DDs first bra - intervention please!

[KikitheKitKat]

Hi bra people, my DD 13 wants her first bra so I measured her using the MN approved method and got a band size of 29-30 and bending over boob measurement of 34. This appears to make her about a 30D, but her breast are like fried eggs at the moment so I am wondering if this doesn't work for young teens? She has quite a Y-shaped back (broad shoulders, narrow waist) so I wonder if this is causing the large cup size measurement. Any help out there?

I am certainly no expert, but i also have very flat fried eggs and a d cup. If you have a broad back your breast tissue seems to spread quite far round and the d cup stretches round to encapsulate this. The wire on mine goes far under my armpit because smaller cups cut into it and i had breast tissue splurging over the top, which i just thought was fat. Once you scoop it does fill the cup. A d is not that large if you have a smaller band size.

My mum still can't believe i'm a d and thinks i'm just making it up! I am always described as flat chested.

Well I guess I'll just take her out and try anything from a D downwards! Funny thing is I am a 34D so although I count myself as small-breasted too, I thought there's no way she's the same cup as me! Thanks for your advice.

Cup sizes are relative to the band size so a 30d is equivalent to 32c and 34b in terms of amount of total flesh.

I'm a 30c and mine are small and perfectly formed

But as far as i'm aware, she isn't the same cup as you. She is a 30D which is a different cup to a 34d. Like a b cup - look at a 30b and a 40b - the cups are hugely different.

Try different shapes and brands too. Some brands never ever fit me even tho technically the right size. It depends where you have more fullness and your frame. So for me balcony are better and plunge are awful. Depending on your budget, as a broad shouldered d cup with a quite even spread of breast tissue distribute wide, i find the Marie Jo bras from rigby and peller best. They are pricey but often in the sale on their website. Once i realised my perfect fit i bought a few when they came up in the sale. However, at 13 your dd will probably be changing so will need regular measuring.

Have a look at www.brabandproject.com/gallery/search?band=30&cup=D&age=&brand=&sister_sizes=0&search=Search which shows women in properly fitting bras. A 30D really is quite petite

Thanks all. Sorry I am only commenting now - I went off bra shopping yesterday and didn't have the chance to come back.
I see what you mean about a D cup being very different in different sizes. So far all I have been able to do is go to M&S which was a big failure as they only seem to do size 30 bras in AA/A/B cups, so I got a B for dd to try but I am sure it will be wrong. I suppose I'll need to go online for this kind of size.

Do you have a John Lewis near you?

M&s are crap for fitting.

No I don't, but I wouldn't rely on M&S for the fitting anyway - I did it myself using the MN guidelines which I trust. Have just ordered a couple of 30Ds from Debenhams.

I think the MN fitting rules are great for grown women that need boob support as the 'rules' seem to mean that the band is snug bordering on tight. This is not always comfortable, so I wonder if your DD really needs to follow these rules for her first bra. I would go much more for what feels comfortable for her, as she will have to do school PE etc in it anyway and won't want something restrictive or uncomfortable.

We do actually say that slender women with not much padding might need a band size up from what they measure -that sometimes applies to teens too but generally start with the right band sizr and then adjust if necessary for comfort rather than starting with one 3-3 bands too big.

I will report back when the 30Ds arrive just in case anyone's interested!

30D is probably pretty petite, I am a 30G, which is the same back size but five whole cup sizes bigger screen and my boobs aren't particularly big :)