US2286601A - Brassiere - Google Patents

Description

A. A. CLARK June 16, 1942.

BRAssIfiRE Filed Aug. 9, 1940 INVENTOR AGNES A. (IA/PK ATTORNEYS-- Patented June 16, 1942 NlTED STATES PATEN T o Fel ce 2286,601 :ZBRASSIERE Agnes A. Clark, Englewood, N. J. Application August- 9, 1940, "Sel'ial No. 351941 3 Claims.

My invention relatesto a garment of-the bras- 'siere type.

It'is a known fac'tthat many'illsoi or attributable tothe'breasts' are caused byunn'at'ur'al pressures applied *to the breasts by various "types of 'brassieres. corselettes "and similar garments.

It 'is'anob'ject of'theinv'entionto provide an improved form "ofbrass'iere which will "adequately support the breasts without harmful pressures thereon.

A more specific object is to provide a brassire with "means for 'supportingthe breasts "from' beneath and without 'undue pressures.

"Another object is taprovide a brassire so formed as 'to'provide a breast pocket'h'aving a generally horizontally extending "lower breast supporting portion.

It is another object to "provide a bra'ss'i'ere having breast pockets having an extensible portion therein for adequately "yet comfortably supporting the breasts.

Another object is to provide a 'brassiere having breast pockets with stiffened supporting-portions at the lower side for supportingthe'breasts adjacent the body.

In general the object is to provide 'anirnp'roved form of brassiere for adequately, comfortably and safely supporting the breasts, particularly very heavy breasts.

In the drawing which shows, for illustrative purposes only, a preferred form of the invention Fig. 1 is a side view in elevation of a brassiere applied to the body and illustrating features of the invention;

Fig. 2 is a front view in elevation of the brassiere shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional View of the brassire not applied; and

Fig. 4 is a view similar to Fig. 3 but showing the brassiere applied to the body.

The invention may be embodied in various forms and in the illustrated form shown the brassiere includes a back section 5 and a front section secured thereto along a generally vertical line 6. It will, of course, be understood that the brassiere may be either a front, side or rear opening type. The brassire preferably includes a waist band I to fit about the waist of the wearer and to which are secured the lower edges of the rear and front sections constituting the body portion of the brassire.

The front section includes breast pockets and since such breast pockets are duplicates of each other a description of one will suffice for both.

Each breast pocket is so formed as "to provide 'a"substantial pocket with'a generallyhorizontal- -1y extending lower supporting portion and an upper breast coveringportion. The front sec- 'tions may be formed of separate "gores secured to each other'or "the material "may 'be tucked so as to, in effect, form gored sections to "provide the desired form of breast pocket. "In the formillustrated each breast pocket section inemdesa lower piece of material 8, which may be'provid'ed with atapering tuck 9 at each side and above that tapering tucks I0, the tapersof the tucks being such 'that they are wider "at the rear where they join the vertical seam line '6 than at the front. These tucks and the formation of theupper'ed'ge H "of the lower pocket section are such 'that'the, tucks, in effect, "provide tapering gores withtheinwi'de'r portions at the rear and their narrower -portions at the front, so as "to form and shape the breast pocket. In the form shown the upper or breast covering portion'of each pocket is formed of "a's'epa'rate piece of material l2, out in generally a'rcuate formatthe bottomso as 'to fitthe u per arcuate edge "H ofthe section a alongthese'amli'ne f3. The breast-pocket thus formed either by stitching gores "together or by employing "tacks in one '61 "more pieces'of 'ffiaterial is a breast "pocket "which preferably has an adequately projecting or generally horizontally extending lower supporting portion I4 and an upper contour designated generally I5, which simply covers the upper portion of the breast without undue pressure thereon.

In order to assist in providing a breast pocket with a generally horizontally extending lower supporting portion as at M, such lower section is preferably provided with gathers, as indicated generally at l6, and such gathers are preferably formed by shirring the lower central portion I! of the pocket section 8. The shirring is preferably done with elastic thread, so that the section I! is laterally extensible to some extent. The gathering in or shirring of the section I1, it will be plain, provides a larger and more extensive pocket section above the shirring and the lateral extensibility of the shirred section provides for a resilient yet adequate support for the breast. The shirred section II, which in some cases could be replaced by a separate piece of elastic material, forms a relatively stiffened portion which serves to adequately support the breast from below in the breast pocket.

In Figs. 1 and 4 of the drawing only the r extreme upper part of the stiffening section is shown as extending outwardly, as at l8, for supporting the underneath portion of the breast. However, with heavier breasts the stiffened section I! may curve outwardly (at a considerably lower point than as shown in the drawing) to give added support. In fact, in extreme cases, the supporting section I! might start to curve outwardly under the influence of the breast weight at a point, say, half-way down the section I! ,or possibly even lower.

The brassire may be formed of any suitable material such as the materials of which brassieres are now usually made. In the illustrated form the two breast pocket portions are joined at the front to a central vertical panel I9, but it will be clear that the panel l9 could be omitted and the front sections joined directly to each other. Shoulder straps have been illustrated but the use of such straps is optional, since the brassiere is designed to adequately support the heavy breasts without the aid of the usual shoulder straps. It will be apparent that with the breast sections formed as described and connected to the rear section 5, pockets will be formed which will support the breasts from below without the need for shoulder straps and without any injurious pressure.

In some cases it may be desirable to provide a shirred portion at the top of each breast pocket to give a little more support, but as stated above the brassire as shown has proven entirely satisfactory.

My improved brassire is particularly advantageous when worn by a woman having extremely heavy breasts which require support from beneath and without undue pressure thereon.

While the brassiere is particularly advantageous as a surgical brassiere, it is advantageous for general wear by women having very heavy breasts requiring support from beneath and without undue pressure.

My improved brassiere tends to enhance the beauty of the figure along natural lines and yet without any harmful pressure on the breast, such as is often occasioned by ordinary brassires Worn by very heavy women.

While the invention has been described in considerable detail and a preferred form illustrated, it is to be understood that various changes and modifications may be made within the scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. In a garment of the character indicated, front panels to cover the breasts, the upper part of each front panel being made to include a substantial breast pocket, the lower part of each front panel being shirred at the zone just beneath each breast pocket, the lower part of the breast pocket and the upper part of said shirred zone merging integrally without a seam to provide a fullness in the lower part of the breast pocket, said shirred zone further providing a stiifening area directly beneath the breast pocket extending substantially to the waist line of the garment.

2. In a garment of the character indicated, front panels to cover the breasts, the upper part of each front panel being made to include a substantial breast pocket, the lower part of each front panel being shirred with generally horizontally extending rows of elastic thread stitches at the zone just beneath each breast pocket and downwardly therefrom to provide a zone integral with the breast pocket, extending substantially to the waist line of the garment, the upper part of said zone merging with the lower part of the breast pocket, thereby providing resilient expansibility in the lower portion of the breast pocket and also an integral stiffening means to assist in supporting the breasts.

3. A garment of the character indicated, in-

cluding a waist band, a pair of front panels to cover the breasts, the upper part of each front panel being made to include a breast pocket the bottom of which is vertically spaced from said waist band, the lower edges of said front panels being stitched to said waist band, the lower part of said front panels at the zone between said waist band and vertically spaced breast pocket and generally beneath the latter being shirred, said shirred zone extending substantially to the Waist band, to provide vertical stifiness for supporting the breasts and to provide a fullness in the breast pocket, the lower part of the breast merging into the upper part of the shirred zone without a seam.

AGNES A. CLARK.

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