The history of bra at the time of The Second World War had a major impact on clothing. Military women of lower
rank were fitted with uniform underwear. Advertising appealed to both
patriotism and the concept that bras and girdles were somehow 'protection'.
Dress codes appeared – for example, Lockheed informed their workers that bras
must be worn because of 'good taste, anatomical support, and morale'. Military
terminology, such as the highly structured conically pointed Torpedo or Bullet
(or even Cone) bra started to appear in the 1940-50s, designed for 'maximum
projection'. A new image was the Sweater women, a busty and wholesome 'women
next door' whose tight fitting outergarments accentuated her artificially
enhanced curves, while under and outer wires appeared. Sweater women often wore
bullet bras. The image portrayed by actresses like Jane Russell of the
"lift and separate" design bra went on to influence the development of
later brassieres.
The war presented unique challenges for the industry, women's occupations
shifted dramatically, with far more employed outside the home and in industry,
while limitations on material availability had a large impact on design.
Advertising, promotion, and consumerism were limited but started to appear
directed at minorities (e.g., Ebony in 1947) and teens. Many
manufacturers only survived by making tents and parachutes in addition to bras.
American industry was now freed from European influences, particularly French,
and it became more distinctive. Again there was concern about the use of badly
needed steel in corsets and the British Government carried out a survey of
women's usage of underwear in 1942. This showed that "on average, women
owned 1.5 brassieres (housewives 0.9 and agricultural workers 2.2)".
Following the Second World War, material availability, production and
marketing, and demand slowly recovered. A postwar baby boom created a demand
for maternity and nursing bras, and television provided new promotional
opportunities.
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