Wapsi Square Forum

Hey ladies, maybe this situation (or something similar) has happened to you once or twice in your life....
Occasionally, even with a good quality bra, things can go wrong! Yesterday at work(I teach restaurant job skills and culinary arts to adults with disabilities) and I was lifting a really heavy bowl for the 12 qt. mixer, and I heard a little snap noise. Immediately I though a strap had given way(easy fix, I carry a sewing kit in my purse at ALL TIMES! It has saved me and others from many potentially embarrassing situations) I noticed right away this was not so. I went about my workday, was in front of my entire group demonstrating knife skills, and I felt a sudden painful stab, and I knew right away it was that darn underwire! Once you have been stabbed/scratched by a stray underwire, you never forget it! I managed to teach the last hour of the class trying to pretend I wasn't being stabbed in the chest constantly, until I could get to the bathroom to check out the damage. Underwire had just snapped in two right in the center, sewing kit can't fix that! Luckily I had my purse with me, and even luckier I carry a huge bag with half the household inside. Duct tape saved the day! I managed to get through work without anymore stabs, and the duct tape held up even in a hot kitchen where I am constantly moving. Thank you duct tape! So what I would like to know, anybody have any tips for bra emergencies? I like to be prepared, and I'm always looking for excuse to add a new something to my bag!

Dacquoise11 wrote:Hey ladies, maybe this situation (or something similar) has happened to you once or twice in your life....
Occasionally, even with a good quality bra, things can go wrong! Yesterday at work(I teach restaurant job skills and culinary arts to adults with disabilities) and I was lifting a really heavy bowl for the 12 qt. mixer, and I heard a little snap noise. Immediately I though a strap had given way(easy fix, I carry a sewing kit in my purse at ALL TIMES! It has saved me and others from many potentially embarrassing situations) I noticed right away this was not so. I went about my workday, was in front of my entire group demonstrating knife skills, and I felt a sudden painful stab, and I knew right away it was that darn underwire! Once you have been stabbed/scratched by a stray underwire, you never forget it! I managed to teach the last hour of the class trying to pretend I wasn't being stabbed in the chest constantly, until I could get to the bathroom to check out the damage. Underwire had just snapped in two right in the center, sewing kit can't fix that! Luckily I had my purse with me, and even luckier I carry a huge bag with half the household inside. Duct tape saved the day! I managed to get through work without anymore stabs, and the duct tape held up even in a hot kitchen where I am constantly moving. Thank you duct tape! So what I would like to know, anybody have any tips for bra emergencies? I like to be prepared, and I'm always looking for excuse to add a new something to my bag!

Sorry to say- the only bra 'emergencies' I have ever dealt with is getting the damn thing of the girl...usually with her laughing at my antics...

A piece of a wire coat hanger can be used in conjunction with the duct tape to splint the broken underwire like a broken bone.

I'm not a lady, I'm just a Boy Scout/engineer, and that's the first thing that came to mind. A unwound and folded-up coat hanger can be mighty useful.

GlytchMeister wrote:A piece of a wire coat hanger can be used in conjunction with the duct tape to splint the broken underwire like a broken bone.

That could be...problematic.

Using something as a "splint" would work for a while, maybe a day but when the underwire snaps, the bra is pretty much done for! I did have one that the underwires were beginning to poke out the sides, I pulled them both out and was able to keep it as an "around the house" type of bra, I think that only works if it's the stretchy kind!

The only thing I can really think of off the top of my head is to get something like a flexible length of plastic tubing, slide it over both ends of the broken wire to hold them together, and then maybe fuse it all together. I don't know how practical that might be, since I have no idea how the wire is arranged or attached. You might end up having to cut loose a lot of the wire to expose it, then fix the wire, then stitch the wire back into place again. Which might be more trouble than it would be worth.

Speaking as not-a-bra-user, what issues do underwires solve? I'd imagine it's something to do with shaping rather than (up)lift, but I remember seeing various ads for the Quadra-Boob and Side-Spill problems with poorly fitted bras. I realize that breasts will never hover just under the collarbone forever, but is width vs depth really that much of a problem in the real world?

Dave wrote:

GlytchMeister wrote:A piece of a wire coat hanger can be used in conjunction with the duct tape to splint the broken underwire like a broken bone.

That could be...problematic.

wat

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mommie_Dearest

There's probably a polysyllabic medical-Latin word for a psychotic break triggered by an acute aversion to wire coat-hangers, but I don't know what it is.

Dave wrote:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mommie_Dearest

There's probably a polysyllabic medical-Latin word for a psychotic break triggered by an acute aversion to wire coat-hangers, but I don't know what it is.

Joan Crawford syndrome

It's great that we’ve contributed to this thread, those of us who don’t actually wear brassieres- but might we have bigfoot'ed it into not hearing from actual bra-wearing forum menbers?

(I love to fix stuff, but I don't wear one...)

TazManiac wrote:It's great that we’ve contributed to this thread, those of us who don’t actually wear brassieres- but might we have bigfoot'ed it into not hearing from actual bra-wearing forum menbers?

(I love to fix stuff, but I don't wear one...)

I will be the first to say I would love to hear from the female half of the population. I know Miss Julie, Dinky, and Yana might have an opinion to share on this...

Plastic corset boning. If you're good at sewing, replace all underwire as soon as you get them. You lose a little bit of strength, but not getting shanked by your support group is a bonus.

Oooh, that's a good idea

I can tell you from experience, plastic can stab just as bad as metal! Lol!

I have read that using a moleskin pad (from the footcare dept) on the bra where you're being stabbed is an adeqate quick fix.
Heh, now I can see it-an alarm goes off. "Quick, it's a BRA EMERGENCY!" And a cape wearing Lydia. "DISPATCH THE NINJAS!"

chicgeek wrote: Heh, now I can see it-an alarm goes off. "Quick, it's a BRA EMERGENCY!" And a cape wearing Lydia. "DISPATCH THE NINJAS!"

Um, who is Lydia? And how is a cape wearing her?

Moleskin's good stuff, though. Used to use that for hand blisters on canoe-camping trips.

Monica had been using Lydia's creations well before she took Shelley to her shop in July 2004. The ninjas were especially active on Tina's visit in May 2012.

AmriloJim wrote:Monica had been using Lydia's creations well before she took Shelley to her shop in July 2004. The ninjas were especially active on Tina's visit in May 2012.

Oh, right! Thanks!

Been a while since my last archive dive, obviously.

Why has nobody discussed using heavy plastic corset boning to replace the wires before wearing them? Tape the ends so they slide through, then remove and stitch closed.

I've replaced most of the wires(unless I know the company enamel coats them) with corset boning because my base metal allergies kill bras. I'm seriously tempted to cold forge some titanium wire and replace it with that because rigid and non-reactive metals are my friend.