Hi y’all, Susan (Melissa’s assistant) here with you today. In my sewing efforts, I have not yet delved into bra-making. I’m vaguely interested, but it hasn’t risen to the top of my priority list. Having said that, I do sometimes have special bra needs, and I seriously balk at “special bra” prices.
So a few years ago I realized I could hack ready-to wear ones to fit those needs when necessary. I save ones that are past their prime to use for this kind of thing sometimes. They might not have a lot of life in them, but they’re fine for one-off uses a few times per year.
I’ve hacked them in several ways — cutting and resewing the straps to make them cross-back or halter, cutting out bra cups to sew into a swimsuit, or the tip I’m here to share now, replacing the straps when they’ll be worn with a top where they’re visible. I’ve made fun lace straps, braided knit straps, and more. For this one, I’m creating a bra that I intend to wear under a variety of my Kirei Camisoles. By adding a knit strap to my bra, it looks like I’m layering tank tops, but without the layers (and with summer temperatures as hot as they get here, fewer layers are important!)
Kirei includes a shelf bra option which is awesome, but there are times I want or need more support. Therefore, I’m making knit straps the same width as on a Kirei, so the result will basically just look like double straps on the cami.
To begin, you’ll need some knit fabric, fusible interfacing, and a bra. If you don’t have one to repurpose, you could buy an inexpensive one to use for this.
Decide where to cut off the straps. For this one, I cut the front at the seam; on the back, I left a bit of the stretchy part with the slider. Measure the length that you cut off.
Fuse interfacing onto the wrong side of a piece of your knit fabric. The scrap should be a couple of inches longer than your measurement in the previous step, and at least 4″ (10cm) wide.
Note: this is more interfacing than is used in the Kirei straps, but I wanted additional strength for best support. 😉
Cut two strips, 2″ (5cm) wide and a little longer than the strap piece you cut from the original bra. This will give you wiggle room if the fabric has less stretch than the original strap.
Press the long strap edges to the center of the interfaced side, then press in half so that the raw edges are inside (just as you would with double fold bias tape). Using a stretch stitch, sew down the long edge (open side) to close the straps.
Attach the straps to the front of the bra. Use a tight zig zag stitch here for extra strength.
Using the length from before (of the strap you cut off), measure and pin the strap to the back. (You can see that I made mine way longer than I needed because I just used the length of the fabric scrap, but it’s better to have too much to play with than not enough!)
Now, try on the bra and adjust the length of the straps as necessary. Stitch the back strap seam (again using a zig zag) and trim off the excess length. Done!
Alice
Love this idea. Wouldn’t have thought if it myself! Thanks!
Susan Katz
Glad it was helpful! ????
Linda (ACraftyScrivener)
I have covered bra straps beforehand, but hadn’t thought of cutting them off to make them smaller, what a great idea Susan!
Susan Katz
Thanks! Yeah I think it’s the width of the straps as much as anything that scream “bra” — somehow when they’re slim like this it’s different…
Deb
Great idea. Thinking along those same lines to solve the same issue, I’m actually making a couple bras right now … was waiting for some hardware to be delivered. I’m just making removable straps that match the strap of the cami or sundress (if the straps are really narrow) and then I just switch them on the bra as needed. It looks like there is a double strap instead of just one strap on the dress and everything matches.
Susan Katz
That’s perfect!
Thandi Welman
This is GENIUS!! I would love to see more of your adaptations! Us FBA Club gals have got to stick together ????
Susan Katz
Haha thanks Tandi! 🙂
Abbey
But how did you get so awesome, Susan! Brilliant hack!
Susan Katz
Thanks Abbey! ????
Pennyfp
fantastic! I never would have thought of it! All the years I have missed out on sundresses bcuz I could not figure out the bra issues! Problem solved!
Renee
Same.
Susan Katz
Yay! I’m happy that it opened a new world of garments for you. ????
Judy
Hi, Susan. Thanks for this tutorial, I love it. I would also love to see more of Melly’s patterns modeled by you. It would be helpful to see how patterns fit a fuller figure like mine. Thanks again!
Susan Katz
Thanks, Judy! If you click on my name at the top of this post (right under the title), you can see my other posts. Not all of them are me-made posts but several are. Also, I have a modeled version of many of the Blank Slate Patterns in the shop listings. ????
https://blankslatepatterns.com
Judy Hayes
cool idea have to suggest that to my FBA clients so they can enjoy cute sundresses too! thank you for sharing with us all. 🙂
Judy
Denise Bendickson
Thanks for posting this. My dog Dixie had a habit of chewing on my bra straps and has ruined a few good bras i had and i just have to replace the straps. Thankfully she just chewed the straps and not the bra lol.. Thanks for showing this us and love watching your videos. D
Glenda Bell
Brilliant idea! This opens up so many possibilities for this summer’s sewing – Thank you!!!
Brenda
What a brilliant idea! I am so going to try this! I thought the only choice was clear straps or a strapless bra.
Anne R
Brilliant!
Verna Sherwood
Thank you for this. It’s so helpful, and brilliant as well!!