I recently had an experience with a women’s undergarment that I feel I need to share, in the interest of preventing a similar circumstance for my fellow femmes. This gets a little graphic so try not to blush!
The situation: Me, wearing a sleeveless, strapless dress. The item: a stick-on bra substitute, sold in drug stores. Perhaps you’ve seen them. They’re half-moon shaped, flesh-coloured stick-on cup holders sold in packs of 2 or 4 in a large envelope and meant for a wardrobe situation exactly like this one. It gives you support without straps. It seemed brilliant.
They went on OK and felt comfortable. In fact, I didn’t feel them at all! So on I went with my day.
At the day’s end I removed the glorified stickers and to my horror, all around the edge of each one was a brilliant red ring of fire. It looked like a possible allergic reaction…but why only along the edge, I wondered? After a couple of hours it all settled down except for one spot which, over the next couple of days, blistered painfully and stayed glowing red before itching like mad and descending into something that resembles a vampire bite. That was almost a month ago and I still have an obvious mark in that spot and I’m concerned that it might scar. I can’t imagine what caused it because there was no discomfort at all at the time so it wasn’t a mistake in the application process. It must be some sort of adhesive or material in the item itself that reacted with my skin. I had two more sets of those things and into the trash they went.
There’s no warning about sensitivity on the label. There’s nothing to indicate that there could be trouble afoot. Or, um, abreast. So be forewarned that they might not be worth the expense and the trouble! They seem like a quick and easy solution to an occasional problem but in my case, I might end up with a permanent reminder that they’re not the benign little accessories they claim to be.