Iowa State designer creates research-based maternity wear

Growing up the daughter of an artist in China, Ling Zhang said her father envisioned for her a future in the arts. Specifically, he wanted her to become a professional pianist.

As Zhang developed into her own person with her own interests, however, she moved away from that vision — although the piano lessons weren’t for nothing.

“Playing music actually helped me to understand the melody of art,” said Zhang, who gravitated toward drawing instead of piano or, like her father, painting.

Her affinity for drawing created a foundation on which evolved a passion for design.

“And I got into the No. 1 apparel design college in China,” Zhang, now 42, said.

After graduating from the Beijing Institute of Fashion Technology, Zhang followed her husband to Iowa State University, where over time she earned masters and doctorate degrees from its esteemed apparel, merchandising and design program.

The title of her dissertation summed up her artistic evolution to that point and foreshadowed her professional path ahead: “From Chinese Painting to Wearable Art.”

After several years away from Iowa — working designer jobs in New York and New Jersey — Zhang returned to Ames in 2018 for an assistant professorship in the department where she earned her degrees.

“I loved Iowa State so much,” she said of the first place she lived in the United States. “I feel like it’s my second home.”

As a professional designer, before completing her doctorate in apparel design, Zhang spent five years designing bras. But maternity-specific bras caught her attention — and ire — when she became pregnant with her son a decade ago.

When her daughter came along years later in 2020, Zhang still felt frustrated by the lack of quality options.

“Because I was a bra designer, I had really, really high expectations for a bra,” she said. “I was pregnant two times, and I couldn't find a really good nursing bra. Even though I spent $50 for a nursing bra, I still didn’t like them.”

So — as a researcher with ISU resources at her fingertips — Zhang decided to try to fill the maternity apparel gap herself.

“Why don’t I design my own nursing bra?” she asked. “So I formed a research team with graduates and undergraduates, and we came up with some design ideas.”

Her prototypes are soft and strong — made with fabric from bamboo, which is cooler than cotton. They used pattern techniques to provide more support in certain areas, nixing the need for underwire or elastic or other stiff materials that can contribute to blocked milk ducts and mastitis — a mammary tissue infection. They fasten using ultrasoft Velcro, enabling more fit modifications as size fluctuates during and after pregnancy.

“Our products will be considerably more comfortable,” Zhang said.

And they’ll look good.

“Clothing companies often think new mothers don’t need beautiful garments, but they do,” she said. “Many are struggling with seeing their bodies change a lot; some may have stretch marks and want to cover them.”

That feedback, and other findings, came from a market analysis Zhang conducted before designing her prototypes. Her team looked at existing nursing bras and hired a national survey service to poll about 1,300 women who either were breastfeeding or had done so recently.

The data produced revelations around bra preferences — like price, color and brand. Participants indicated comfort and fit as top priorities.

As part of the next tier of her research and product development, Zhang developed prototypes and sent them to seven nursing mothers on the ISU campus for a “wear trial,” asking them to use them and wash them a while and provide feedback.

“Then we modify the prototype until they’re satisfied,” she said.

Because Zhang and her team just completed the wear trial last month, they’re still analyzing data and don’t yet have a summary of their findings. But the process is ongoing, as they’re putting together a second prototype now.

“We plan to have at least two or three wear trials,” Zhang said. “Until they are at least 90 percent satisfied.”

Zhang, thanks to help from the ISU Office of Innovation Commercialization, has applied for patents for three products — two nursing bras and a camisole. Those patents are pending. If granted, they’ll be the first for ISU’s College of Human Sciences — although ISU as a whole ranks in the top 100 universities with U.S. utility patents.

In total, Zhang has received $75,000 to make her vision a reality — including a $50,000 grant from the Regents Innovation Fund, aimed at expanding economic development initiatives.

Zhang hopes to start selling her bras and camisoles in 2024 through a newly-registered and trademarked company MUQIN LLC, which means “mother” in Mandarin. The long-term vision for the business is to sell a broader range of nursing and maternity wear both online and in U.S. stores.

“All of the products will be research-based,” Zhang said. “We’re going to use our professional skills and vision to put out something that’s human-centered and research-based.”

Vanessa Miller covers higher education for The Gazette.

Comments: (319) 339-3158; vanessa.miller@thegazette.com