Jené Luciani Answers Your Style Questions

What Compelled You To Write The Bra Book?

I had a successful career in TV news for several years, but I tired of the daily doom and gloom stories we covered and always yearned for something more positive. In 2006, I started working for a production company in NY covering fashion weeks in NY and Paris and realized that’s what I truly loved. Around that time, I started researching magazines I could write for as I had been writing for TV for so long, why not? I stumbled upon The WAG, a regional luxury publication outside of NYC and set up a meeting with the editor. After writing a couple of articles, they liked my work and offered me a position as a columnist. I’d always loved fashion because my parents owned a clothing boutique growing up so you can say it was in my “jeans.”

I wrote that fashion and beauty column for WAG for nearly 5 years and became their Fashion and Beauty Editor. During that time, I was working production and doing freelance PR for various people, media training and booking them to be on air as fashion experts. One day I said, maybe I would like to do that?? And I booked myself on a regional TV station and realized I truly loved giving advice on-air, styling and working with real women, and was quite good at it too! Five years later, I’m a regular on shows like NBC’s TODAY and a number of other outlets in NYC and elsewhere. During that same time, I wrote an article for WAG on foundation garments and realized there were such little info out there on bras and so many women who wanted help… It was 2005/2006 and OPRAH had just done her first “bra intervention” show so everyone was talking about the topic. I really felt like all the conflicting info needed to be deciphered, myths needed to be de-bunked and it needed to be compiled into one place (like a book!) I decided I should write a book on bras from a journalistic standpoint and began the proposal process. Three years later, it was published by BenBella Books and available in retail outlets via a private label with the bra company Fashion Forms. A dream come true! Now I’m one of the country’s top bra experts in the media. I love helping women and truly have my dream job!

Besides the aforementioned article that spawned the idea for The Bra Book, I had a personal reason to want to help other women with bras and body image issues related to their breasts. I suffered from Tubular Breast Deformity and had 2 reconstruction surgeries in my twenties. Before my surgeries made my breasts look “normal,” I used to use a Victoria Secret Miracle Bra and take out the padding on one side and leave it in the other, and at least my boobs appeared even and symmetrical under my clothing. It had a major impact on my life and I wanted to share my story to help other women who may be suffering from breast deformities or any other issue! I tell the whole story in the introduction to The Bra Book. Visit Jené Luciani to learn more