Renee Zellweger’s 2009 Golden Globes Ensemble - What’s Going On?
January 15, 2009
Like most, I watched the Golden Globe Awards last Sunday. I usually don’t watch the Awards ceremony itself, but I love to tune in to the pre-event runway to see what everyone is wearing. The whole event seemed rather tame this year. Probably no one wanted to stand out as looking too expensive in this recession. Jennifer Lopez, looked rediculous in her to-the-navel gown. Unlike her infamous green Versace gown of years ago, this one looked like she had been wrapped in aluminium foil. She could barely move for fear of something falling out, and unfortunately, she’s not back to her fighting weight since the babies. It was not a good look.
The star that had my eyes popping out though, was Renee Zellweger. "What is she wearing?" "What am I looking at?" Her Carolina Herrera dress had an oh-so sheer black bodice that was so sheer you were instantly drawn to the bra she was wearing. At first, I thought she had a strapless bra on, but upon closer review saw vertical lines that were a tell tail sign boning was present. She was wearing a nude strapless bustier.
Being in the underwear business, I had to wonder if this was the best choice. I later read that her ensemble was actually a blouse and skirt. I think this bustier was not the best choice because your eye immediately went to it. Only later did you pull back to take in her entire outfit. Instead, I would have put a nude crewneck tank over this bustier to remove the sweetheart neckline and give the total illusion of nude. Or, an alternative would have been to wear a camisole in a different color if you didn’t want the totally nude look.
I do give Renee big points for risk. With the flashing lights, you run the risk of your lingerie standing out under sheer outfits. She selected something that at least afforded some modesty, and looked pretty if seen.
Find camisoles at HerRoom in these departments:
Camisoles
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Posted by Tomima at 8:26am
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Why Your Underwires Pop Out
January 06, 2009
Underwires working their way out of a bra is not an uncommon occurrance. My Customer Service team receives emails and phone calls about this very issue quite frequently. Though this phenomenon is usually blamed on the manufacturer, you will be surprised to learn that in most cases, it is the owner of the bra who is to blame.
The number one reason underwires come out is because you’re wearing a bra with too large a band size. That’s right. A bra should fit snuggly around a woman’s torso and not move even when the wearer is moving. When a band size is too large, it will shift and move around a woman’s body. The metal of the underwire is now moving and rubbing against the casing covering the underwire. Eventually, the underwire will wear its way through the casing and pop out. In this scenario, it is not uncommon for a woman in a too-large band size to see her underwire poke out after about an hour of wear in severe cases, and about a month or two in more mild cases.
Another cause for a popped underwire is improper laundering. A bra should always be laundered in a laundry bag with its hooks and eyes attached, and never put in a dryer. The underwire can catch in the holes of the washing machine drum or get twisted around other clothing. This type of strain can not only change the shape of your underwires, but can push the underwire to one end and force it out of its casing. The dryer is always a no-no with bras. Many times the casing used inside a bra to protect you from your underwires is made in a different fabric than the rest of the bra. If put in the dryer, this fabric, usually made with cotton, will shrink. The channel holding your underwire has now shrunk, so your underwire has nowhere to go but out.
Of course, bras are not meant to last a lifetime. So, older bras with a fair amount of wear might eventually see a wire poke out. When this happens, it’s a sign that you need a new bra. Bras with larger cup sizes have more strain on them and will wear out sooner than say a B or C cup size. This is why it’s always recommended to have 4 bras rotating through the week. Allowing a bra at least 24 hours between wearings gives the fabric time to bounce back to its original shape, helping it last longer.
Now, there are some errors that can be made by the manufacturer as well. For one, the channel fabric covering the underwire inside the bra can be sewn too tight. The underwire then won’t have enough play and can force itself out one end or the other. Or the underwire selected could be the wrong size. The seamstress might pick up an underwire that is too long for the channel. Again, the wire will force itself out. Of course in this scenario, the wearer would probably notice the wire fitting strangely anyway.
Finally, I want to point out that you really do get what you pay for with bras. The cheaper bras simply do not use the best materials. They will pick a thin fabric for the wire channel that does not hold up but is less expensive. Obviously, the wire will eventually wear through. There are also different qualities of underwires. The good ones have polished rounded edges with covered tips. Less expensive underwires tend to have sharp edges and ends without a cover. Their edges act as a saw cutting through the fabric of your bra.
So, there you have it. Make sure you have the correct band size, launder your bras correctly and wear quality bras from well-known lingerie manufacturers. All of this should help keep your underwires where they belong.
Find underwire bras at HerRoom in these departments:
Bras
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Posted by Tomima at 7:37am
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The New Spacer Foam Being Used in Molded Bras
December 19, 2008
A new lingerie term has popped up recently. The term "spacer foam" is being used when describing some new t-shirt or contour bras. Currently several bras on the market use this spacer foam as the fabric in their seamless bras. So, what is it?
We all know what corrugated cardboard is. It has a top and bottom layer with a wavy layer between the two to give the cardboard a thickness. Well, spacer foam is very similar. Actually knit on a machine, spacer foam has a top and bottom layer with filaments in between that can be adjusted to create a thickness to the knit. So, basically, little air pockets are created and this spacer foam has a very cushiony feel to the hand.
This is actually quite revolutionary in the industry. More and more, the contour or t-shirt bra has become every woman’s staple in her lingerie drawer because she likes the modesty and shape it provides. Traditionally, a contour bra uses two pieces of 
fabric which are then glued to a thin foam to create the cups. The problem has always been with the lighter colored fabrics, especially white. Once the glue hits the air, it turns yellow. This is why it was almost impossible to find a white t-shirt bra. The creation of spacer foam or spacer fabric eliminates the layering and gluing of three pieces of fabric. Therefore, a white bra with modesty padding is now a possibility. Additionally, the thickness and density of spacer foam can be regulated at the knitting machine. Thus new padded bras can now be created that don’t require additional padding.
Another advantage to spacer foam is that it allows air to pass through. This makes bras with spacer foam much more comfortable to wear. Contour bras traditionally do not breath, and thus became hot, with moisture getting trapped inside the cups.
Currently spacer foam or spacer fabric is very expensive due to the fact that far more yarn goes into the making of it than traditional knits, and more time is required on the knitting machines. There is also an added expense in molding this fabric into a cup shape using a special finishing process. However the benefits of being lighter weight, breathable, and able to be made in light fabrics seems to justify the added expense. One final note; there is a cheaper version of spacer foam on the market. However, because it is not the real thing, it does not perform the same or keep its shape as long. So, spacer foam is an exciting new innovation to the lingerie industry. I predict you will see spacer foam replacing most or all contour or t-shirt bras in the near future.
Find bras at HerRoom in these departments:
Bras
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Posted by Tomima at 9:50am
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