IN FORM®

By Adam Welsch
Cupid Intimates

You’ve heard the statistic.  80% of women today wear bras that are the wrong size for them.  Are you one of those 80%?  Is your number, or band size, correct?  What about your letter or cup size?  While it’s best to buy your bra with the help of a bra-fit specialist, they’re often not available in stores and intimate apparel departments.  Chances are that you bought your bra on your own and are just not sure whether it fits the way it’s supposed to.  Even if you did receive a fitting when you originally purchased it, weight changes, pregnancy, and breastfeeding may have since changed your size and shape, creating new doubts in your mind.  Not to worry.  With the help of a mirror, there are some easy ways you can determine on your own whether you’re wearing the wrong size.  The key areas to look at are the principal components of every bra: the band, the cups, and the straps. (more…)

By Adam Welsch
Cupid Intimates

In his fascinating 1999 book, Why We Buy – The Science of Shopping (Simon & Schuster, New York), retailing-environment consultant Paco Underhill describes which strategies work and which ones don’t in encouraging consumers to buy merchandise at brick & mortar retailers.  Thinking about this book made me wonder, “Are lingerie stores and intimate apparel departments doing the right things today to entice customers to purchase more bras, shapewear, and panties?”  While the answer will be different at each location you enter, there are some questions – based directly on Mr. Underhill’s research – you can think about to grade your favorite store the next time you shop for intimates. (more…)

By MaryJo Kosisher-Demski
Cupid Intimates

Recently, I had the chance to spend some time at a hotel in the middle of Lancaster County – the heart of Pennsylvania Dutch country.  I was able to see some sights I don’t normally witness at home.  For instance, one morning as I breakfasted, I saw an Amish gentleman driving his horse-drawn buggy along the side of the road.  Several minutes later, he was followed by three young girls garbed in traditional long dresses and bonnets, carrying their schoolbooks.  After I finished eating, I was depositing my empty plate in a nearby trash can when my eyes spotted a rather surprising, laminated flier.  “Nana’s Naughty Knickers,” it read.  I was shocked.  Why on earth was something about racy lingerie taking up residence in such an idyllic, old-fashioned setting? (more…)

By Adam Welsch
Cupid Intimates

“Music has Charms to soothe a savage Breast.”

From Act I, Scene 1 of William Congreve’s The Mourning Bride (1697)

The inclusion in last Thursday’s post of Bette Midler’s song from Beaches about a fictitious bra inventor, Otto Titzling, got me thinking.  I wondered how many other songs had been written about bras, panties, shapewear, or any other kinds of intimate apparel.  After doing a little research, I found out that the answer was “quite a few.”  What follows is an eclectic sampling of the ditties I found. (more…)