takes into account a women’s
frame, depth and volume. Their
customers are given a special
Optimeasure to determine their
size. This system allows Optifit
to handcraft a custom, wire-free
bra for each customer, without
sacrificing comfort or lift. While
conventional bras take a 2-D
approach, measuring only the
back size and the cup size.
here are 504 possible
bra sizes with the Optifit
measurement system.
As grand as that sounds,
it makes perfect sense. Women
come in all different shapes and
sizes, and they also have unique
body types. You can be the same
exact dress size as someone else
and try on the same size dress,
but it might look different on you
if you have a different body type.
In outerwear this is a no-brainer,
but it’s refreshing to see similar
logic applied to undergarment
design. It’s equally, if not more
refreshing, to see health play a
major role in the design as well.
“What we do is very different
from what has gone on in
the past. Bras used to change
to support what the fashion
industry dictated,” Sue says. “A
different decade would focus
on a different feminine ideal. At
T
the turn of the century, we had
corsets, very heavily shaped.
Ten years later we had flapper
girls with no shape - just a tube.
Ten years after that, breasts
were styled and formed. In the
60’s we had Twiggy, again with
no shape. It keeps evolving,
that fashion industry mandate
to stylize. We know it’s not a
good idea to style a breast.”
While some undergarments are
obviously designed for a certain
segment of society (young, old,
plus or petite), Sue says that
Optifit embraces all. “This is
for everyone. Every woman
can wear this,” she explains. “A
conventional bra will compress
to the chest wall. What needs
to happen is to hold the breast
away from the body in its correct
position. Everyone can benefit
from that.”
t’s no surprise that
her concept has been
welcomed by so many. “A
lot of girls are quite happy
with what’s out there and what’s
available, and that’s fine. But
millions more not happy, they
are in pain. The sad part is, often
they think there is something
wrong their own body! The fact
is, if you are wearing something
that isn’t designed for your
I