionalattachment
tothem—“like a teddy bear.” Forsome,this
at tachmentcomesfromthefact that it’s difficult
tofinda bra intheirsize,sothey clingtotheones
thatfit them.Forothers,it’s that thestylethey like
hasbeendiscontinuedorthattheirbodieshave
changedandtheirbreastsaren’tthesamesize
theyusedtobe.Andthere’sthefinancialchal-
lenge aswell.
As onerespondentexplained,sheneedstogo
tospecialtystorestogettheG-cupbrasshe
wears.Andwhilesheknowshercurrentbras
needreplacing,“todrop$400to$500onnew
brasis nota luxury I canaffordrightnow.”
Regardlessofthereason,KaplanandApsan
agreethat havinga well-fittingbra is keytoany
outfit.“Youcanbuya $2T-shirtandyou’ll look
likea millionbucksif you’vegottherightunder-
garments,andyoucanbuya $30,000dressthat
willlooklikea ragif you’vegotthewrongunder-
garments,” Kaplansaid.
A fewdaysafterI spoke toApsanandKaplan,
I decidedtoaddtwonewbrastomy limpcollec-
tion.Whentheyarrived,theirbandsandstraps
weretaut,theircupssturdy.Theydidn’t gapeor
droop.They heldmy breastsfirmlyaloft. I didn’t
thinkI lookedthat differentinmy clothes,but
I likedtheideathat maybethiswastheperson
I mightbefromnowon—someonewhosebraslookfreshand
notlikesomethingthat waspulledoff a disinterredcorpse.This
person,I imagined,alwayshasa freshmanicureinsteadof
chippednailpolish.Shege ts allherclothestailoredandgrows
freshherbsonherkitchenwindowsill.Sheis someoneI aspired
tobebutwhomI knew, at thebottomofmy newlycontained
heart,I didn’t reallycare enoughtomake theefforttobecome.
Still,I washappytoplayact asherfora while,untilthesebras,
likemy others,eventuallydissolve, 15 yearsfromnow. ■Madeleine, 28
36B
PURCHASED
2018
“When I first got this
bra, she was vibrant
and full of life. Now,
after over a year
of heavy wear, she
has the general
complexion and
energy of an old
pack-a-day smoker.”
Sophie, 23
32FF
PURCHASED
2018
“I don’t hate the way
this bra looks, but it is
a little sexless. I refuse
to wear any other bra
on most occasions,
though, so I’ve had my
fair share of times
when I’m unexpectedly
hooking up with
someone and realize,
Oh God, they’re gonna
see my beige minimizing
mom bra. I’m not too
bothered by it at this
point, though.”
Emily, 25
32A
PURCHASED
2017“I bought this when
I was seriously dating
a woman for the first
time, and I remember
it helping me feel more
confident and sexy
during the nerve-
racking early stages
with her.”
Madison, 27
36DDDD
PURCHASED
2018
“This is my favorite
everyday bra.
I’ve bought it easily
a half-dozen times
in various sizes and
colors over the years.
This particular
one I wore essentially
anytime I wore
something black
(read: every day)
for the entire eight
months I had
it in my rotation.”