Can anyone who understands bra fittings come and tell me where I'm going wrong.

[VivaLeBeaver]

Quite a few of my bras are past their best. I've also put on a few pounds and think my boobs have got bigger and with some of my bras was getting a bit of a four boob effect which I presume is caused by a too small cup size.

So I went to m&s yesterday, tried some on was told I now needed a 38d rather than usual 38c. Tried some on, they felt fine and looked ok.

But today I've been moving some furniture nd when I bend down my boobs fall out the top. So does that mean the cup size is too big. I tucked them back in and tightened the shoulder straps a bit but then seemed to get a bit of a four boob effect again.

They are a plunge style type bra and the inner, middle sides of my boobs isn't covered up by the cup. So I don't know if I need a bigger cup size or a smaller one. Can your boobs fall out if the cup size is too small? Or might it just be the plunge style which doesn't suit.

Yeah, same here Viva. Crap isn't isn't it?

If you need a plunge / half cup / balconette for a particular outfit you can tuck and tape the breast so it doesn't bulge. Sexy . It does work though.

Oh, and yy to the tshirt thing, forgot to add that. I usually take a white one, regardless of the colour of bra I'm after, they show the bulge and faults in cup form best.

Hetty - thanks. I'm pretty much dead on a 33 inch band (38 inch bust), so I guess that is between sizes. I do usually get a 34, I find cups tricky as my norks aren't so much large as wide . So cups are either gapey at the top, or else the 'underwire' shape is wrong as they dig in under the armpit. I usually give up and go for crop tops... I refuse to live life covered in red welts!

I hate M&S for fitting bra's it's always some rough woman who fits you and makes you get the breasts out to do it, while i've found it's better to fit mine when they are supported and not drooping

I have just used Hetty's guide and it seems M&S were in the ballpark wit my size they had my size at 34D but i'm a 34DD and i've just checked my best fitting cheap bra from new look and it is indeed a 34DD!!

I prefer a balcony bra, and M&S sold me some saggy looking wired thing, that makes my tits fall out!

Hmm, I was measured in debenhams as a 34b, about 8 years ago, but I've noticed I'm spilling out of my cups

So I've just measured myself and have come out as a 30c, so I think I'm bra trying/ buying tomorrow

So should I be trying a 30c, 32b and 28d?

How exciting

if you are spilling our of 34B then no you will not fit into 30c. the cup is actually smaller, 30D is the same cup size as 34B. So I would rather recommend 30F.

sorry, missed a letter, E of course.

and when I put my measurements into a bra fitting calculator, I come out as anything from a 34aa to a 30c

yes the calculators are horrible. if you are spilling out of 34B then obviously 34AA can't be right.

HH is right. No way is a 30C going to work.

What are your actual measurements?

I measure 30 inch band and 33 across the bust

Um, the bra you're spilling out of isn't 8 years old is it? If so, disregard any information it seems to be giving you, it's just knackered.

If I were you I'd try a few 30Cs for the hell of it, just to see what's going on. Have a look at the bravissimo fitting photos I linked to earlier, that's the way to find out.

As for what you'll end up with, TBH if you've been wearing a 34 you wouldn't be able to tolerate a 28, even if that was the best fit. 28s are not easy to find. Resist the temptation to go up to a 32 if you can.

I need a much bigger cup than I measure, some women do. Once just go up the sizes, as NN said, 30D, 30DD, 30E. A bigger-than-measured cup more often necessary with heavy breasts / breasts that used to be big than with self supporting ones (regardless of size), but self supporting ones do sometimes ahve a wide base too.

Oh, and if it fits properly, it fits, regardless of what the label says. there's nothing wrong with having a range of sizes in your bra drawer.

this thread is fantastic OP; thanks Hetty - am just not sure i can do the maths!

what do you think - i measure 30 under and 36 at fullest
currently most of my bras are 38 d - does that sound remotely in the right ball boob park, or do i get myself off shopping soon?

also how long on average does a bra last then? have trouble giving up my favourites

Bravissimo changed my life.

Also, once you have been fitted properly, if you are having problems with a tight band, maybe try a non-wired bra? They look HORRENDOUS in larger sizes as they are massive full cup jobs but are very comfy, I wore them all through pregnancy (had a couple of Triumph and a Royce) and although it did mean I couldn't wear anything remotely low cut they were very very comfy. And they looked fab UNDER clothes, they gave a really good shape and uplift.

I'm making me a 30F, that cant be right - can it..
may have to take the whole range in to check

how much are bravissimo? too poor for Rigby and Peller that's for sure!

Hetty, will you come to my house and sort me out please? I can not process so much information at this point on a sat night!

Aura - I think you should be in a 30F, as your starting point - possibly even a G. You need to go shopping!

Bravissimo are fab. I went in as a generally sore, fourboobed 38c and came out as a much more comfy 34e a few years ago!!!

I'd love to go to Rigby & Peller, but out of my price range just now - I tend to buy from M&S but go and try on a selection of sizes without the fitting.

What a supportive thread. Ha ha ha ha ha ha. Plop.

I love my Triumph soft cup.

I always had a fear of Bravissimo, that my norks would be too small and they would direct me to the door However going off Hetty's guide I think I shall boldly enter the shop.

I wear M&S bras size 36D but do tend to topple out of the top of them so have to readjust myself. I do own a very unsexy full cup M&S number that I wear when I work in a primary school to save myself the 4 boob effect.

Also when I am on my period my boobs increase in size so I tend to wear a crop top to accommodate them. I look like I have had implants as they become round like balloons for 2 days

I measure at 32.5 under my bust and 39.5 around my bust.

Thank you to Hetty for her epic post, I now know why I can always get my finger down the front of my bra in the middle, they never sit against my rib cage.

Ali.. thanks, I think will be shopping shortly!

Am racking my brains but I think it was M&S all these years ago, started me at 36C and after children I went up to 38D
Am quite slim(ish) but fair sized norks; was buying some bras recently and started to think about this..
feck

Yes a supportive thread after all the snipey snidey ones of late!

Go to John Lewis - they're the best for fitting imo - better than Bravissimo and definitely Debenhams anyway. Won't even stoop to comment on M&S.

Don't understand why you'd want to do this yourself, though - I get fitted every time I go to buy a new bra, otherwise I'm in and out of the changing rooms, having to get dressed every time I want to try another size. Too much hassle.

The tight band takes some getting used to, but I agree it's what really makes a difference. I've gone from a 34D (allegedly) to now a 30G in the last few years.

Aura - I wear a 38 band and I am not slim at all, so I can't imagine that you should be wearing that.

Based on the M&S system I would be a 42DD. I am actually a 38G.

M & S told me that I was a 42B. Rigby and Peller told me to take it straight back and lifted my norks up to where they (should) belong with a 38F.

M&S should be sued for putting so many women in bras that are so ill fitting and simply wrong. and of course you won't simply try a 32F one day if you have been a 36d all your life. Only when you read a thread like this :o