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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

to be so annoyed at Debenhams' bra fitters?

72 replies

selsigfach · 21/10/2013 20:53

My breasts have a mind if their own and seem to double in size if I put on so much as a pound, grrrr, so after finding myself falling out of my 30e bra, I went to the nearest Debenhams at the weekend.

An assistant saw me with a few bras, asked if I was ok and offered a bra fit. Brilliant, I thought. Tried on a 30f which I thought was perfect... Only to be told it was too tight, she could only fit a couple of fingers underneath the strap and that I needed the 32", which offered no support at all. She measured me with a tape (came to somewhere between 28" and 29") and then told that this meant I'm a 32

OP posts:
Original poster
selsigfach · 21/10/2013 20:56

Argh,, posted too soon.

Why don't bra fitters know how to do their job - ie, fit bras? I had to sneak to the tills with the 30f in the end lest I got an even bigger telling off from the lady. Ooh, it gave me the rage!

OP posts:
NotYoMomma · 21/10/2013 21:00

bravissimo or die here

I've had terrible fittings in m&s and debenhams too

im all 'it is supposed to not have gaps at the back or ride up!!!'

I was 32g pre pregnancy and 34j now. I has someone try and tell me I was 38f Shock

alemci · 21/10/2013 21:02

I'm 30 e and I know what you mean. I am in my 40s and my cup size keeps expanding.

it seems to me that your cup size has gone up but your back hasn't got any wider.

YoniGetAnOohWithTyphoo · 21/10/2013 21:03

Hmm, maybe. If you disagree it's always worth getting a second opinion elsewhere. As a 'big' girl also, I found Marks n Sparks to be the best.

I don't rate Bravissimo though, they say they don't use tape measures because they're 'inaccurate' i guess just casually glancing at my baps is the height of diagnostic accuracy and I think they try to sell by playing to your ego! 32F? My dear, much as I would like to believe I am skinny with massive knockers, I haven't been '32 anything' since I was 13. And I prefer the underwires to not be puncturing my armpit. Pass the 36DD ta.

CelticPromise · 21/10/2013 21:05

YANBU, but at least it wasn't M&S! They'd probably put you in a 36B...

Have you tried a 28 back?

monkeysox · 21/10/2013 21:07

M and s are Shiite avoid

CelticPromise · 21/10/2013 21:08

Yoni have a look at the Better Bra Campaign blog. You can do better than M&S! If Bravissimo sell you a bra that isn't comfy you can return until they get it right.

Ham69 · 21/10/2013 21:08

Another Bravissimo fan here. Amazing for the bigger boobed lady! They don't use tape measures and the service is fantastic. Wouldn't trust anywhere else now.

Original poster
selsigfach · 21/10/2013 21:10

Unfortunately Debenhams is the only place for miles, no other shops do lingerie (unless you can get away with b cups/rubbish from New Look) in the nearest university town. The one I found that fitted was a Freya so will try to buy some online, hope their sizes are standardised. Will have to hunt down a Bravissimo next time I'm in a city.

OP posts:
Purplefrogshoe · 21/10/2013 21:11

Bravissimo are fab, I'm a 30g, debenhams told me I was 34dd, useless

SorrelForbes · 21/10/2013 21:11

OP, I'd suggest trying a 28FF too.

YoniGetAnOohWithTyphoo. Ummm, if you've been fitted by M&S then almost definitely you're wearing the wrong size bra. I'd guess that you're more like a 32G

YoniGetAnOohWithTyphoo · 21/10/2013 21:15

I was browbeaten into buying 3 bras in 32F from Bravissimo. They all sit useless in the drawer because if I wear them, the underwires give me actual sores on the armpit-breast boundary that take about 3 days to heal! I wish I knew I could exchange them, since it's underwear I thought it was a no-go and the receipts are long gone now. The only reason I haven't thrown them away is because I have this idea they might shrink as I lose weight but one stone lighter and not a bloody sausage lol

Also my day job is scientist so the no-tape measure thing offends my deepest beliefs Grin

Original poster
selsigfach · 21/10/2013 21:15

I think 28 might be a bit on the tight side! I reckon bra should be not uncomfortably tight on the loosest setting when you buy it, allowing you to move to a smaller setting after a few washes.
Oh, to be in proportion with the rest of my body and have nice, normal B/C cups!

OP posts:
Original poster
selsigfach · 21/10/2013 21:17

yoni ouch!

OP posts:
Darkesteyes · 21/10/2013 21:20

38K here Possibly going into a 36L now ive lost 10 and a half pounds. I never seem to lose off my cup size.

Sammie101 · 21/10/2013 21:20

I work at debenhams so I feel I have to defend!
However, you should only be able to fit two fingers in the back and pull it about an inch away! Stick to a 30, it sounds like it fits better and if it's comfortable then there is no need to go to a bigger back size-it'll go up at the back and down at the front!

YoniGetAnOohWithTyphoo · 21/10/2013 21:21

oh and I don't think i'm 32G because the 32 strap on any size gives me the back-fat above-and-below the strap bulge! Plus I feel like i'm being crushed and it leaves angry red marks on my skin. Maybe a 34E/F though? perhaps I will give Bravissimo a second chance but be more vocal this time. Ooh and I do like Freya as someone suggested.

SorrelForbes · 21/10/2013 21:22

Sorry? Nice, normal B, C cups? WTF? Thanks for suggesting that those of us bigger than a C aren't normal!

Oh and by the way, if you measure 28 underbust you probably need a 28 band! Read the bra guru guide.

Yoni - those bras will have hurt because they were too small on the cup.

SorrelForbes · 21/10/2013 21:24

Sorry OP, I didn't mean to sound quite so ranty!

Honestly, try a 28 as well as a 30. Some brands (eg Curvy Kate and Freya are quite roomy)

SorrelForbes · 21/10/2013 21:25

Back fat is usually caused by too big a band and too small a cup combo.

CelticPromise · 21/10/2013 21:25

Yoni sounds like the wrong shape for you. If you have a look for some of the long running bra threads in Style&Beauty you'll find some advice about different shapes. I used to wear a 36DD/E. Went to Rigby and Peller and came out in a 32G looking like I'd lost a stone. I now wear a 30Hish and I'm a size 16.

Selsig when you buy a new bra it should fit firmly on the loosest hook. Over time it will give a bit and you can tighten it.

Lweji · 21/10/2013 21:27

Yoni, you are probably not getting the support you need.

Did you try many 32s or even 34s?

Sammie101 · 21/10/2013 21:27

Also to people saying that they shops that don't use tape measures and just look at the persons figure, who DON'T believe that it's accurate, it actually is. With a tape measure you never know if you're pulling it too tight or too loose. It's quite easy after a while to look at someone and guess their size, however you always get people who say "oh no I'm definitely not a 32!" If you're not going to listen to me then WHY are you having a bra fit?

Another reason the tape measure is rubbish is that all bras fit differently, depending on style, fabric and even colour, so you can one size in one bra and a completely different size in another. However I always say that if the customer doesn't feel comfortable then it isn't worth buying a bra even if I think it's a good fit, because you'll never wear it and will hate it.

CelticPromise · 21/10/2013 21:27

Which is what you said, sort ofBlush

On the bra threads we have found average size to be more like an E/F cup.

ILikeBirds · 21/10/2013 21:30

I measure 30 and pretty much always wear a 32. Bras bought and checked in Bravissimo so not deluded or anything. It is possible to have that difference between measured size and a bra size without it being incorrectly fitted.

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