# 2 questions about breasts **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [July 29, 2009, 11:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2-questions-about-breasts/504724 "2009-07-29T23:55:02Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hilarity_n.suze/32/6223_2.png) [@Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hilarity_N.Suze)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2009, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2-questions-about-breasts/504724/21 "2009-07-30T16:47:22Z")
> [@Lynn\_Bodoni](#): > > I had extremely heavy and irregular periods. I never knew when I’d start flowing and dropping clots, so I always wore white panties. It turns out that I had some fairly large but benign fibroids that were causing this problem, and one fibroid was pressing against a nerve in my spine. When I had my hysterectomy, that stopped the periods\*. It’s possible to bleach colored and/or nylon panties, but they will show the effects of the bleach more. I still have a few pair of colored panties that look like someone did a halfassed job of tie-dying them, because my husband put them in with the white load and put bleach in the load. > > \*I was absolutely delighted about this, by the way. Ah, okay. I should have figured this out, having been a victim of this too, except I just threw the stained ones out and bought new ones. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2009, 4:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2-questions-about-breasts/504724/22 "2009-07-30T16:48:28Z")
> [@NoCoolUserName](#): > > [Woody Allen] > They usually come in pairs. > [/Woody] Steve Martin, in wonderment, upon seeing his first Vegas stage show: “There must be… 79 tits up there!” ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2009, 4:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2-questions-about-breasts/504724/23 "2009-07-30T16:50:30Z")
> [@Hilarity\_N.Suze](#): > > Ah, okay. I should have figured this out, having been a victim of this too, except I just threw the stained ones out and bought new ones. If I get blood on mine, it usually just washes out with some All. Or I try to wear my older, or already stained underoos…or towards the end, the black undies, where blood stains will never show! Heh. Come on, we all have period undies, right? ---
**Author:** ![Shodan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Shodan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shodan)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2009, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2-questions-about-breasts/504724/24 "2009-07-30T17:05:13Z")
> [@](#): > > It’s hard to find bras in coffee, though. And they’re pretty soggy when you do. Regards, Shodan ---
**Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2009, 5:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2-questions-about-breasts/504724/25 "2009-07-30T17:36:27Z")
> [@Hilarity\_N.Suze](#): > > Ah, okay. I should have figured this out, having been a victim of this too, except I just threw the stained ones out and bought new ones. I would have been throwing out several pairs a day, on some days. That horrifies my thrifty soul. ---
**Author:** ![Sebastienne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a698b9/32.png) [@Sebastienne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sebastienne)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2009, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2-questions-about-breasts/504724/26 "2009-07-30T19:11:40Z")
Bras come in different colors because the bra purchasers on this planet can be assume to not be Vulcans, and thus have aesthetic, as well as practical, preferences. As far as the visibility issue, I’m very pale and look good in “cool” colors, and find most beige is so far from my skin tone AND being complimentary to it that, were a hint of beige bra strap to show, it would be both conspicuous and ugly. Pale pink calls less attention to itself on me, but doesn’t recover as well if it picks up dye from my clothing. (Amazing what colors will shed dye!) I’m personally fairly obsessive about matching my bras and panties, though I’ve gotten to the point where I’m ok if they at least compliment each other. I dress for me, and that includes the things only I see. ---
**Author:** ![cmkeller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmkeller/32/118_2.png) [@cmkeller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmkeller)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2009, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2-questions-about-breasts/504724/27 "2009-07-30T19:53:51Z")
> [@](#): > > It’s hard to find bras in coffee, though. Unless you work in the Playboy Mansion. ---
**Author:** ![Ruffian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/71e660/32.png) [@Ruffian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ruffian)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2009, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2-questions-about-breasts/504724/28 "2009-07-30T20:25:06Z")
**Lynn** , to clarify (and not sound like I’m paralleling Crayola’s ill-named “Flesh” color), I meant “nude” as in the “the color of your skin when nude.” For some, it’s peachy; others, coffee; others still, chocolate, and so on. Huh. Skin color is named after food. Mmm…tasty. And yeah, nude is the best color really under any garment. Sometimes I get bored, though, and enjoy the black shirt/black bra pairing, and so on. And my nude color panties are also my favs…though the ones with cutesy little patterns are fun, too. Just…not under a white skirt. Which then brings the question–why was white the traditional bra color? Seems so darn conspicuous. Add all the lacey crap, and they’re even more conspicuous. Reminds me, I need to go buy maternity/nursing bras. I’m outgrowing my old ones darn quickly, and I crave the comfort of them. Hubby craves the easy-access of them. ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2009, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2-questions-about-breasts/504724/29 "2009-07-30T20:29:49Z")
> [@Ruffian](#): > > Which then brings the question–why was white the traditional bra color? Seems so darn conspicuous. Add all the lacey crap, and they’re even more conspicuous. I wonder, too. White does look a little prettier than nude/beige which tends to be a bit dull. Maybe that’s why? ETA: Dull when you’re just wearing the bra. Obviously, it’s not all that exciting under your clothes. ---
**Author:** ![badbadrubberpiggy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/57b2e6/32.png) [@badbadrubberpiggy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/badbadrubberpiggy)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2009, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2-questions-about-breasts/504724/30 "2009-07-30T21:17:46Z")
> [@Freudian\_Slit](#): > > I wonder, too. White does look a little prettier than nude/beige which tends to be a bit dull. Maybe that’s why? > > ETA: Dull when you’re just wearing the bra. Obviously, it’s not all that exciting under your clothes. Maybe, and it’s easier to bleach out stains. Plus, when people first really started wearing bras as an everyday thing, they would’ve been totally covered by clothes, not peeking out of tank tops or sheer shirts, so the color wouldn’t really matter. ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2009, 12:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2-questions-about-breasts/504724/31 "2009-07-31T00:09:41Z")
