You bra experts are Very Bad People <glares>

[needasilverlining]

As of this morning, a scant two weeks after putting me in the right size bra for the first time EVER, I own seven new bras.

Seven.

And I am STILL LOOKING. I am obsessed.

You will drive me to the poorhouse.

(It isn't quite as profligate as it sounds: most have cost me 5-8 pounds; the most expensive was 11. But even so.)

Please tell me I'm not alone and there are other MNers with a drawer full of new undies thanks to the Bra Enablers?

It's bizarre how bras work on different people. Curvy Kate doesn't seem to work on me full stop and I have no idea why :(

No, the CK unpadded are not good on me either. Not enough lift and a bit of east/west boobage going on. The Show Range is better but a bit shallow and I definitely need to size up.

The only CK I own is the Elegance plunge. It's useful for low cut/v neckline tops and dresses but the lift isn't great.

What sports bras do you all recommend? I have a Panache underwired in a 32G which is a bit big in the cup and is too 'covered up' and a Freya active in a 30GG underwired which is v tight on band and gives me a very odd shape, sort of flattened and low! Any suggestions?

Has anyone tried Boux Avenue? It's a new chain and has branches in a lot of the big cities. I went in expecting it to be useless like La Senza but actually had the best fitting of my life! They start at 30 back, up to at least F or G, and prices are £20-30.

I think it's down to personal taste Hanging. Personally I love the Panache and also rate the Ennell for support although it's fugly. I don't think much of the Freya but I believe senior bra experts here like it a lot. I hear good things about Shock Absorber but I don't find it as comfy or effective as panache.

Velvet I think if you've had a good fitting there you've been lucky, I believe they are usually in M&S territory for fitting. I haven't tried them personally, they don't do my size.

I have the Freya underwired and it's great in that nothing moves. The wires are very wide though so I think when I shrink out of this one (ever the optimist! ) I will try the panache

I have gone from a 4 boobed 38C to a slimmer looking 34G (3 different people asked if I'd lost weight). It's fantastic as I found 3 New bras on the sale rails for between £5-8

Pls don't tell everyone or the bargains will go!

The link goodasitgets put up is for Ditsy Blossom. There's a couple left on their website. The nearest current equivalent is probably the Dotty Spot or the Bloomsbury but it looks as if it was cut on the same pattern as Boudoir Beau to me

Thanks Celtic and SC, the Freya wires are practically the other side of my armpits they are so low! I think I will go down a cup size in the Panache.

Sorry meant 'wide' not 'low'

Thank you married!
I couldn't remember the bloody name. It's very comfy and pushes everything forward

I read this thread this morning, then got the tape measure out and had a go, as I've been meaning to every time I see one of these bra intervention threads. Made myself a 32F. I've been wearing crop tops and sports bra since Mothercare tried to put me in an incredibly uncomfortable 34D shortly after my milk came 7 months ago. On a whim at Next today I picked up a 32F (as well as a few other sizes) just to see if the fit was anything like what I measured, and it's amazing. It fits me beautifully and my sad saggy boobs are now a very impressive cleavage. I can pull the plunge style cups aside just enough to be able to feed as well (deliberately chose soft cups so I could do this).

So now I look slimmer and bustier, feel better and am wearing the nicest underwear I have since I got pregnant! DH's eyes nearly fell of his head when I showed him (after he looked at the bra and said "that's massive, you'll never fill that"!) :D

Sigh.

I just nipped over to the next site after reading a post above. I last tried some on in there when I thought I was a 34d and nothing seemed to fit. And now I am told I should aim for a 34F... but next don't seem to go above a dd! Which is NOT actually that big!

And, check out the bras on their websites for images of badly fitting ones. Theres quadra boobage on some, others are patently far too small in the cup. How are mere mortals supposed to decide what bra looks good, when the image we are shown on the marketing blurb is one of a model stuffed into a too-small bra to make her cleavage look massive.

Its no good. I'm going to have to take a day off and trek into Manchester and get fitted at Bravissimo. I'vealready procrastinated for 3 days about buying anything on line cos unless I spend hundreds of pounds online on bras in different cups and styles to really see what is best,then I could STILL be wandering round in the wrong size ones.

If you're going to Manchester, steer clear of the new Victoria's Secret store in the Trafford Centre. If their hoarding pictures are anything to go by, they don't have the faintest idea how to fit bras. The 4 pictures on the hoarding showed between them every single example of ill-fitting bras!

Haven't looked at the Next site so can't comment as to their marketing images, but my local Next had a nice selection of larger bras a few days ago. I got my 32F and tried 32FF and saw 32G.

...

Just been on the site now, they have bras up to a G cup from 32 - 40 back. Probably not as good quality as some of the big brands, but I'm skint happy with them, bought with the intention of cutting the straps and adding my own nursing clips but can actually feed in them fine by folding the cup in just enough to free the nipple.

Flibberty, www.next.co.uk/shop/gender-women-productaffiliation-lingerie/benefit-ddk-category-bras

Thanks to the bra threads on here I bought 5 new ones from Bravissimo !! Needless to say it broke my budget. But they were totally worth it... DH's reaction was proof
And... DH is not the only one who thinks my boobs look great now that I'm in the right size... I love my boobs too... I know this sounds crazy, but everytime I pass a mirror I cannot help but stop and appreciate how fantastic my rack looks !!
Thanks MN :)

I've been looking at the advice on working out your breast shape on another thread. So far I think I have:

1. Narrow-set because v much on the front - not much round the side at all
2. Not very full anyway but esp not at ends
3. I think quite a narrow gap between.
4. Can be hoisted quite high.

Of all the bras I've tried on so far, balconettes seem to work least - at worst they smoosh me down, but if there's ribbon across the cup I get a sort of quadboob effect even if the cup isn't particularly full. Which is a pain because most bras in the larger sizes seem to be balconette.

Most flattering one so far has been a natural push up plunge one in dark pink (on stupid tablet, can't C&P) from Debenhams at only SIX QUID which does have slight balcony effect but hoists it all to the sky and is open-ish at the top rather than cutting off/smooshing down, IYSWIM.

What else would you recommend?

You sound a fairly similar shape to me. Bra that work for me are the Ewa Michalak CH and CHP styles, Fauve half cups, Panache Idina, Cleo Meg, Melissa, Bella and Marcie and the Cleo Juna.

The Ewa M ones look lovely, is there a UK stockist or doyou buy direct?

also sounding like me-I don't get on with juna-it smooshes me-but the unpadded cleo, bravissimo satine, ewa s and sm styles and a few bravissimo own brands. I can get away with the Freya deco too

Well the bra that the wire came out of is out of stock. Such a shame I will have to have the new Dotty Spot instead

Since taking the advice on here I am now wearing a fine fitting bra - at last !! However, it is a Prima Donna Deauville which is v. expensive IMO
at £65 a time and I only have 2 of these plus 1 other. I have round breasts and this bra makes me look as if I have had a boob job and gone down a top size !!

Does any one know of any cheaper bras that are made to this quality and fit ??

allmycats, Fauve is also very good quality and usually expensive, but you can find them cheaper on ebay and brastop.