A bralette is a lightweight

bra A bra, short for brassiere or brassière (, ; ), is a type of form-fitting underwear that is primarily used to support and cover a woman's breasts. A typical bra consists of a chest band that wraps around the torso, supporting two breast cups ...

without an

underwire An underwire bra (also under wire bra, under-wire bra, or underwired bra) is a brassiere that utilizes a thin, semi-circular strip of rigid material fitted inside the brassiere fabric to help lift, separate, shape, and support a woman's breasts. ...

, designed primarily for

comfort Comfort is a state of physical or psychological ease, often characterized by the absence of hardship. Individuals experiencing a lack of comfort are typically described as uncomfortable or in discomfort. A degree of psychological comfort can b ...

. Bralettes are also sometimes worn as

outerwear Outerwear is clothing and accessories worn outdoors, or clothing designed to be worn as protective layers outside other garments, as opposed to underwear. It can be worn for formal or casual occasions, or as warm clothing during winter. List of ou ...

top Top most commonly refers to: * Top, a basic term of orientation, distinguished from bottom, front, back, and sides * Spinning top, a ubiquitous traditional toy * Top (clothing), clothing designed to be worn over the torso * Mountain top, a moun ...

,Linda Dyett
The Bralette Is Back. This Time Blouses Are Optional
''The New York Times'', 2019-07-31 and are also designed as

undershirt An undershirt in American English (vest in British and South African English, banyan in the Indian Subcontinent, or singlet in Australia and New Zealand), is an article of underwear worn underneath a dress shirt so as to protect it from body s ...

s for girls developing breasts. The size of the bralette also differs from that of a bra: Instead of band width and cup size, normal clothing sizes are commonly used (S-XL or even larger).

Popularity

In the 2010s and early 2020s, bralettes and soft bras started gaining in popularity, at the expense of underwired and padded bras. Some brands such as

Victoria's Secret Victoria's Secret is an American lingerie, clothing and beauty products, beauty retailer. Founded in 1977 by a Stanford graduate student and his wife, Roy Raymond, Roy and Gaye Raymond, the company's five lingerie stores were sold to Les Wexner i ...

failed to follow this trend and adjust, as a result of which their sales decreased significantly. In 2017, the sales of cleavage-enhancing bras fell by 45% while, at

Marks & Spencer Marks and Spencer plc (commonly abbreviated to M&S and colloquially known as Marks & Sparks or simply Marks) is a major British multinational retailer based in London, England, that specialises in selling clothing, beauty products, home produc ...

, sales of wireless bras grew by 40%. Some have attributed the rising popularity of bralettes to a new focus on the "athletic body, health and wellbeing", more than "about the

male gaze In feminist theory, the male gaze is the act of depicting women and the world in the visual arts and in literature from a masculine, heterosexual perspective that presents and represents women as sexual objects for the pleasure of the heterosex ...

," while others suggest a connection to the #MeToo movement. Bralettes also became popular during the

COVID-19 lockdowns During the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic, a number of Non-pharmaceutical intervention (epidemiology), non-pharmaceutical interventions, particularly lockdowns (encompassing stay-at-home orders, curfews, quarantines, and similar socie ...

due to a focus on comfort while

remote work Remote work (also called telecommuting, telework, work from or at home, WFH as an initialism, hybrid work, and other terms) is the practice of work (human activity), working at or from one's home or Third place, another space rather than from ...

ing.Alicia Lansom
Trade In Your Underwired Bra For Something A Little More Comfortable
''Refinery29'', 2020-04-19

References

{{Lingerie, state=collapsed Brassieres Clubwear Undergarments Women's clothing

Popularity

See also

References