> [@badbadrubberpiggy](#): > > Maybe, and it’s easier to bleach out stains. A girl who buys white bras so she can bleach out the stains is my kind of girl. ---
**Author:** ![Captain\_Carrot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f0a364/32.png) [@Captain\_Carrot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Carrot)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2009, 12:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2-questions-about-breasts/504724/32 "2009-07-31T00:31:43Z")
> [@Freudian\_Slit](#): > > ETA: Dull when you’re just wearing the bra. Obviously, it’s not all that exciting under your clothes. Not to lech overmuch, but seeing a bra outline under a shirt is quite pleasant in my experience. ---
**Author:** ![Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hilarity_n.suze/32/6223_2.png) [@Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hilarity_N.Suze)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2009, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2-questions-about-breasts/504724/33 "2009-07-31T01:22:34Z")
> [@Freudian\_Slit](#): > > If I get blood on mine, it usually just washes out with some All. Or I try to wear my older, or already stained underoos…or towards the end, the black undies, where blood stains will never show! Heh. Come on, we all have period undies, right? Not any more! PS Hydrogen peroxide wasn’t too bad for stain removal. ---
**Author:** ![Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hilarity_n.suze/32/6223_2.png) [@Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hilarity_N.Suze)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2009, 1:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2-questions-about-breasts/504724/34 "2009-07-31T01:25:41Z")
> [@Ruffian](#): > > Which then brings the question–why was white the traditional bra color? Seems so darn conspicuous. Add all the lacey crap, and they’re even more conspicuous. I don’t know. I got a strapless bra and, for me, the only possible strapless was white. Actually I think they had it in black, too, but I was wearing a blue-green dress. Along with the bra were directions on how to use tea to dye it to various skin tones. I made up my own. I used two teabags of Red Zinger and one of regular Liptons, made a very strong brew, and voila–fleshtone! But when I wore it, I could still smell the Red Zinger. ---
**Author:** ![Doctor\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doctor_jackson/32/32_2.png) [@Doctor\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doctor_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2009, 2:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2-questions-about-breasts/504724/35 "2009-07-31T02:27:33Z")
> [@Lynn\_Bodoni](#): > > It’s hard to find bras in coffee, though. Sex on the breakfast table! ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2009, 2:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2-questions-about-breasts/504724/36 "2009-07-31T02:55:07Z")
See, **Doctor Jackson**? Aren’t you glad you came back? ---
**Author:** ![Sleel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/73ab20/32.png) [@Sleel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sleel)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2009, 3:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2-questions-about-breasts/504724/37 "2009-07-31T03:45:02Z")
The modern bra is just an adaptation of a much older idea. Corsets and bodices have been around for thousands of years. Scroll down to [Minoan Fashion](http://www.mlahanas.de/Greeks/Fashion.htm) to see an example from about 3600 years ago. Halter tops of some kind have probably been around about as long. The only thing that sets the bra apart is the use of materials like elastic that enable them to be made smaller and more form fitting while still providing support. ---
**Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2009, 8:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2-questions-about-breasts/504724/38 "2009-07-31T08:40:09Z")
> [@](#): > > Lynn, to clarify (and not sound like I’m paralleling Crayola’s ill-named “Flesh” color), I meant “nude” as in the “the color of your skin when nude.” For some, it’s peachy; others, coffee; others still, chocolate, and so on. OK, I get you. I used to sell pantyhose, among other things, and one of my jobs was to match swatches of nylon with a customer’s skin tone. One of the colors was nude, which was a very pale peach, then there was tan, which was darker than I’d ever been, and of course we had taupe and coffee. Then we had the black, white, navy, mauve, and other fashion colors. To this day, when I see the word nude used as an indication of color, I still flash back to that swatch of nylon. Bras and undies were made of white cotton because it was available, and because it’s bleachable. I remember my old neighbor (she was older than my grandparents) telling me about making clothes out of flour sacks, and especially making what she called “knickers” out of those sacks. She said it was pretty common, and the flour companies made sure to have pretty prints on the sacks, so that women would choose their brand over another’s. I find that it’s very convenient to throw in all of the towels and washcloths in the same load of laundry, and it’s easier to do that if they’re all white. I suspect that this is one reason why bras and panties used to be almost exclusively white. ---
**Author:** ![RedneckYachtClubber](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/aeb1de/32.png) [@RedneckYachtClubber](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RedneckYachtClubber)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2009, 2:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2-questions-about-breasts/504724/39 "2009-07-31T14:19:06Z")
Hmm, I could’ve sworn some lady named “Victoria” Was responsible for the fashionable bras, and the gaudy pinkness that makes my eyes hurt lol…unless it’s a made up name. ---
**Author:** ![cmkeller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmkeller/32/118_2.png) [@cmkeller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmkeller)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2009, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2-questions-about-breasts/504724/40 "2009-07-31T14:32:30Z")
> [@](#): > > Hmm, I could’ve sworn some lady named “Victoria” Was responsible for the fashionable bras, and the gaudy pinkness that makes my eyes hurt You’re not allowed to mention that in a public forum. It’s a Secret. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2-questions-about-breasts/504724.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2-questions-about-breasts/504724.md?page=3)