It’s no secret that many women if not all, wear bras begrudgingly and cannot wait to unstrap the undergarment from their chest when the day is done. The pressure and sometimes pain of the underwire and elastic band on your breast underside feels more like the pressure to look good and fit in than the intention to feel good and comfortable in your clothes.
Going braless may not be a reasonable proposition for you when you’re outdoors or in public, especially if you’re involved in a physical activity like running or aerobics workout. Such rapid jiggling of your girls is the easiest route to making them sag before you hit age 35.
But there is no end to alternative undergarments that you can wear if you are not comfortable with wearing conventional bras. Let’s look at some of these best bra alternatives.
Here is the Table of Contents
Best Bra Alternatives
1. Shapewear and Bodysuits
Some bodysuits and full-body shapewear come with an in-built bra, and this will help you get in better shape and confidence while still covering your breasts. This in-built bra is mostly wire-free and unpadded (though it may have removable pads) and so you will be more relaxed than in a normal bra.
2. Bandeau Bras and Tube Tops
To wear a strapless bra, you might have to endure a rigid underwire and padding, in order to mold, lift, and support your breasts, now that there are no straps to provide the required shoulder support.
Bandeaus and tube tops feature a band on the upper and lower sides to fit above and below your breasts. They are the best to replace a bra when you want to wear flowy dresses, dressy tops, and crop tops. Ensure that it has wide bands for relaxation, in case you always feel constricted or cinched by narrow bra bands.
3. Bralettes
This is another wireless undergarment that is looser fitting, comfy and relaxing than a bandeau or tube top because it has the straps for support. They are perfect to wear underneath loose-fitting undergarments like t-shirts and even camisoles.
4. Tight Tank Tops and Crop Tops
If you don’t like the digging and poking of underwire on your underbust, a close-fitting undershirt will cover you well and not many people may notice that you’re braless, especially if you have a small bust. But it won’t have the shaping and lifting effect of a bra.
5. Nipple Covers
If you’re wondering what to wear instead of a bra and you don’t have the guts to free your nipples, silicone nipple covers are a sexy brassiere alternative for disguising the full definition of your breasts and especially the nipples under both sheer and opaque garments. This is how to go braless without looking like it.
The inside surface of nipple pasties such as nipple pasties is layered with skin-friendly silicone adhesive to stick to your nipples and the sticky matter can last through multiple (30 to 100) washes.
6. Bra Cups
Just like nipple covers, bra cups are backless and strapless, but unlike nipple covers, they’ll cover the entire breast cups especially if they are small-sized. They give you the freedom to wear backless, strapless, and off-shoulder tops without the encumbrances of a conventional bra.
The Nubra Seamless Adhesive Strapless Backless bra cups go up to size E (DD) and so if you have large but not saggy breasts, these nippies will provide all the comfort and cleavage you may want from a bra but without the pressure of elastic bands and underwire.
7. Breast Tape
Nipple concealers may not work for some deep V plunging dresses and tops or off-the-shoulder tops and dresses, because your boob is still free to shake and it’s only a matter of time before it comes looking out. Breast tape has been used for ages by women and it comes in handy when you want to free your breasts.
Boob tape helps to lift, support, and firm your breasts at your desired position so that you can separate them, create more cleavage, or conceal the boobs in a sheer dress, all without a bra. You should know how to apply and remove boob tape correctly to be comfortable all day.
8. Fashion Tape
The difference between breast tape and fashion tape is that breast tape is one-sided to stick to your breasts while fashion tape is double-sided to hold your clothing against any point on your skin. When you decide to completely go braless but without looking like it, you can use fashion tape to keep your dress’ shoulder straps in place and prevent embarrassing exposure.
9. Camisoles and Slips
Camis and slips are arguably the best choices to replace the irritation of a conventional bra especially if you’re a tween trying bras for the first time, or you’re a grown-up planning to spend the day indoors or on casual duties like going shopping. Some camisole slips are tight and have built-in bras so you won’t feel like you’re missing anything, but they’ll still get sweaty and uncomfortable on a hot summer day.
10. Sports Bras
Sports bras are stretchy to allow free movement of your bust, and they’re an awesome alternative when you want to avoid underwire and padding because they don’t have such restrictions. They are also excellently breathable, of course, because they’re designed for sweating.
However, sports bras have their disadvantages when you are thinking about wearing them daily, and sometimes you might have to rethink them. Firstly, they’re thick and so not the best when you want to wear lightweight and sheer undergarments. Secondly, they don’t have well-defined cups and so you won’t get a nice cleavage and if your bust is heavy, you might end up with a uniboob. Thirdly, most sports bras rise high above the breasts and you can’t wear such a bra under a low-cut top or dress.
For the best results, consider sports bras that meet your needs such as a lighter fabric, more defined cups, and a lower-cut neckline.
11. Braless
The modern bra has only existed since the early 20th century and many women before and after this innovation would spend the day bare-chested. This means that exposed breasts are something natural and not shameful, it’s only that we’re a generation that has only seen covered and lifted breasts.
Is it okay to not wear a bra?
Feel free to let your boobs enjoy the breeze once in a while but when you’re in public, it’s courteous to ensure that you’re in clothes that don’t reveal your gals, such as loose t-shirts, dresses, and tops with floral prints. However, ensure that you’re not braless when participating in a strenuous activity like running because the rapid up and down bouncing of your breasts can accelerate their sagging.
Wrapping Up
You don’t have to suffer in a punishing bra just to fit in and look how people think you should look. After all, nobody used to wear a bra at the start of the 20th century. In place of wearing a bra, you can feel free and safe in a camisole, shapewear, bodysuit, tank top, sports bra, bandeau, tube top, bralette, breast tape, fashion tape, nipple concealers, and much more.