Ladies with large breasts. Do bras exist that provide amazing support but don’t look awful?

[Readysetcake]

I’m finding myself wearing my sports bras more as I like the support. My ordinary bras need replacing so I know that is part of the problem. So, as I’m in the market to replace my bras I’d like to find one that minimises jiggling but doesn’t look like a sport bra or matronly.

Any ideas?

I spent years in the wrong size because M&S kept selling me their smallest back size (which was 32 then, and I’m actually a 28 which they don’t make)

Same - M&S was my only choice for years too; no access to a Debenhams and no money for JL as a student! I'm a 30 back mostly and sometimes need a 32 for certain shapes. I am a size 12. When I was a size 6/8 I should not have been wearing a 32E!

I'm a Freya fan for normal bras, wonder bra strapless if I need strap free, and Syrokan for the ultimate sports bra. I'm 32ff.
I'm intrigued by these Molke ones. I think they look hideous on the site, but the reviews are great. Do they sit well under more snug tops or is that wrap part visible ???

My most comfortable bra is by a brand called Samanta, and it's quite pretty too. But it's hard to find anywhere. I'd buy loads if I could find them.

Fantasie side support are the absolute pinnacle of bras! I'm 32E, and they are fantastic, I never get backache or sore norks. And there are loads of lovely designs. I usually by BNWT from eBay, last season's colours, so they're lower prices. They last for years though.

@RemusLupinsBiggestGroupie the most supportive bralets I've see are some by Laura Ashley from TKMaxx. DD wears them all the time, as she doesn't like bras v much... but she is only B cup. They're soft cotton mix, a ribbed fabric. A couple have lace on the back too. Not sure they'd be supportive enough for me though.

@GrimDamnFanjo mine are Elodie too!

Op- go smaller on the band, the difference is enormous (make sure you can breathe though!)

balconette/low cut types look nice in the pics but you'll be jiggling and lumpy in two minutes

I'm currently a G-cup and only war half cup or balconettes. If you are jiggly and 4-booby, I would check the sizing, might need to go up a couple of cup sizes.

Oh yes and I really thought jiggling was inevitable when I was in 36DD. Turns out, not the case in 30G

The best I have found are made by Empreinte, particularly the Thalia. A beautiful bra for bigger busted ladies but incredibly expensive.

Wow so many recommendations. It’s going to be hard to decide which to try.

Sounds like I should try that boob or bust measuring method first to check I’m actually a 34E. Not that I can find my bloody tape measure in my pit of a house.

Thank you all. This thread is so helpful. High hopes of finding bra Nirvana!

I would try a proper old-style lingerie shop, A great-fitting bra will look good when you have clothes on. I remember going to one decades ago and an older shop assistant just looked at me and picked out bras in the size she thought I was and they fitted perfectly.

Back in the 80s bras tended to be in cup sizes A, B, C or D only, so I learnt that I needed a smaller size and a bigger cup size.

M&S does have nice ones but only a few.

For a rough and ready check , put your existing bra on back to front. Then see how far from your body you can pull the band

@ StatisticallyChallenged so if I do that and I can pull it too far then the back size is too big and I need to go down on the back and up on the cup size? Have I understood that right? And if I have, how far is too far?

Bravissimo for a fitting and then buy cheaper online (sorry, not sorry)

Panache Tango II is my go to. Been wearing them for 12 years plus and nothing else fits as well. That was a Bravissimo recommendation, post maternity leave.

Basically yes, that's it - it won't get you perfectly size wise but it does give a rough idea. You should only be able to pull the band about an inch or so away if it's well fitting. Any more and it's not doing its job - when the band is too big you tend to find the straps are taking too much of the weight. If you can pull it a decent amount you need to go down in the band.

If you've previously been fitted by somewhere like M&S then the norm is to be wearing a bra 2-3 band sizes too big. It would not be unusual for someone they fitted in a 34E to actually need a 30G-H size range

I have big boobs and find the Triumph Doreen is very supportive.

