Lingerie Anatomy

Tutorial July 14, 2015
One of the tricky parts of lingerie making is sourcing all of the supplies! Still to this day, I order my supplies from all over the world… shipping can get expensive and sourcing everything is time consuming (this is just one of the reasons why handmade lingerie is a little more costly). 
Almost all lingerie requires a variety of elastic. A bra alone requires strap elastic, band elastic, and trimming elastic.  Most bras require a hook and eye closure and you need the ring and slider hardware to assemble your straps. To make matters a little more tricky, all of the elastic comes in a variety of widths, from 1/4″ and up!

Rings and Sliders – I like to use nylon coated metal rings and sliders. They come in a variety of colours and sizes. I always prefer to use metal over plastic for durability.

Strap Elastic – Generally plush on one side (the side that goes against your skin), and matte or shiny on the exterior. It comes in various widths, with the standard being 1/2″.

Bra Back Closures – These hook and eye closures come in various sizes, with the average being 2×3 hooks.  The inside of these are plush, so they’re soft against your skin.

Fold Over Elastic – I like to use fold over elastic for finishing the upper edge of bras and for waist and leg lines of panties. It comes in a million shades of elastic, and if you can apply binding, you can apply fold over elastic.

Band Elastic – Just as the name implies, it goes around the band, or lower edge of the bra. One side is soft and plush and it often has a decorative edge. Band elastic comes as narrow as 1/4″, and up to 1″ wide. My preference is 1/2″, or 3/4″ for larger bust sizes.

I’ve assembled some kits, in black, ivory, pink and navy, that contain all of the most often needed lingerie supplies in the most common sizes. Each kit contains 1/2″ strap elastic, with 1/2″ ring and slider set, 1/2″ plush band elastic, satin fold over elastic, a 2×3 hook and eye closure, and two satin bows, hand tied by yours truly. There is enough elastic to complete 1 bra and 1 pair of panties.

View my supplies on Etsy

In addition to the kits, I’ve added a few remnant grab bags to my sewing pattern shop. I’ve been cleaning out my sewing room, and found a lot of odds and ends. These bags contain various elastics in various lengths and are perfect for practice and small projects. The elastic in these vary in length from 14″ to as much as 2 yard lengths.
View the Remnant Grab Bags on Etsy

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7 Comments

  • Reply
    radhika
    August 26, 2015 at 4:46 pm

    Thank you for the list. I am just wondering if there is any difference between strap and band elastic or can I substitute one for another.

    • Reply
      sarah.e.norwood@gmail.com
      August 26, 2015 at 11:22 pm

      The main difference is the amount of stretch. Band elastic tends to have more give than strap elastic, which is more rigid. Band elastic usually has 1 decorative edge.

    • Reply
      radhika
      August 27, 2015 at 11:19 am

      thank you Sarah… I was just wondering if I can get away with strap elastic alone 🙂 I think the bralet might be too tight 🙂

    • Reply
      sarah.e.norwood@gmail.com
      August 27, 2015 at 1:53 pm

      It might be ok on a style with a closure on the back, if you like a really rigid band, but may not stretch enough for pull-on styles! Good luck 🙂

  • Reply
    K. Ferguson
    August 2, 2019 at 7:06 pm

    Hi Sarah, do you mind sharing where you purchased the ivory sliders and rings. I’m having a hard time finding those in the nylon coated metal.

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