Seattle here we come!

Hello Seattle friends and bra lovers! Intimate Underpinnings will be visiting your town the weekend of March 5th and 6th. We will be spending Saturday afternoon and Sunday morning and afternoon conducting fittings and initial consultations. If you are interested in scheduling an initial consultation with us, please contact info@intimateunderpinnings.com. We look forward to seeing you!

Embrace the lace in 2016

 Happy 2016 everyone! I haven't posted much lately because Intimate Underpinnings has been moving and getting settled in our new sewing studio in SW Portland! We are thrilled about the move and have created a wonderful and inviting space to create all of your unique, custom pieces. With the move complete, I decided to make myself a new bra. It's been awhile since I've made one for myself, and I have been holding onto this small amount of lace that I snagged from Beverly the last time I was up in Ontario, Canada. I knew I wanted to use it to make a special piece for myself, and with my small bust, I really didn't need anymore than what this small piece provided. 

I was inspired by a lovely bra that I discovered several years ago, and thought this lace would be perfect to test out some techniques that I haven't shown you yet. I enjoy vertical seam bras, as they compliment a small bust and it was the most appropriate for my vision. Here is my inspiration photo.

Now to decide which fabric/s, elastics, and findings will compliment the lace. I have this lovely modal in gold, which is great for panties and interior bra pockets. It's much too stretchy for a bra, but it is SO soft and the color was perfect. I decided to use it anyway. I'm always impressed that I can find and match the exact color of my project with Gutterman thread. It puts a big smile on my face. 

Here are the pieces all cut out and ready to go...

The lace has more stretch than I can use to create the sheer illusion on the upper cup area, and the modal has more stretch than I can use for the back band. So, I used beige sheer cup lining to attach the lace, and to give me something to sew the gold modal and edge lace to. My skin is pretty pale, so you can't even see the sheer cup lining when I wear the bra. The lace straps are also supported by sheer cup lining, and I used sheer cup lining to to stabilize the bridge of the bra, as well. It worked fantastically, and does not stretch at all! Finally, I decided to use a beige lightweight power net to layer under the modal for the back band. It now provides the kind of support that I like to have in my bra band. Here is the final product, as modeled by Bettie, my dress form. Enjoy.

Happy Thanksgiving from Intimate Underpinnings

As I fly to Southern California for Thanksgiving, I begin reflecting on what I am thankful for this year. First and foremost, I am thankful for my amazing clients, who have shared their stories and creative bra ideas with me. And, who have in turn, allowed me free range of creativity in designing unique and special lingerie for them. I am so thankful for my business teachers, mentors, networking groups, and fellow small business owners. The support that you have all given me during this first year of business has been tremendous. My suppliers, and there are many, deserve a big thank you from Intimate Underpinnings because without them, we would have a tough time bringing that special component to your undergarments. And most importantly, I am thankful for all of my incredible friends, family, and co-workers who have been behind Intimate Underpinnings from the start, and who continue to support me and the business with each new step that we take in our journey. 

I hope everyone has a lovely Thanksgiving, and their own special reason for being thankful this year. Thanks for sharing in ours.

XO

Holly

New fabrics for fall

I love searching for new fabrics. When I discover something unique, something beautiful, or just something with a great feel, I get very excited. During my short visit to Toronto, I found some great bra fabrics. Here is just a tease of some of the new laces that flew home with me.

And check out these cool power nets. The polka dots are velvet! Power nets make great back bands in your bras.

 

There are many more fabric choices to view during your consultation and the bra making process. We look forward to creating a bra that fits with your personality.

Shout out to the large breasted ladies

You know who you are. Whether the cups of your bra aren't fitting your breasts correctly, or your straps are doing too much of the heavy lifting and leaving divots in your shoulders. Maybe your back band is digging in around your rib cage and causing "back fat", or perhaps it's not snug enough and causing you back and shoulder discomfort. Have you gone to wearing sports bras because it's the most comfortable thing you can find in your size? Whatever your frustrations with your existing bra may be, I understand your pain. 

As a custom bra maker, it is my goal to help you feel beautiful, comfortable, and confident in your bra, and provide you with the best fitting bra that I can. Unfortunately, the issues I just mentioned don't help you in feeling any of those things, or very few at best. My professional training as a bra maker has equipped me with the knowledge and tools to create a pattern specific to you and your measurements, as well as providing the internal structure that your bra needs to do the job that it is meant to do. And ladies, believe me when I say that I can also make your bra beautiful in addition to functional. Schedule your initial consultation with Intimate Underpinnings to begin the process of creating your custom bra today.

Custom prostheses and breast forms

This week has been spent working on advanced bra making techniques with my teacher in Ontario, specifically those that provide internal structure and support in your bra. Not only did I learn some new tricks for adding pockets to your bra, but we also worked on creating custom breast forms, or prostheses. 

The great thing about custom breast forms is that, well, it is customized to your body. We work with you to get the correct size, shape, and weight, so that your body will feel a sense of balance once again. The breast forms that we create are not silicone based, meaning you can wear them in a hot tub, still look and feel your best, and not have to worry about them leaking or popping. They will never shift and move around in your bra, since they are made specially for you, your body, and your bra. And to take it one step further, we are able to sew them into your custom bra, if that is something you would prefer. 

New pricing and options will be added to the website soon for pocketed bras and breast forms. Check back often to stay up to date.

Breast cancer awareness month

At Intimate Underpinnings, we have been working diligently to be able to "support" breast cancer survivors with custom bras. On October 1st, the start of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, Intimate Underpinnings participated in a training to become a Certified Mastectomy Fitter. This event was hosted by Amoena, a leader in prostheses and breast enhancing products. Such good timing that they were in Portland, OR training mastectomy fitters right before I head up to Toronto to study with Beverly on advanced mastectomy and pocketed bra techniques. 

We learned about all of the different surgeries that can take place when cancer is present and how the body is impacted during the removal of cancerous cells and tissue. We also went through various exercises on fitting the Amoena brand prostheses to different individuals. It was a very eye opening experience, and I feel very confident in fitting our clients with prosthetics post surgery. I was very surprised that only a small percentage of prostheses are covered by insurance. It is unfortunate that insurance does not let us take women from an okay fit to a great fit after all that they have just gone through. Hopefully, this will change in the future because we all deserve to feel beautiful.

The most important and impactful part of fitting prostheses post surgery is of course the fit of the bra. If you don't have a great fitting bra, the prosthesis will not support or look as natural as we want. There are some good pocketed bra option out there from various companies, but the unique thing about the pocketed bras made by Intimate Underpinnings is that, like everything else, we customize the bra to you, your needs, and your style choices. We presently make mastectomy, or pocketed bras. Check back next week when I share some of the new bra options for those with prosthetics or breast enhancers.