The bra goes front and center in fashion
PAGASA has announced that El Niño is here and is expected to stay until the first half of next year, making the SS2027 runway trend of bra tops very apropos. At the recent Red Charity Gala, JC Buendia paired them with balloon skirts, while at the Bench Holiday collab with Chris Nick, they worked nicely with denim in some of the sexiest ensembles.
Miuccia Prada started the resurgence of the bra at Miu Miu with ultra-low-waist miniskirts for SS2022, dominating the influencer sphere, magazines and red carpets. This also coincided with Zoomers' fascination with Y2K fashion, featuring semi-sheer tops with opaque bras, visible straps or lace bralettes peeking out beneath blazers and casual wear, popularized by icons like Carrie Bradshaw of Sex and the City and Kate Moss, who modeled the tiniest bra, reduced to strips, for Karl Lagerfeld’s Chanel FW1997-’98 collection.
With the ubiquity of Mounjaro and other GIP/GLP-1 slimming aids, the bra has become de rigueur for celebrities on the red carpet, where nude dressing has become standard. At the recent MTV Video Music Awards, the bra came in many iterations: blue snakeskin on Tyla, crystal-studded for JoJo, and black velvet for Charli XCX’s Saint Laurent outfit. To balance the bold look, the bras were paired with ladylike pencil or column skirts.
The allure of the bra dates back to Minoan Crete (2500 BC), where women wore bandeau-like tops that lifted and exposed the bust, while ancient Greeks and Romans used apodidemos and mamillare chest bands. Herminie Cadolle patented the two-piece brassiere (soutien-gorge) in 1889, and Caresse Crosby crafted a wearable version from handkerchiefs in 1913. For decades, it was strictly hidden until exotic dancers like Dutch spy Mata Hari began wearing it around 1900.
It was still taboo in the mid-century, so portraits of Marilyn Monroe wearing one peeking out from a robe in 1956, as well as Jane Fonda and Anne Bancroft showing theirs on the big screen in the 1960s, caused quite a stir. In 1968, it appeared in high fashion through Emanuel Ungaro’s metal bras and Yves Saint Laurent’s sheer looks, alongside protests championing personal freedom.
In the ’80s, it became a controversial costume piece for Carrie Fisher’s Princess Leia in Star Wars, followed by Madonna’s Jean-Paul Gaultier cone bras at ’90s concerts. By the early aughts, brassieres had become stylish accessories to be shown off by pop stars Beyoncé and Gwen Stefani, but mainstream media later frequently labeled exposed undergarments as hypersexualized or trashy. Lady Gaga, however, brought the bra back to high-fashion status in 2019 at the Met Gala.
Its resurgence is in keeping with Gen Z’s call for reclamation, with exposed undergarments and lingerie serving as tools of modern bodily agency and self-expression. Although the bra has evolved from practical wear to a jewel-like accessory, it doesn’t have to be precious to be flaunted, as demonstrated by Dua Lipa, who wears nothing but a slinky mesh Gucci bra from the label’s intimate section.
At Miu Miu’s FW2025-2026 show, models were dressed like ladies who lunch but with exposed cone bras and straps hanging out from underneath sweaters. It was a cue to dress with an undone sensibility that feels more relaxed and authentic, rather than conforming to society’s ideal of the painstakingly flawless woman who is always well put together.
Even Hermès has loosened up for SS2027 through Nadège Vanhée’s reimagining of the house’s hand-painted silk scarves as sexy, strapless bandeaus resembling makeshift bras for a holiday, styled with belted midi skirts featuring mesh and flapping panels.
Although Prada’s SS2027 collection is all about skirts, they come with bra tops. Unlike the sporty Miu Miu versions, however, these have a retro feel, with one silk style featuring lace inserts and a 1930s balconette silhouette. Sometimes, they were layered over button-down shirts, juxtaposing them with menswear.
A similar approach was seen at Fendi, where Maria Grazia Chiuri exposed bras beneath deconstructed tuxedo waistcoats while also pairing them with low-V slip dresses and sheer chiffon layers. The collection explored the tension between revealing and concealing the body, inspired by the energy of ’70s disco.
Etro featured structured, jeweled bras worn underneath loosened tailoring, balancing masculine structure with sheer sensuality, alongside playful designs in intricate crochet with beaded fringes. In bohemian mode, they were paired with sun-faded paisley dusters and flowing silhouettes for airy looks.
The more streetwear-leaning Diesel opted for the ruched-up T-shirt bra, with jersey twisted into distressed bra tops or bandeaus, alongside sheer fabrics meticulously embroidered with bra outlines.
In London, McQueen’s draped dresses were scooped low to reveal lace balconettes, while Erdem layered rhinestone bras beneath blazers and over tuxedo shirts. Across the pond, Altuzarra showed iterations that sprang forth from beneath button-front dresses and shirts, while at Khaite, the opening look modeled by Kaia Gerber featured a sculptural white bralette atop a high-waisted black leather pencil skirt.
The bra has certainly shed much of its historical taboo and stigma as outerwear, becoming a deliberately progressive choice that makes a bold statement. Wearing this hypersexualized garment can also be a way of reclaiming it to express one’s individuality.
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