handbra

thumb|Woman's torso with her hands covering her nipples A handbra (also hand bra or hand-bra) is the practice of covering female nipples and areolae with hands or arms. It often is done in compliance with censors' guidelines, public authorities and community standards when female breasts are required to be covered in film or other media. If the arms are used instead of the hands the expression is arm bra. The use of long hair for this purpose is called a hair bra. Moreover, a handbra may also be used by women to cover their breasts to maintain their modesty, when they find themselves with their breasts uncovered in front of others.

Social conventions requiring females to cover all or part of their breasts in public have been widespread throughout history and across cultures. Contemporary Western cultures usually regard the exposure of the nipples and areolae as immodest, and sometimes prosecute it as indecent exposure. Covering them, as with pasties, is often sufficient to avoid legal sanction.