20,000 Bra Days

“Mummy,” my 14 year daughter said firmly during the holidays, “I need a bra now – a real one this time.”

I had already bought her the pre-adolescent version of a bra at Carrefour – a French hypermarché that sells everything from milk and eggs to tires and bras – that covered her breasts but did nothing more. Was she already so grown up that she needed a real bra? Couldn’t we ignore the fact for a while longer? It seemed like just yesterday that she was a premature baby in an incubator struggling to breathe on her own.

And now she needs a bra… with underwire.

Suddenly I felt ashamed of myself. After all, lingerie is my business. It’s like the shoemaker’s kids going without shoes, or the doctor’s kids never being sick enough for medicine. For more than 15 years I have been surrounded by silk and lace. My client list includes 500 lingerie boutiques in France and I work with the best brands and designers in the business. How could I not see that my own daughter needed a bra?

Based on an average life expectancy of 70 years and a first bra at 13 years old we will spend more than 20,000 days wearing a bra -- yet 70% of us don’t know our correct bra size! Bras and panties are the first thing we put on in the morning and the last thing we take off at night. Our choice reflects our mood and desires. Nothing says more about our personality and sense of self than our choice in lingerie.

I have already spent more than 11,000 days in a bra and made the lingerie odyssey from Jockey to La Perla. What will my daughter’s choice in lingerie say about her when she grows up? Will it be functional, playful, romantic, sexy, luxurious? It is time to share some of my secrets if I want her grow up feeling good about herself and to enjoy her femininity.

“You are right, darling. Our first rendez-vous in 2008 will be a visit to the lingerie department at Le Bon Marché.”