Archive for March, 2009

Books on Boobs

March 30th, 2009 by Carissa Rose
Being a boob-girl, I find it fun to read books about lingerie and enlightening to read books about the female breast. I’m a sucker for eye-candy (People Magazine at the Salon) so the pictures in the lingerie books are the best for me.

  • Lingerie in Vogue since 1910. One has to go goo-goo for all the photos as this book chronicles the lingerie pictures in Vogue Magazine over the past century. Its not a new nor recent book (so few of the books I read are new/recent) but it needn’t be because the pictures are retro and vintage and yummy.
  • Uplift: the Bra in America. Fascinating read on the history of the bra in the States. Written from a research standpoint by two university professors, this book offers insight into the plight of the American woman as the first bra came on the scene, how she turned on herself when the undergarment vanished again, during the sixties, to the bra’s current status.
With the increasing occurrence of breast cancer, breast health books are prolific on the market. These books are not those. These works present the facts in a fun and lighthearted way.

  • Stacked: a 32DDD Reports from the Front. This book is absolutely hilarious and can be a pretty quick read. It opened my eyes to our culture’s fascination with the female breast and what women go through to attain the bust-line of their liking. Best of all you will laugh out loud!!

  • bOObs: A Guide to Your Girls. Elisabeth Squires is fastly becoming, if she hasn’t already achieved it, the best known boob expert around. Her book is written with a mix of historical research and interviews of today’s women, with all sizes, shapes, and ages considered. Elisabeth taught me that I am a boobiesexual – you’ll have to read the book to know the definition of the term! Also Elisabeth’s daughter is a BH girl. I can not sing of Elisabeth’s praises enough, both her and her work are wonderful.
These are just a handful, really my faves, of books available on our fascinating topic. Do you have any good bra/breast book recommendations? I’d be fascinated to know what they are.
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Bra Makeover

March 23rd, 2009 by Carissa Rose
Here in the Dallas area, Bratique Helene offers a personal bra shopping service to our clients. As you know, when it comes to the full bust, its almost like one has to be or have been well-endowed herself in order to know our pain. Its akin to wanting a woman OB/midwife who has delivered a baby herself before she delivers your baby. I have witnessed countless lingerie sales people, in both large department stores and small boutiques, that don’t know their D’s from their G’s so to speak, which frustrates the full bust bra buyer.

The Before Bra. This woman is a standard small on the bottom, usually a size 6 and sometimes a size 4. She is not short in stature either, about 5 feet 5 inches tall. This terrible bra creates a bust mound – a real term that garment pattern drafting books use in reference to the bustline. We use it as a negative term, in that you don’t want a bust mound, you want a bustline.


Talk about lift!!! This is the deal: lifting the boobs creates a waist, which immediately makes you look slimmer. A bust mound is an eye catcher, people will definitely notice a pair of low and and large boobs, so go for it if that’s the effect you’re wanting. Overall her bustline looks closer to her body’s proportion. We call this a silhouette makeover. Try it, it works wonders and is a lot cheaper than surgery or pills. Just FYI, her size is 32GG.

We have clients that immediately say, “wow, I look smaller” when they have on a well fitting, supportive, and often times seamed bra.

Please contact us – Bratique Helene – if you need input and counsel on bras. And if you’re in the D/FW metroplex, call us and we’ll go shopping!!!

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How to Put on a Bra – Graphic

March 17th, 2009 by Carissa Rose

When I was a child and witnessed my mom putting on her bra, I swore to myself I’d never put on a bra like that, what silly nonsense that whole bending over thing was!!

A solid 30 years later and here I am, relatively neked (that’s Texan for naked) from the top up to show you just how to bend down and put on a bra.
First of all I’m not a fan of putting on your bra like this, fastening it in the front and twisting it around and pulling it up:

It stretches out the back band, which is ever so important in keeping our full busts up lifted on the body.

I just want to say NOONE looks good bent over like this, but I am willing to sacrifice looking good to illustrate how important it is that you get the underwire/bottom band of the bra underneath the entirety of the breast tissue, especially when there is a lot of breast tissue!



Standing back up to an upright position, fasten the bra. If this procedure of putting on a bra is new to you, don’t worry, with lots of practice you too will get it. Which means after a couple of put-ons your arms will be accustomed to fastening a bra from the back.



DON’T stuff the breast tissue into the bra, I see this all the time. Women put on the bra and fasten it, then as if stuffing a turkey they push and shove the tissue, which only makes the bust have a down & out appearance on the body.



Here I am pointing to the nipple location that one achieves by stuffing the breast into the bra.



Instead, LIFT the breast and place the nipple right in the cross-section of the seams of the bra. This gives the bust a great upfront shape and hopefully the slight pressure of the seam intersection prevents and covers the extension of the nipple (read cold, headlights, etc.).



And VOILA, you have a great fitting bra and a good looking bustline when you know how to put on a bra!!

Please contact Bratique Helene if you have any questions about specific bra brands, the proper bra fit, or the best bra type for your body.

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Bratique Helene Video

March 1st, 2009 by Carissa Rose

Do you have a full bustline, but not a full figure? If so you will really enjoy watching our video. This video is a treat for women who have a busty figure and yearn to wear tailored, woven clothing. The busty gal is a beautiful body with curves, but in our society “curvy” has come to symbolize plus size. I myself am a fluffy size 12-14 and reach the top in most brands and don’t even fit in other brands (sadly), but am not plus size. And really its my top half that has the nice curve, not so much the bottom, nor the middle for that matter.
No longer is a woman “too busty” for structured tops, clothing and jackets to look good on her. Bratique Helene clothes provide an instant and inexpensive silhouette makeover. Our clothing line really does optimize your assets and enhance your female form. Try it and you’ll see.

And remember, the bra is the foundation, please contact us if you need help with the best bra for you. We encourage you to embrace your endowment.

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