Pink Tricot Bra with Lace Sling

I made a new bra today, and I'm quite pleased with how it turned out.  I'll start off by saying my dress form doesn't really fill it out properly; it fits me perfectly! This is the diagonal seam cup I tested out on my bra fitting band. The lace sling is the same pattern piece that I used in my black lace balconette, but in this case is purely decorative and not functional as a powerbar.

I used 40 denier nylon tricot for the cups and frame.  One of the prolific bra-makers in the bra-making group on Facebook frequently makes bras with nylon tricot fused with lightweight interfacing, and I was inspired to try it out.  I am not an interfacing expert, so I wasn't sure exactly which type to use.  I have a lightweight woven interfacing by Fashion Sewing Supply, and decided to try out a test piece.  After fusing, the resulting fabric still has a tiny bit of stretch, which is perfect for bra cups. ​

Interfacing from Fashion Sewing Supply

I usually line my cups with 15 denier tricot, but I wondered if that was really necessary for this project.  Lined cups are probably more comfortable, since there is no seam allowance to irritate my skin, but I decided to just make an unlined bra this time.

I tried to topstitch the seam allowances close to the edge.  I probably should have stitched closer to the seamline and just trimmed away the excess fabric.  Or covered the seam with seam tape, which I do have in my big pile of bra trims.

I was planning to use picot elastic in the underarm area, but I really liked the piping elastic I used on the neckline and decided to continue it around the top edge.

Now, about the straps.  I am experimenting with different methods of strap attachment.  Folding the top of the cup down through an O-ring always turns into a very bulky seam for me, and I don't care much for it.  I had a roughly rectangular piece of fused tricot leftover, and decided to make partial straps from the fabric.  I could have just make a single wider strap, but I like the look of bra straps made from multiple strands of spaghetti.  Instead of fussing with multiple edges of folded back and sewn straps, I used a lark's head knot through the O-ring. Is it weird? I don't know.  Just an experiment.

 At a craft store I bought a mixed bag of bows with pearls, and the pink color just happened to match my bra perfectly!

Of course, I have to show you the back even though it's not terribly interesting. I didn't have pink powernet, so I figured beige was my next best option.

I'm already dreaming up my next bra project.  I'm thinking about altering my pattern yet again, and trying out a partial band bra.