Big boobs

The stretchy band is a huge problem for me, the stretchier the band, the more it cuts in for the same amount of support. The most comfortable "bra" I have ever worn was a belly dancer's bedlah top in custom sizing, no stretch at all in the back strap and you stitch the hooks and eyes on yourself in the correct place for you. The next most comfortable was a bra-sized bikini top.

They obviously did the plus 4, which is outdated as bras now have stretch.

Like PP said, if you are a size 12 it's highly unlikely you are a 38 - as a rule of thumb, you add 20 to your dress size to find your bra band size

This doesn’t work for me, I am a size 14 and west a 40 bra. When I was a size 10 (years ago when
size 10 was smaller) I wore a 34 bra. I worked in a lingerie shop and was properly measured.

Bravissimo are amazing. I went from looking fat due to large boobs in massively oversized clothes to actually having bras and clothes that fit and accentuate my curves. Though I'm also now fat 😁

Sports bras seem to achieve the lack of bounce by putting strong elastic straps around my ribs and squashing my breasts against my front ribs.

I'm a brass player, and when I come to breathe in during a loud passage (think John Williams film music) I cannot breathe in enough in a sports bra. They might be OK for rapid shallow breathing but they are no good for trumpet players or any other brass player.

I once went for a bra fitting at Debenhams. She guessed my size by just looking at me and got it completely wrong 🤦‍♀️. I told her I’m a 36b, she was adamant I was a 34c. Lo and behold I ended up with a 36b. Since the menopause I’m now a 36c, I’m 5ft 3” weigh 10 stone and a size 12/14. I have a broad back due to lots of swimming when younger, I believe you could be a 38 but it wouldn’t hurt to go for a measure. Also different makes and sizes vary so much, which is very bloody annoying 😋

I thought I was still a 38dd but since losing weight I am now a 32f after finally getting measured, it's made such a difference....brastop do great bras

I did not know that about the "add 20" but actually that completely checks our for me! Ta very much, that will be so much bloody help going forward because my weight fluctuates so much!

@Usernameundiscovered thats a handy skill to have! Unfortunately I can just about sew on a button.

I can sew so I adapt items myself. I don't buy fast fashion so yes it seems expensive but I probably spend similar to people who buy huge amounts from Primark or Shein.

@Usernameundiscovered when you say tailored do you mean you get measured by a seamstress and your clothes made to measure? Isn't that awfully expensive?

I'm a 34J and find wearing tailored clothing works best for me. I'm an hour glass figure though so it is the best overall option for me. I also don't get hung up on clothes sizes, I buy a size 16/18 top/jumper for baggy or comfortable clothes and a 14 dress size if I want it fitted and to show my figure off.

I buy my bras from brastop and get fitted at bravissimo.

@VitoCorleoneOfMNMafia sports bras really shouldn't be affecting your breathing negatively. They're designed to help stop your boobs bouncing around while you run, jump, play team sports and so on. Which all gets the heart racing and involves lots of rapid breathing.

@Usernameundiscovered I like my figure too. I thunj I look great naked. But the fact of the matter is that my boobs are an E cup and the national average is a C cup, so clothes are designed for the average bust. Which means I either find minimising bras or I have to size up dresses, tops and jumpers to fit my massive chest, and then the clothes are baggy/ill fitting everywhere else. Also I quite like the freedom of movement sports bras bring. I don't feel like one of my boobs is going to pop out. I'm curious as to what you do about this @Usernameundiscovered

I hate sports bras. Equally I don't want to squash everything down I quite like my figure and shouldn't be made to feel ashamed of it because clothes manufacturers think big boobs need minimising

That compression isn't suitable for everyone. I find it impairs my breathing, plus I feel like I've got a millstone on my chest.

But not impossible. I'm a 12 and a 38 bra, professionally measured more than once. I have very square shoulders.

Try high impact sports bras. They squash everything down a bit. I'm a 36E and I feel like a good sports bra compresses me visually to a C

I'm glad that surgery worked well for you.

I doubt it would for me as I find my existing scar tissue painful and don't want to add more.

I also think that we should look to change the world to suit women's bodies, not the other way around. Surgery is an individual solution to a group problem, which is that women's breasts are getting bigger across the board but clothing manufacturers have not caught up to this.

six pages in, @Mooshamoo i hope someone recommended a breast reduction/lift.
personally life is too short to fight with the ever expanding breasts (yes they often get bigger with peri and menopause).
my breast lift/reduction was the best thing i ever did and should have done it decades sooner. exercise is much easier without them flopping about.
money spent on fancy better bra's annually easy make up for the cost of the surgery.

Not for me. Asda ones are absolutely perfect. I've struggled previously with Supermarket bras but Asda's current manufacturer IMO has it bob on.

Now if I could just find out where to buy their previous manufacturer's jeans I'd be a really happy girl!

Supermarket bras bear no resemblance to the size they claim to me and the cups are the wrong shape, not deep enough.

They really know their stuff and the bras they sell (expensive, but once you've found a style that works you can search for them cheaper elsewhere)

Don't showroom like this if you want the Bravissimo branch and advisors to still be there when you next need a fitting.