To think I can’t need a bigger bra?!

[QueenofmyPrinces]

For the last 6.5 years I have worn nothing but nursing bras (breast fed two children consecutively) and yesterday I bought myself some normal bras for the first time in those 6.5 years.

Prior to children I was 34C but my boobs have obviously gotten a little bigger so when I was in the shop I was picking up bras sized 34C onwards and pretended to try them on by putting the cups over my boobs (over my clothes) and seeing if it covered my breast. I know it was silly to use this method but I had nothing else to go on and I deducted I needed a 34D and bought many bras in this size. The store did not allow any trying on of clothes.

I put one on this morning and it feels a little tight around my back and I can’t help but feel my boobs are pushed upwards a little over the top of the cup. I sent a photo from the side and sent it to my husband to show him and ask his opinion) and in the photo it looks like the cup wiring doesn’t sit completely under my breasts.

Not having worn a proper bra for so long I am wondering whether this appearance and sensation is actually normal and I’m just too familiar with the non-wired, non-fitted, non-flattering nursing bras?

I just can’t imagine how I could be a bigger size? I wear size 10-12 clothes, am about 5ft 6” and weight approximately 9 and a half stone. I certainly don’t look big breasted when I’m dressed.

Surely with that build I can’t need a DD cup?

I’m thinking I should maybe get myself professionally measured but for some reason I don’t like the thought of it. Has anyone else been measured professionally where you weren’t made to feel uncomfortable for getting your breasts out for non-medical purposes? Can you recommend anywhere?

At 32ff you are still in high street/marks and spencer sizing (don’t whatever you do let them fit you)...so you could order a load from there to try on at home if that’s easier! Next certainly do that size too. Btw my 13 year old dd is in that size - it’s really not huge.

Our views on size are warped by seeing pictures of page 3 girls and being told they are 36dd - Jordan (Katie price) is a teeny weeny person probably closer to a 26 back than a 36...and more HH than DD!

Bravissimo is fab but their bras are very expensive and if you don’t have one handy it doesn’t help!

I wore 36D for years until I saw myself running in a video.....
I shuffled along to my local independent bra lady and discovered I'm actually 34GG!!!!
My world is a much more stable place now

Bravissimo bras are expensive compared to M&S, supermarkets etc but they are so worth it and I just own fewer bras that suit me properly.

Also once your bra size is FF and above you get a different perspective on what's expensive, Bravissimo seems cheap now since the alternative is somewhere like Rigby & Peller

I often get fitted in bravissimo and buy one bra, then buy the same bra but in a different colour online, as you can often find them a bit cheaper.

fewer bras that fit me properly

I'm just adding weight to the Boob or Bust usage - I wasn't far off in what I was wearing before but it did suggest I dropped a band and the support is much better.
I'm a size 12, 5'7" and a 30HH. I have been buying from Figleaves lately and got myself something nice in the correct cup for just over a tenner in the sale!!! (I rue the day I went over a GG cup tbh)

Another vote for bravissimo here - they were fab in helping me get the right size before, during and after breastfeeding. And I've certainly not felt uncomfortable with them, as others have said they "measure" by eye, and when you're trying on the new options they will ask if you want them to leave whilst you put them on.

Naked, my boobs look smallish. I still need a D cup, mainly for the width of the underwire.
After cracking a rib I gave up on underwire and now wear nursing bras with the extra bits cut away!

There's been a bit of a revolution in bra sizing over the last few years. Turns out most of us were wearing the wrong size (too slack around the ribs and too small in the cups). With proper measurement, I went from a 34B to a 30D. I'm skinny, but spread out

You can shop online at Bravissimo, try it on at home and return if wrong size.

Bra sizing or the appearance of size still boggles my mind op. I am 30ff and do not appear to have a substantial rack unless I wear a moulded cup/t-shirt bra. I like the lace non padded bras. When I was 28-30C my boobs were tiny in my mind.

Trust boob or bust, it is a great starting point.Also think about what type and shape of bras suit your shape/breasts. Some cups like balconette bras don't work for me in any size.

I think the previous poster was right about how we've been misled over what's a "big" size. In the 90s I thought DD was massive, but I'm a 32E and while my boobs aren't small, they are definitely not huge. It's all about volume - if you look at a 30DD and a 38DD next to each other, for instance, they're a very different size and it puts it in perspective

I think many women believe their back size is bigger than it really is, and their cup size is smaller.

I would really recommend buying a bra in your measured size and trying it on - you might be really surprised.

I'm another slim, clothes size 8, 5'8", small chested 32D wearer. Shape and distribution play a huge part in bra size. When measured a few years ago I was told D or E which I still find amusing. If the centre of the bra doesn't sit neatly on the surface between boobs the cup is too small and the bra won't do it's job properly.

Once you've got used to your new size / worked out which style looks and fits best, have a look at brastop.com for cheaper bras - same brands as elsewhere, but lots of sales (last year's designs etc..).

The actual volume of the cup changes with the band size so a 28 DD is not the same volume as a 36 DD for example.

Definitely look at boob or bust! It will make you rethink what is large and what is average! I think the other misleading thing is all the pictures of underwear models with their boobs massively squidged up. I've found that wearing the correct size means you don't get the cleavage /overspill look (unless you opt for that type of bra) but you get a much better silhouette under clothes.

So I just went to a supermarket (not the best, I know) to look at bras in the size the website recommended and they drowned my breasts with loads of gaping areas around the cup.

I then bought a 34DD to try on at home as they were only £5. When I took my 34D bra off I had really red cup shaped marks underneath my breasts and it felt like I could breathe properly again.

When I put the 34DD on it felt like the cup size was perfect in terms of the underwriting cupping my breast really well and comfortably, but I now appear to have “armpit fat” - which I assume is upper breast tissue being pushed towards where the straps start.

I think I’m just going to have to get them measured properly because this could turn out to be a painful and expensive game otherwise.

I wonder whether bravissimo have an option for women to send in photos of what they look like in their current bras and then they make suggestions about bra sizing, in much the same way they would do if you actually went in store?

I had tiny boobs and used to wear a 36C, I got measured Properly and should have been in a 34D. A d, dd cup isn’t necessarily big it’s on proportion to the back size so a 38b will have the same size cup as a 34d.

So glad I'm an A or B. I can do a run without a bra no problem.

I was about to guess that you are likely at least a 32F. Look for a bra with thicker straps and a wider back. Curvy Kate of figleaves own perhaps?

The Bravissimo closest to me is closed (not sure why) and the next nearest is about a 50-60 minute drive away.....and I don’t drive

I measured myself over lockdown. It was easy to do and there is helpful information on how best to do it on the internet and YouTube. A lot of supermarket/clothes shop cup sizes are on the small size and not fantastically made. I've started ordering from bravissimo and the bras from there fit like a glove. To the point where I forget I'm wearing them.

I've been ordering from bravissimo online. I haven't had to return anything yet, but I've checked and they do have a good return policy.

Maybe I should just order a 32F from Bravissimo then, try it on and just return it if it doesn’t fit.

I don’t think there’s any other option.

It’s just when I look at myself in the DD cup, the top of the cup seems to sit perfectly and the straps begin almost exactly opposite where my armpit is.

Are we allowed to post bra-pics on here for advice?