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.

I'm going to try a bet with my Mum. I just don't understand why she doesn't think I'm right about this when I'm always right!

Hetty, I feel I should add you to my Christmas card list.

hi- i cried real tears in la senza -i was still breastfeeding,had massive boobs and despite the really helpful(changing rooms upstairs-bras all down,and she did all the running..)sales asistant,who assured me nearly every one was perfect-none felt right and all looked awful. Eventually i left in tatters.fortunately-and definately favouring my usual more luck than judgement-i attempted a small,independant lingerie store-which previously i would have deemed "granny knickers"-they stocked a range of wonderbra,triumph ,freya etc.. the sales lady takes you in cubical-has you remove top and turn round then comes back with a total different size bra than youd ever imagine would fit,the prices were on par with big stores but the difference in a proper fitting bra is astounding-not just in terms of comfort,but shape and self confidence.so,maybe try that sort of store?her other tip was to always buy a bra that fastens on the last set of hooks,the rest are for any baggyness caused by washing it,i had been measure in mothercare as a 38 D. but left the shop in a size 32 F

I feel for you, I've cried in bra shop fitting rooms more often than I care to remember, which is why I decided to work out how to sort myself out.

Mothercare is the M&S of feeding bras. Not good.

Thank you Viva for starting this thread and thank you, Hetty for all of your advice. After lurking and frantic note taking, I took myself to the shops and I'm now the proud owner of several 34f bras (my 38D are in the bin). And I look like I have a waist!

29 under and 37 over here .... .

droves - try a 28G or a 30F as a starting point.

Thanks ! .

So Viva, are you bra-ed up yet?

I have about twenty bras mouldering away in my drawer and I've taken to just wearing tight vests for a bit of support as none of them fit.

They're all between 34D (way too tight around the ribcage) and 38C (slightly too big in the cup)

I've just measured myself as 35 under and 39 over and am

Help - Hetty are you still there...?

possibly 34 under / 39 over on further tape-wrangling.. this calculator makes me a 38B which might actually be right??!

eye - Try a 34E. The band should be tight but if the cup is too small then the wires will dig in.

Hetty - my 38s are a bit loose I think,even though I measure 38.5. I have them on the tightest setting and can still get my fingers inside the band. Surely a 36 is going to be way too tight?

ooooooh interesting, thanks Ali. I'll go to JL and give 34E a whirl.

eye - The calculator is wronger than a wrong thing. Just wrong. I make you a 34DD to start from, could well be that you need a 34 or 32 E, or indeed a 32DD. Or something totally different, it's all in the trying on.

It's not an exact science. The measuring just gives a starting size to work from. Fit varies between brands and models anyway. Just buy what fits and feels best. Don't forget one band size up is one cup size down - 38C has the same wire as 36D.

Ali - How old are the too big 38s? They stretch with time and even a perfectly fitted bra will get too lose in the end, think of the strain they have to take! You just need to go and do some trying on, starting with 36s and 38s. I wear (and need) a band a couple of sizes smaller than I measure.

Thanks Hetty, hopefully that'll perk me up

Hetty they are new nursing bras. The problem is, that I can't really go anywhere and try things on, because the only places that stock nursing bras in big enough cup sizes are all online and there is a limit to the number of times I can go back and forth to the post office to return things :)

I will just do them up as tight as possible for now and then remeasure in another few weeks I think.

Ah, right, sorry . I feel your pain, I remember the horror of feeding bras all too well, IME being forced t o spend the best part of 70 quid on something that leaves the norks level with the navel is akin to some sort of torture

Sound like you need to go down at least a band size, probably two in that particular model / brand. A new bra on the tightest set of hooks is equivalent to one band size smaller. So, effectively you're already wearing a 36. Sizing down the band means sizing up the cups, obviously there's a limit to the size of cup available, is two cup sizes up from what you have now available? What a PITA for you.

A really well fitted underwired bra is fine for feeding once you're not getting regular engorgement any more. Could that be an option? I'm afraid I don't know who sells the adapters these days, taking them off old nursing bras at least ensures the strap holes are wide enough.

Is there room in the under the arm part to shorten the band? I've had to do that before with fucking feeding bras. You know the place some bras have an extra bone? Just tuck and sew VERY well.

Don't cut the band, obviously.

They are underwired, and they are doing a pretty reasonable job - ie. I have two breasts rather than a mono-boob, nipples forward, couldn't hold a pencil underneath etc etc so it isn't all bad.
A 36 I would need an H or possible I cup - I don't even know if they come that big in underwires and I definitely need wired.

I could possibly tuck and sew - my Mum has a sewing machine which would do a nice strong job.

Ladies,

Can I ask what would be the advice for norks of the smaller variety which need obviously a bra that fits well, but also one which gives a bit of va va voom?

Most of the sizes I am seeing bandied about on this thread are all so ummmmm....... big.

I'm find myself thinking "no, surely that doesn't apply to me".

I normally wear about a 34B.

I often find some gaping in the very top corners of the cup where the bra fabric meets the strap, but if I got a smaller bra the wires would dig into my breast tissue under the arm.

Thought I was quite bright.

Not quite sure why I can't work this out myself!

Right, well the first thing to do is to measure yourself, a 34B may or may not be the right size for you. If it is then the gaping will be down to the cut / model / type of the bra. Same rules apply to breasts of all shapes and sizes, it's just that bigger ones or ones with a lot of, shall we say, life experience, are harder to fit.

Let me know what you measure and I'll see what I can do.

Ooh, please help me! Promise to buy well-fitting bras tomorrow if you do

I measure just under 35 underneath, and almost 39 on top.

Puss - I make that a starting size of 34D, probably 36C in some brands. In theory the 36 should be the exception rather than the rule.

Happy shopping.