Christiane Braun was instrumental in the success of the ‘Cotton Sensation' bra: "As cup bras are also always shaping, it was particularly important to us to achieve a naturally round shape. After countless fittings with many women in different sizes, the 'Cotton Sensation' bra was created, which makes a beautiful cleavage without pushing."
BRA GUIDE
HANDMADE STEP BY STEP
It's a long way before a bra is on sale in a store. Because the development of a new bra is complex and challenging. It takes a team with a lot of experience, tact and a good instinct. Bra developer Frauke Nagel uses the 'Cotton Sensation' t-shirt bra to explain how a new bra is made, how long it takes to develop and what the challenges are.
Bis ein BH zum Verkauf im Laden hängt, ist es ein weiter Weg. Denn die Entwicklung eines neuen BH's ist komplex und herausfordernd. Es braucht ein Team mit viel Erfahrung, Fingerspitzengefühl und einem guten Gespür. BH-Entwicklerin Frauke Nagel erklärt anhand des 'Cotton Sensation' T-Shirt BH's, wie ein neuer BH entsteht, wie lange die Entwicklung dauert und welche Herausforderungen es dabei gibt.
1. MOCK-UPS
It depends on the bra model. A bra with a cup is special because you have to find the right cup first. For the new 'Cotton Sensation' bra I visited all European cup manufacturers at the international trade fair in Paris and ordered a few samples by eye. We made cuts to match these sample cups and had bras sewn. These are so-called mock-ups, i.e. incomplete prototypes. These test patterns are used to assess the fit of the cup and this can only be done by trying it on.
2. TRY-ONS
Since we are mostly women in the company and cover almost all sizes, we can easily do the fittings in-house. The cup for the 'Cotton Sensation' t-shirt bra inspired us from the start: it has a nice round shape and brings the breast forward without pushing. When trying on, we always put on a t-shirt to see how the bra shapes the figure and if anything shows. We loved the shape of the cup, but the cut of the cup wasn't ideal. Our supplier therefore had to create a new mould, which is time-consuming and expensive. The mold is cut out of aluminium under computer control and is the tool used to manufacture the bra cup.
3. GRADING
Once we had a well-fitting prototype, we could start grading. Grading is the development of the different sizes, because with our prototype we only had one size. A new mould has to be made for each cup size. In the months that followed, we developed size by size and tried it on and changed it again and again until the bra fit well in all sizes.
4. FURTHER TRY-ONS AND WEAR TESTS
It is also important that we try on each size, e.g. 75C, not just on one woman, but on several. Because every woman is unique and to ensure that the bra will fit as many women as possible, we have to try the bra on many women when developing the fit. In addition, wear samples are also given out, i.e. the women wear and wash the bra for four weeks and give a personal assessment. The results of these wear samples are evaluated and are included in the product development.
"For us, women's well-being is always at the forefront of our minds when developing a new bra."
STEPHAN HOHMANN
Managing Director at HANRO
INTERVIEW
How long does it take from the idea to the finished bra?
It depends. Do we work with a cut and a material that we know and that has proven itself or do we start with a new cut and new material? The length of the development time is also determined by the demands on the fit. Accordingly, one can expect at least six months up to two years until a finished bra emerges from the idea.
What is the challenge in developing a new bra?
The biggest challenge is the fit. The bra should fit as many women as possible, but every woman is unique and even women with the same bra size can have different body types. Each woman's sensation is also individual. What is comfortable for one woman is itchy for another. It takes time and patience to find a good balance.
How many steps go into making a bra?
It depends on what kind of bra it is, how it is made and how many materials it contains. To stay with the 'Cotton Sensation' T-shirt bra: there is the main fabric, our cotton, which is harvested, washed, spun and then knitted, dyed and finished in our in-house textile production in Vorarlberg, Austria, before the sewing room can cut the fabric to size. The cutting for the cup cover has to be moulded, i.e. it is deformed under heat on special cones and cut to size again. For the cup, polyurethane foam is laminated on both sides with polyester fabric, moulded and cut to size. The elastic ribbons are spun, woven, dyed, finished and cut to size. The sewing itself also contains many individual steps and different types of stitches, which are done on special machines and with a lot of skill. By the way, there are still no machines that can sew bras on their own. It takes experienced seamstresses, every bra is hand-sewn.
Can you say something about the HANRO quality standards for bras?
To ensure that our customers enjoy their HANRO bras for a long time, every material is tested in the laboratory for colour fastness, shrinkage etc. before it is used. In addition, we only use materials that are STANDARD 100 by OEKO-TEX® certified. Our wear tests ensure that the bras can withstand everyday use in private households. The quality controls in the sewing factories make sure that the standard we have developed is also implemented in production. If a quality defect should nevertheless occur, our quality manager takes care of appropriate measures.
How many individual parts does a bra consist of before it is sewn together?
Every bra has many ingredients. There are parts that you see, such as the clasp, and other parts that disappear into the product and are not visible, such as bands to stabilise edges and seams. The number of individual parts depends on how elaborately the bra is designed. The 'Cotton Sensation' T-shirt bra has 29 individual parts consisting of two fabrics and 14 different accessories.
"The perfect bra should fit so well that you forget about it."
FRAUKE NAGEL
Designer and product developer
The 'Cotton Sensation' The 'Cotton Sensation' bra is sewn together by hand from 29 individual pieces. Only experienced seamstresses can do this. Some of our seamstresses in Hungary have been working in this field for 25 years and pass on their knowledge from generation to generation.
"Our design, product management and product development team consists of 100 per cent strong women. We create unique lingerie day after day - by women for women."
ELENA PANAGOPOULOS
HANRO Designer
THE RESULT
Cotton lingerie is part of the HANRO DNA and an important part of every collection. Now we have redesigned our padded 'Cotton Sensation' bra and given it a new fit. It is also wonderful to combine with many briefs from other basic ranges. As one of the few padded cotton bras on the market, this modern T-shirt bra should therefore not be missing from any underwear drawer.