“I can not only hold the pencil in place, I could write with it if I had to.” --Florence King
mmm…bra-less spaghetti-strap tank tops…mmm…
As the owner of a saggy and uneven pair of B-cups, I always wear a bra for two reasons: one, because I’m terribly self conscious about my nipples poking out, and two, because without a bra I sag so bad it’s like my breasts are trying to run away and hide in my pants pockets.
If a woman doesn’t mind sagging, and doesn’t care if she looks like a Tic Tac smuggler, tha’s her business and not mine.
This concludes this episode of “More Than You Ever Wanted To Know About Blinkie’s Breasts”.
I can’t tell from your screenname if you are male or female, but I’m going to give you the benefit of the doubt and assume that you are male and therefore innocently naive about the workings of female nipplage. I have large breasts, made even more so because I’m currently a nursing mother. As such I always wear a bra–day and night. However, that doesn’t stop my girls from being almost constantly “on”. I know my nipples show, sometimes to an embarassing degree, but I’ll be damned if I’m going to wear a padded bra and make myself look even more topheavy just to try and hide them. I’d hate to think that other people I come across think I’m trashy or tacky for no other reason than that my anatomy is functioning in a completely normal manner. Is this really the case? I can’t say that I normally pay attention to other women’s breasts, but if I did notice nipplage showing I wouldn’t think it was something she should be ashamed of. Am I alone on that?
Basically, I just think your analogy of “protruding nipples = tight pants and carefully arranged package” is faulty. The first is (usually) simply an unavoidable bodily function whereas the second is a deliberate show.
I wear a (slightly) padded bra, and my nipples are still “perky.” Its simply unreasonable to assume I’ll spend all my perky moments in the bathroom.
It isn’t that I’m sexually stimulated all the time - I live in Minnesota - as I’ve said before, we have two seasons here - road repair and perky nipples.
As to Miss Manners, this does not sound like her. It does sound like Dear Abby.
Women who can get by without a bra - more power to them. With certain outfits and in certain places, bras are inappropriate. And with certain outfits and in certain places, braless is inappropriate. I wouldn’t recommend a woman with anything bigger than an A cup show up in a corporate boardroom without a bra. But if I want to grab the paper braless in a tshirt with my (significant) chest unbound, that is my business (or go pick up pine sol at the grocery store.)
I actually own the only backless dress I’ve ever seen that I can wear braless and look good.
Women who need to wear one, will wear one, you certainly dont need a law to make them wear one.
The rest will wear one whenever they want to and its nobodys business if they do or dont, or when they do or dont.
I so agree with Susanann. But as a gay man I must ask all of you this. What about the drag queens? Should they or shouldnt they? And I do know several men who should be looking into foundation garments themselves. Its all about what is appropriate in what setting. Some straight men will always stare. So will some gay men too. If you can deal with that then by all means do whatever you need to do to be comfortable. 87D. To me though they look way too uncomfortable for them to be a regualr part of my wardrobe.
I’d have to wear a bra with steel nipple shields to avoid the dreaded “prominence.” I guess I’m doomed to tackiness forever.
FYI, Palewriter, breasts will sag whether a woman wears a bra 24/7 or not. It’s not something that can be prevented. That pesky gravity and all.
Ahhh yes… The nip of the iceburg.
Yeah, but I’ve seen those cultures that don’t adopt it in National Geographic. [Family Guy]We’re talking fried eggs hanging on a nail.[/Family Guy]
I’d be all for that, especially if it applies to anyone with a huge beer-gut who’s mowing his lawn. For the love of God - put on a shirt.:eek:
Really old joke:
A man and his son are buying tickets to a movie. The son goes up to the ticket window, and sees that the woman behind the window is amply endowed, and wearing a very low-cut blouse. The kid stammers “I…I’d like two tits, please…” Embarassed, he runs back to his father. The father chides the boy: “That’s no way to show respect to a woman; let me show you how to do it.” So the father walks up to the window, looks the woman in the eye, and says, “I’d like two ti–CKETS, please, and I’d like the change in nipples and dimes.” Now the father is embarassed as well, and grabs his son and leaves. Meanwhile, a priest has been standing behind them in line, and now walks up to the window and says, “Perhaps this is none of my business, Miss - but it seems rather immodest for you to dress that way in public. After all, you don’t want St. Finger to wag his peter at you.”
Can you please name a person who wants to adopt a law against bralessness? The only person in this thread to advocate legislation was clearly being facetious in a humorous manner to get her point across. It seems a bit silly to argue against a position that nobody holds.
I’m with Dangerosa, even with slight camoflage padding, the girls are perkier than some strait-laced people might like. I am not planning on justifying it by going burlesque, nor am I going to hide in oversized tops to further camoflage my shape.
I enjoy going braless in the privacy of my own home. Should I need to run a quick errand, I will either put on a bra, or the “no-seeum” sweatshirt. My choice.
I have no issues with those who choose to go without in public, unless and until the individual cries “foul” on the attention they receive. Atrael had a solid point, there.
Bottom line, clothing and foundation garments are a matter of choice. Choices carry some responsibility, but must be permitted, lest we live in a uniform society consisting of someone else’s taste in style and decorum.
I was raised to think that ever going braless in public is just tacky. Not immoral, not gross, not sinful…
Just tacky.
I’ve never done it. I just can’t get over the headlights. They just look wrong. It’s not the perkiness…I can pass the pencil test with flying colors, and I’m a B/C. 
It’s the visible nipples that I just can’t do.
Of course, all of this is negated if you’re wearing the aforementioned sweatshirt, or any type of baggy shirt that pretty much makes your breasts invisible anyway. If I have to run out of the house and I’m not wearing a bra, I’ll just throw on a sweater or something like that.
But going braless every day, regardless?
Just can’t do it!
Well said. I’m hardly a stuffy old Victorian myself, but I love Miss Manners. She’s pretty handy with the understatement and irony, and her basic advice is useful and common sensical.
I also question the statement that this came from her and not Dear Abby or Ann. The pencil test sounds more like the tripe that they would come up with (“OK, readers, here’s the test: …”)
I’m 40, I’m a 38D and I’m perky. There’s no way in hell I’m going to wear a bra with a sexy top! It takes all the fun out of it, and at my age, nothing makes me feel better than some young guys staring at my headlights all night.
Wow, my joking flew right by some of you. Maybe I should type slower 
The “pencil test” actually has been around for a while. I’ve read stories of sorority girls in the 1950s using it to determine if they were perky “enough.” Wearing a bra at that time, of course, was never omitted.
I think it’s a matter of personal preference. I don’t wear one at work probably 25% of the time, and on the days that I do wear one, it comes off as soon as I get in the house. They’re just not very comfortable at all. If I’m wearing something tight fitting or dressy, rather than baggy t-shirts or sweat shirts, I’ll wear one, but considering I wear a labcoat over whatever I’m wearing, I doubt anyone would notice anyways, at least once I actually got in the lab.
Am I the only one who finds the dichotomy of Expected and Required as the only two allowable choice a bit odd?
Not criticizing Isabelle here, just saying that I think it’s a weird hypothetical.
Whoops, re-read, and I don’t think that was what she was saying at all. Nonetheless, one thing that intrigues me is that it seems like very often its women who are so critical of the way that other women look, dress, etc.
What’s up with that???
Because men don’t dare.
Damn. That must have been what I felt whooshing through my hair as I read your post. 