For a generation raised (in more ways than one) on brutal under-wiring and an over-exaggerated shelf-like silhouette, the Cross Your Heart is downright radical in how damn pleasing it is to wear. And because fashion likes to fuck with us, the no-nonsense, full-cup, triangular cut and bland colors look oddly appealing to our normcore-trained eyes. Sure, there are echoes of Stella McCartney lingerie, and 1980s Jean Paul Gaultier. But somehow, the same unsexy bra I remember shuddering at in department stores 10 years ago, now somehow looks chic, understated, and completely current.“We don't see much cleavage in contemporary fashion — major trends like normcore and androgyny actively work against this — so naturally the Wonderbras of the 1990s look dated in contrast,” says fashion historian Amber Butchart , author of The Fashion of Film . “Foundation garments are key to achieving a fashionable silhouette, whether it's a Victorian corset, a 1950s bullet bra, or red carpet Spanx.”Lingerie, of course, has always responded to fashion trends. Corsets fell out of fashion fast during the 1910s and 1920s, being completely unsuited to the boyish silhouettes and delicate fabrics of the Jazz Age. A Manhattan debutante named Mary Phelps Jacobs assembled the first modern bra in 1910 with two handkerchiefs and ribbon. "The result was delicious,” she wrote . “I could move more freely, a nearly naked feeling, and in the glass I saw that I was flat and proper.” Each subsequent decade has had its defining breast (and best supporting bra) silhouette: conical in the 1950s; liberated, lifted, and separated in the 1960s; bohemian and teardrop-shaped in the 1970s, padded in the 1980s, pushed up in the 1990s, and cleavage-maximizing in the 2000s.Since the Playtex version has been “significantly modernized” (a.k.a. mucked around with), lingerie purists like Michelle Metens of Dollhouse Bettie prefer copycat versions of the original, like National’s Lace Cross and Shape Bra . “Their current production version is much closer to the original 1960s Playtex Cross Your Heart,” Metens explains. “If you're looking for retro reproductions, I like two styles from What Katie Did: Their Coco Cathedral Bra has a gorgeous 1950s silhouette with a very sexy over-wire, and their 1940s-style tailored satin bra is lovely.” With just a few additions (like the Cross Your Heart and a few faithful vintage reproductions) to my underwear drawer, it's possible to have a different breast shape for every style occasion.It’s time to liberate yourself from last year’s lingerie, rediscover the retro bra, and let your breasts do their thing, like they would've done in the '60s. Peace out, too-padded, too-underwired bras: Your moment is through.