@theconstantinoplegardener Agreed. Doreen is a classic but extremely ugly!

I’m 34e and bought a Miss Mary after seeing it on Instagram. Good support but weird triangle shape.
Prefer Fantasie much more

I have big boobs and have finally, completely moved away from balconettes. I find them so uncomfortable and they just make me feel even more busty and matronly. I thought they were the only style suitable for big boobs for years.
My new absolute all time favourite is the gossard glossies- they go up to large cup sizes and also do small back sizes (I’m a 30FF). They are completely different to balconettes, which drag all your breast tissue up and forward: these hold your boobs in a much more natural position against your chest (along the lines of how your boobs probably sat when you were 18!), they are sheer and not bulky, come in beautiful and elegant colours and materials. They disappeared under clothes, and stop your boobs from being the focal point of every outfit. I just adore them.

HH cup here and I love Bravissimo's own brand balconette style bras. I first tried them a couple of years ago after thinking for years I could only wear full cup, and the balconette are so much more comfortable and there are more pretty options. I also find they last well; I've had the current lot for two or possibly three years and they're still in good condition.

I bought myself a Molke bra at Christmas and it was super comfortable. I want to get more but couldn't afford it then and they've paused production for the moment. One day ...

Statisticallychallanged i tried that with my 34dd bra and couldn't move it more that 1/4 inch from my body, earlier I said I tried the booband bust to measure and people on here said I would fit a 30/ 32 but how if a 34 fits is tight trying it on back to front.

Where is your bra from? Sizing varies hugely between brands so it could just be a very small 34.

Rigby and Peller bras are really good

Freya was always my go-to. But I recently stumbled into a local independent lingerie shop and discovered some amazing brands - all big sizes but proper fancy lingerie that anyone would be proud to wear! The brands I’m now using are Simon Perele, Prima Donna and Empreinte. They are pricey but you can pick them up in the end of season sales and they last so well. No going back for me now!

I'm a 32H/30HH and I have a love-hate relationship with bloody Bravissimo sizing. I am short (5'2") and although the bras do encase my boobs, they come so far up under my armpits that they can be really uncomfortable. They also tend to come far too far up my chest and show under a lot of tops because they aren't low-cut enough. I've also never had a plunge bra in that size that hasn't dug in madly at the front of the wires - I think because the other end is in my armpit moving as I move. Plus the straps are wide and matronly. Freya balconette styles are reasonably comfy but so frumpy.

I've just tried an Ann Summers half-cup bra but it's too small - going to return for a larger size, but it still has thick straps. I have a Panache Tango sitting next to me to return - it's too big and the wires at the front come right up between my boobs to much higher than is practical or comfortable.

I hate bras! I'm a size 12 or probably 14 for fitted things on top - that's not an outsize, so why are bras so bloody difficult?

I'm about a 32H and I recently tried a 34GG because I needed a bra and couldn't get the right size. It was agony. I have always been fitted 'the bravissimo way' , right back to the 1980s when I was a teenager going to the one local bra shop (no M&S in those days where I live, so no 'add four inches' nonsense). I could never understand women complaining about their bras being painful to wear until I tried this one that was too big in the band. It rode up at the back and gave me such severe back and shoulder pain, plus the wires stabbed me terribly under the arms. I can't fathom how anyone who measures 32 inches around their ribs can tolerate wearing a 36 or 38 inch bra when they're so incredibly painful compared with one that fits snugly. There are some brands I can't wear at all, even in the correct size (Pour Moi and Panache spring to mind) but it's just the shape of them not that there's something wrong with them. I can't wear Converse trainers either because they don't suit my feet, but it doesn't mean that the way we measure for shoes doesn't work, just that they don't suit my feet. I think if people viewed bra fitting more like shoe fitting, it would make more sense. We measure our feet but accept that some shoes are comfortable and some aren't and we choose accordingly.