50s bra: the bullet model

Marilyn Monroe, Sophia Loren, Ava Gardner, Rita Hayworth…

Have you ever noticed that the beautiful actresses of the 1950s had pointy breasts?

The credit goes to the so-called Bullet Bra , that is, the bullet bra, an iconic 50s bra. So sexy that it turned the heads of many men of that time but in reality it was above all a tool for affirming female self-awareness.

The bullet bra was born from the intuition of wanting to transform a functional accessory useful for protecting the breasts into an underwear that could enhance the most sensual part of women.

And since in the minds of great creatives nothing happens by chance, the idea was precisely to fascinate the male universe, taking advantage of women's nascent awareness of their role in society and of the flourishing libertarian climate that was developing and affirming in that era.

How was the bullet bra

The bullet bra was made of rayon or nylon.

Material recently developed by the textile industry of those years and which represented the new technology that would revolutionize the sector's market. To obtain the characteristic pointed shape, several self-supporting conical layers were superimposed. And the seams were deliberately visible and called “objective seams”.

The bullet bra: an all-American revolution

The evolution of the bra went hand in hand with the changing role of women in society.

During World War II women worked hard in factories, replacing men who were at war, so they needed long-lasting, strong and comfortable underwear. Thus the first bullet bras were born, but in that period the availability of lingerie was very limited because there was a lack of stretch fabrics. With the end of the war the figure of women flew high again and it was precisely in those years that the bullet bra became popular.

Among the underwear industries, Maidenform (which still exists today) was a point of reference for lingerie-addicts.

One of the best campaigns ever, in my opinion, is the famous “I dreamed” campaign that Maindenform launched in 1948. The women are wearing just a bra over a skirt in most of the photos, and declare “I dreamed I went shopping in my Maindenform bra” or “I dreamed I went to work in my Maidenform bra” and so on. Starting from the 60s, due to the change in trend, the bullet bra fashion was abandoned but in the 80s there was a small return to the past thanks above all to the biggest pop star in the world: Madonna.