From Grape Baskets to Melon Holders Shana Lockett | Staff Writer 3/01/02 The women's under garment industry has gotten to be a very extensive one. I actually find it to be quite useful. It is much cheaper and more convenient than going out and getting breast enhancement surgery. I must say it is definitely safer too. The bra industry is a huge one. I am positive they make a ton of money. Men do not realize how expensive bras are. For a good bra a women can spend at the least twenty or thirty dollars. Women certainly do not want to buy a cheap bra only to have them fall apart, not support you right, or hurt. An under wire poking you in the side does not feel too good. Bras are much more technical than most people think. The bra has to fit around your upper torso the right way. It has to be the right cup size. If your bra does not fit the right way it can cause you to have muscle tension, headaches, and back problems. Not to mention just having large breasts can cause back problems. Imagine how men would act if they had to carry around all that extra weight. Therefore, if a women's bra size is 38 AA, it does not mean she has large breasts, it simply means she is larger around, so don't get too excited. Bras have adjustable straps, hopefully. If the bra does not have adjustable straps, it is a pain because the straps fall off your shoulder or are too tight or too loose. Some bras hook in the front and others hook in the back. Most women prefer bras that hook in front because they are much easier to put on. Since women do not have eyes in the back of their heads to see what they are doing when they bend their arms behind their back to put their bra on. I read a funny article by a man about how it is not fair that women have and use so many devices to make their breasts appear larger. Men do not use enhancers. I do not think many "enhancers" exist, but if they did, I do not think they would use them. The author talked about how women fool men by looking like a D-cup when they are really an A-cup. I guess we do have an advantage over them in that area. A padded bra can enhance our appearance to some people. It is so easy to do too. The only problem is women look a little silly if one day they wear a tank top with no bra and then the next day sport a major padded bra. It is also tough to keep the look up if you are wearing a bathing suit. One cannot forget what happens once you are in the bedroom in front of someone with no clothes on. Most breasts are not perky. That is one of the main reasons for bras. Breasts are made of fat, which is heavy so naturally they sag, unless you are an A-cup. I think A-cups are actually blessed. When you lay down your breasts do not disappear; they stay put. You can go bra-less as often as you like. However, it is harder to find bras in your size. Women: In reference to bras, I say do what you want as long as you are secure in yourself and the way you look. We should wear the push-up bras for ourselves because we want to look good. If it boosts your confidence then wear it. Do not feel like you have to fit a standard of what other women's breast look like. Especially, do not do that nowadays since the rate of breast enhancement surgery is way up. You cannot compare yourself to silicon. Types of bras: Push-up bras Miracle bras Water bras Gel-filled bras Air-pump bras Padded bras Strapless bras Stick on bras (aka: pasties) Push up bras are as the name state--they are used to push up our breasts, and make them appear bigger. Most of them have a ton of padding in them, and usually have underwires too. The underwire keeps your breast up and not down. Water, air, and gel bras all make women's breast appear larger than they naturally are. Some of the air bras can be pumped up; yes, sort of like a basketball. Some water and air bras are already fixed. That means you can't adjust them. Water bras do sort of get cold, but they don't freeze and I have never heard of one popping except for on television. Strapless bras are worn with tank tops and types of shirts wear you don't want straps to be shown. Strapless bras aren't as supportive either, and make women's breast look abnormal. There are some tanks that come with a built-in bra--many women like those. Here are some interesting links about this topic: Article about men's thoughts on women's bras: http://www.askmen.com/love/love_tip/51_love_tip.html More from askmen.com: http://www.askmen.com/fashion/austin/46b_fashion_style.html Different types of bras: http://teenadvice.about.com/library/weekly/aabyb103101.htm "In 1995 361,705,000 bras worth a total of $3,334,055,000.00 were sold."- source: NPD American Shoppers Panel, State of New York Department of Correctional Services, Compiled by J.R. Romanko