TfTM Blog: ‘an Underworks binder experiment’ by Nash
Posted: June 10, 2012 Filed under: Blog | Tags: binders, binding 5 Comments »  Contributor: Nash |
So, I’ve been wearing a chest binder nearly every single day for almost 2 years now. I’ve only ever used one kind – because it seems to work well enough and is relatively affordable. I wear the Double Panel Compression Shirt from Underworks, always opting for the white color. This style and color are supposed to look like an undershirt — it’s not perfect, but it comes closest to this effect.
I wear my binders hard. Meaning, I wear one day after day until it wears out, rarely washing the thing because I always have it on (except when working out & sleeping). This results in my binders losing compression strength and getting dingy very, very quickly. I decided to check my bank account records to see how long it took from my last binder purchase to the time I started feeling like it wasn’t working well enough anymore. 2 months! In just 2 months I wore my binder out. In 2 months of constant use I had gotten my binder to the point wear I often felt self-conscious about my chest because I wasn’t getting enough compression.
Well, one of my brothers came up with an experiment to try out.
I know not everyone could afford this experiment – it involves purchasing multiple binders. But I thought I’d share the experience. Wearing a binder out in 2 months – both in terms of compression and coloring – means having a binder I’m comfortable with at all times can be an expensive endeavor. This time around, I bought 3 binders and rotate which binder I wear everyday. Even if each binder wore out in 2 months – meaning I’d have 6 months before I bought my next one – I’d still have a longer period of time in which the binder I was wearing daily provided an adequate amount of compression and maintained it’s color. Moreover, I believe this group of 3 binders will take longer than 6 months to collectively wear out. There’s something about wearing the same garment day-in-and-day-out that is rough on it – especially one that is intended to maintain shape. Never giving it enough time to dry, relax, or be cleaned.
So, a binder experiment is in place. How long will it take for these binders to all wear out?
A new-ish binder next to a worn out binder. You can see that the binder on the right is more discolored & stretched out.
A new-ish binder next to a worn out binder. The shoulders on the right-side binder have stretched out remarkably from pulling the binder up daily & adjusting it throughout the day.
If you’ve experienced the same binder frustration as me and are curious about this experiment – I do have a couple tips. It turns out it’s cheaper per-binder to buy multiple at once if you’re going with Underworks. There’s a bulk discount for 3+ binders. Plus, Underworks has had the same discount code running for at least a year – the under10 discount code provides a 10% discount on your entire purchase. Ultimately, with shipping, each binder ended up costing around $26 as opposed to about $32 if I was to purchase a single binder.
If you do have some worn out binders or are in need of a used binder at no/low cost, there are a few programs out there that collect old binders and match them with trans* folks that cannot afford or acquire them:
In a Bind – TransActive Education & Advocacy
The Circle
Binder Boys
Big Brothers Used Binder Repository (see here for some critique of this program that I definitely resonated with when I first reviewed it – decide for yourself given the director’s policies)
I’ll let you know how long it takes these bad boys to wear out!
My size small, black tri-top binder has lasted about 1 and a half good years with continuous wear, washing and drying. I wear it for about 12 hours a day every day and workout in it and am not gentle with it at all. It’s very loose compared to my new size small binders, it now fits like a size large. There’s a large thin, hole in the middle of the back now and the shoulder straps are so thin that I’m waiting for them to snap any day now.
My first binder, I definitely wore for almost a year. The fabric certainly can last for a long time & I made more of an effort to hand-wash that one regularly (Underworks doesn’t recommend drying their binders in a dryer as it can affect the fabric). But, they seem to get to a point very quickly where they’re not compressing quite as much as I’d like.
I tried the Tri-Top briefly, but found that I preferred the longer, Double Panel one. Have you compared the two? Which one do you think lasts longer in terms of satisfactory compression?
It would be very interesting to find out the differences in compression between the double panel and tri-top. Though having only owned the the tri-top, I couldn’t compare. However I do tend to be a little bigger at times as well as having different compression needs throughout the day. I have an extra small for my skinnier days, 3 smalls for daytime wear and my oooold worn out size small for nighttime and around the house wear.
One thing I do regret is not washing my binder every time by hand. I agree with you that they do seem to lose their original compression value very quickly…but I have noticed that they shape up again more quickly if they are washed (by hand!!!) after every wear rather than after a few wears in a row, even if they were worn at a time where I wasn’t doing much physical activity!
I tried hand-washing for a while — I just couldn’t keep up with it. I can keep up with machine-washing but it breaks down the fabric quicker.
I tried a tri-top for a little. I just couldn’t get over how short it was. I got very used to the double-front binder cover my entire torso and being held in place by tucking it into my pants. With the tri-top, it didn’t rest quite right on my upper-body ribcage.
Mind I ask how you go about hand-washing your binders? I used to soak them in some lukewarm water + Woolite then scrub them a bit & air-dry them. But I’d like to know if there’s a better/easier method.
Glad to hear you found a binder that works for you! I had some trouble at the beginning with the tri-top not being comfortable, it was rolling up badly and squishing all sorts of ugly things everywhere..lol. I’ve lost a bit of weight now so it’s better.
The way I go about hand washing mine is to fill up the sink with lukewarm water and use either enough antibacterial hand soap or ivory bar soap to get a good lather..rinse it around a bit, then run it under cold water until all the soap is gone.
Woolite is probably a better option, but I’ve never had any problems using regular body soap. I think I have some woolite though, and I might do a little experiment of my own to see how washing one only with woolite vs. washing with hand soap affects the fabric! I will be sure to post about any differences I see