Yep, I made a second one! I liked the look of my first Euler bralette, but I made it about a size too big, and instead of fixing it I decided to plow forward onto v2. This time I left off the second band and mostly used supplies I already had from a previous bra-making shopping spree. I also tweaked the sizing just a little, and I'm really happy with how it turned out!
Materials
Back in January I bought a ton of bra-making stuff from Tailor Made Shop, so I had almost everything I needed on hand - hooray! The power net cup lining, strap elastic, side cup elastic, hook + eye, and strap rings/sliders are all from there. The cup fabrics are both cheap knits that I had in my stash from a discount fabric store in SF. I love that you can use small scraps up on bras, but it's not going to help resolve my scrap hoarding tendencies.
The one tricky part to source was the band elastic. All of my hooks & eyes are 1 1/2" wide, and you need plush-back elastic to match that width. I finally found some on Sweet Cups Bra Supply, an online shop I'd heard of but hadn't bought from because shipping costs seemed high. Their wide elastic only comes in black, but I do love to wear black so I bought a ton. (Side note - it's currently out of stock and I may have bought them out?? SORRY!) Since I was ordering anyway, I also stocked up on duoplex, underwires + casing, sheer cup lining, and some elastics I didn't have on hand - basically everything I may need for the next several underwire or soft cup bras. Exciting!! And as a bonus, they refunded a chunk of my shipping after it ended up costing less than estimated. Score!
My materials differed a fair amount from the previous kit that I used: the straps and cup lining are both much firmer on this one, which means more support in both areas. The band elastic on this one is 1 1/2" instead of 1", with a corresponding wider hook & eye. I used plush picot elastic instead of foldover on the cup sides, which gives a little more support there too. My outer cup fabrics are pretty similar to my first attempt—lightweight jerseys with a good amount of stretch in both bras—but they get more support from the firmer lining in this iteration.
Sizing + Fit
The band was definitely longer than it needed to be on my first Euler, but I didn't want to decrease the cup volume at all. I decided to make the medium cups (as before) but shorten the band to the size small. I was nervous about spacing everything on the band without having it seem crowded, but it all worked out fine. The fit is much better than the first one! The band feels nice and firm without being uncomfortable, and the less elastic straps hold everything up better. It's way more comfortable (and unsurprisingly, less supportive) than a good underwire bra - exactly what I want to wear on casual days running errands or working at home. My boobs are less "up and center" than in a more structured bra, and there is sometimes some nipple show-through since the cups aren't padded or very structured. I do think I prefer a bridge, which has more shape and structure than the elastic used here. That said, this is basically what I was looking for in a comfy weekend bralet, and it was a super quick sew the second time around, so no complaints!
Photos
Unlike the previous Euler, I think this one actually fits me better than it does the dress form. Yay! The band is a little too tight on her, and there is some slight bagginess under the bust that is filled out on me.
Black makes it hard to see, but I'm really pleased with my neat zig zag stitches attaching the strap and the hook/eye to the band! I'm borrowing a fancy Bernina machine from a friend (thanks, Liz!), and while it doesn't have the 3-step zig zag I need for most of this bra, it does the normal zig zag like a champ. I'm sold.
The insides:
Pretty matte black hardware from Tailor Made Shop.
And a few shots of it on my actual body. (Sorry about the background toilet—my mirrors were both destroyed in the move so all I have at the moment is bathrooms.)
That's it for the Euler for now! I may come back to this pattern someday, but for now I have a Watson to try, and then I have big plans to try drafting my own bras and bralets. I'll keep you updated!
Fabulous Euler! Your construction is lovely and it looks like it fits really well. I've often considered buying the pattern, and making gifts from it since I'm far too busty for it (dang-it!). Glad to read that you were able to get the wider band elastic from Camille at Sweet Cups Supply (I know her in real life and she's a total sweetie, as well as a postage refunder, and a SF native :D), and I'm noting that info for when I decide that I just have to make a few Eulers for friends.
ReplyDeleteAww, thanks for your comment, Ginny! I do think this one would be great for gifts, since the fit is much more forgiving than many other bra patterns I've seen and tried. That's great to hear about Sweet Cups - I didn't know anything about the woman behind the company, but that makes me feel even better about giving her business (and I certainly will again!).
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