Bliss Manifesto

blissmanifesto answered your question: Buying Bras

lostgained:

I have! :( But the size they gave me was still way too big(literally, people who weigh 500lbs were that size(she said 48C… …….)), I can fit into, comfortably and without looking like I’m about to die, in bras 10 inches less than that. Blerg! Forever huge back boned. 

I was going to message you back but stupid tumblr limits the length of my reply. So here it is in all its TL;DR glory.

The deal with bras is this: the strap must stay anchored below the shoulderblades all day, and the underwires must sit back firmly against the breastbone. If the back of the bra rides up, the bra number (band size) is too big. If the underwire does not sit firmly against the chest, the bra just plain does not fit, probably because the cups are too small. And of course, the breast tissue should be completely inside the cup — no extra boobs popping out the top or the sides or, worst of all, the bottom. So let go of any ideas you may have about what size you think you are supposed to be wearing and especially don’t pay any heed to what size bras other people are wearing, because more than half the ladies you meet are not wearing the right size. You can tell because half the time the bra rides up in back, which is easy to spot because then the boobs fall down to Australia, and half the time they have the telltale extra boobs popping out the top. (I call that 4-boob.) 

You must allow yourself to get WHATEVER size bra fulfills your fit requirements: the strap does not shift about at all and the cups contain the boob completely and there is no 4-boob. When I try on a bra, I test it out by doing yoga in the fitting room, making sure to do some Down Dogs and an inversion or two to see if my boobs will jump out of the cups or shift around a lot, or if the band will ride up. I am a severe tester by this time, because I ain’t spending $50 on a bra that doesn’t work, damn it. And in my size, there is no $12-on-sale-cheap option available.

Now, most ladies need a smaller band and a larger cup size. I wear an H cup myself, yet I am in a size Medium shirt now, and my band size is only 30. This is a rare size and shopping for it is a challenge! But based on  your description it sounds as if you have the opposite problem: fairly generous band size with a smaller cup. That can also be a challenge to shop for, since bra makers tend to assume that your cups are growing as your band size grows. (Oddly, garment makers also seem to think women get taller as they gain weight … but that is a rant for another day.)

I don’t really understand what you mean when you say you can fit into a smaller size bra without looking like you are going to die. What is that? Do you mean that you can squeeze into it without experiencing actual chest pain? You don’t want a bra which will be so snug that from behind, you have funky back boobs. A good-fitting bra will smooth out the line of your back a bit.

So that is my take on bras: it doesn’t really matter what size the label says. Nobody will know anyway!! (Unless, like me, you blog about it.) What matters is if the damn thing really really really fits you perfectly. I wish I could recommend a good site for you but I am not in the UK (although my bras are from the UK) so I don’t know what to recommend. Keep shopping until you find bras that truly fit. You deserve it!!

Tagged: brasboobsTMI