Recycle your bra!

According to a new survey carried out by erotic lingerie chain Ann Summers, 50% of women own over 20 bras at any one time, yet most of us are guilty of returning over and over again to the same old favourites, ignoring much of our underwear drawer for years at a time.

The solution to this? Well, it’s twofold. Firstly you should go for a proper bra-fitting, as according to Ann Summers, 60% of us are wearing the wrong size. But what to do about all the lacy lovelies gathering dust at the back of your drawer? The answer is simple: recycle them!

There are many places where you can find a new home for your unwanted brassieres and Let’s Talk Breasts would like to highlight the following two brilliant options for your consideration:

Bin Your Bra! for Against Breast Cancer

Recently fronted by Lorraine Kelly, and supported by celebrities including Michelle Heaton, Barbara Windsor, Sharon and Kelly Osbourne and Penny Lancaster, Against Breast Cancer‘s campaign encourages women to deposit their unwanted bras in a ‘bra bank’ to help raise funding for breast cancer research and treatment.

The charity has teamed up with a company called BCR Global Textiles, which sends textiles to small businesses in Africa, where bras are too expensive and complicated to produce. These small businesses sell the bras at affordable prices locally, giving many women jobs and keeping their families out of poverty. For every tonne of textiles BCR collects (approximately 9,000 recycled bras), they donate £1,000 to breast cancer research charities.

Says Lorraine Kelly: ‘Our Bin Your Bra campaign is a great way to help Against Breast Cancer’s important and on-going research into the disease, whilst also getting rid of those unused bras in the back of your underwear drawers.’

As the scheme also keeps unwanted bras out of UK landfill sites, it really is an excellent arrangement, and has also been adopted by Breast Cancer Campaign. Visit the individual charity webpages for further details of your nearest collection point, or to order a cardboard bra bin for your business or building.

The Big Bra Hunt for Oxfam

A very similar set up to Bin Your Bra, The Big Bra Hunt is fronted by Dame Helen Mirren, Zoe Ball and Miquita Oliver, and urges women to drop off unwanted bras at their local Oxfam shop. The bras will then either be sold in their UK shops or sent to Senegal to be sorted and sold at Frip Ethique. This is an Oxfam-run social enterprise where women are employed to sort and sell bras to local traders. Employees are well paid and given job security, sickness benefits and a pension for their efforts.

‘I’m sure many women have a number of bras stowed away and left untouched for years,’ says Dame Helen Mirren. ‘The Big Bra Hunt really highlights how every last item donated to Oxfam can be used in a truly unique way, making a real difference to people all around the world.’

So don’t delay – have a rummage at the back of your drawers and donate a bra today!