Scrap busting lingerie

Scrap busting lingerie: I hacked the Maya bra into a supportive soft-cup, pull-on plunge bralette thing!

I had all this lace leftover from my first lingerie set (an Eva bralette and knickers), and some elastics from the bras I made recently. No hook & eye closure, no wires, and no strap rings and sliders though. When I asked in my stories if I should try and make something from it, you said yes, and this beauty came out of it! 😍

I started out with the same Maya bra pattern that I love and have used for all my bras so far, but made some modifications:

• cut a one-piece back band (because no closure)
• cut the lace cradle/bridge from 4 pieces (because these were scraps)
• lowered the bridge 2cm (for a plunge style) and narrowed it a bit for stretchy fabric
• changed the shape of the lace upper cup for a higher/deeper bralette style
• squared the lining upper cup edge to go straight across to the underarm elastic (for support while showing off the lace)

The 3-piece cup meant I could use those weird leftover bits of fabric, even mirror the lace! The lining of the band and cradle are both cut from stretchy power net (I did accidentally cut the cradle from stable sheer cup lining and couldn’t pull the thing on 🤦‍♀️). The construction is identical to my underwire bras, with channeling and strong elastics. It’s very supportive, comfortable to wear, and doesn’t create a mono-boob – but maybe not the most practical option for larger bust sizes, without a closure.

I love the way the upper cup turned out - when worn the teardrop shape is really pretty. The upper cup lining and band lace are left floating (the bottom elastic is sewn only to the lining). I did plan to add a strip of lace around the bottom for a long-line style, but I like it like this. I’ll reuse this cup style in a future underwire bra.

Do you change up your favorite sewing patterns to transform them into something different? How do you use your lace scraps?

#diylingerie #brasewing #patternhack #mayabra #mayabrahack #scrapbusting #usewhatyouhave #slowfashion #bodils_wear #bramaking