It’s time to be honest, y’all. How long have you been wearing the bra you have on right now? And I don’t mean how many days has it been since you washed it, but how old is this bra? Let me be clear: The bra I’m wearing right now is over two years old and has been worn almost every single day. It is barely doing more than a built-in shelf cami could, and I’m getting poked in both armpits by the underwire. I am not the one to preach about buying a new bra, but seriously — we should be buying new bras.
Bras are one of those wardrobe staples you don’t think much about… until you need a new one. Most people seem to have one or two daily bras, maybe a strapless bra or two, and then a couple of sports bras. It’s easy to see how a bra can get worn out when you’re only giving it a rest a few times a month and it’s doing the actual heavy lifting of keeping your boobs in place all day long. But how often should you actually be replacing them?
Consider this a bi-yearly or at least yearly shopping excursion — your bras should be replaced every six months if possible. If you can stretch them for a year, that’s OK, but it really depends on how many bras you own, how often you wash them, and what kind of wear and tear is already happening. Like the bra I’m wearing now? Regardless of it being over two years old, the underwire busting out of the ends really makes this a trash bra that needs replacing now.
“That bra should be burned, and not in a feminist way, but like a trash way,” Sarah Gonzalez, a former lingerie “expert” tells me. Gonzalez used to work in a bra store where she measured chests and brought women bras in their actual sizes, helping them build back their confidence (and posture) in the process. “A lot of people used to come in with bras and then trash them as they left because they were already wearing the new one they just bought,” she says. Who among us has not had this very thought when trying on anything new?
But Gonzalez says there are a few things to think about with bras. If the underwire is poking out, if you have to adjust the straps every time you wear it to make sure it has the right fit, and/or if you’re on the last hooks on the bra, you need a new one. “Those hooks on the back aren’t meant to make it looser or tighter just for fun — it’s sort of a way to extend the life of the bra. And if you’re on the last set of hooks and already feeling it stretched out, it’s time to go.”
Bonus reason to consider a new bra: If you can’t remember where or when you bought the one you’re currently wearing. “So many people would come into the store and tell me they had no idea how long they’d had that bra. It’s a big clue you need something new,” Gonzalez says.
It’s also worth considering that older bras that have become worn out may also suffer from some material breaking down, which could just be painful for you. Along with underwire poking out or straps pinching your shoulders, bras that haven’t been washed frequently or are so old they hold some yuck in them can cause candida, a common under-the-breast yeast infection that’s itchy and often painful.
You don’t have to replace your whole wardrobe, but having some new bras — Gonzalez recommends three daily bras so you’re in a good rotation — can really help how your clothes fit and how you feel, too. Get yourself measured if you can, find some high-quality items to last a little bit longer, and revel in that feeling of newness. If you go somewhere like ThirdLove, you can actually recycle your old bra for a discount on a new one. Hey, you probably make sure your kids have fresh, new underwear every six months or so. Why can’t you give yourself that energy?
