Couple more questions about bra fitting - YouLookFab Forum

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Couple more questions about bra fitting

April

Veteran

So I have been following Kim's bra-fitting thread, and absorbing Maya's sage advice on finding the right size, and I have a question. On the Intimacy site, their size calculator asks what bra size you're currently wearing as well as what size shirt or top you usually wear: http://www.myintimacy.com/whatsmysize.html

However, the smallest shirt size listed is a 4 - 6. If I enter that as my shirt size, the calculator tells me to wear the exact size bra I am currently wearing, but I usually wear a smaller top than a 4-6. Any thoughts on how this would affect the correct bra size?

Also, if the measurement under the bust is the band size, then I am wearing the correct size band (32). Yesterday I adjusted a newish 32 band to its snuggest setting and it was unbearably tight all day, so I don't think I can go with a smaller band without feeling the need to scream.

Is it possible that I am actually in the correct size?

General

21 replies

Latest reply was from elpgal

Itari

(website)

http://www.figleaves.com/uk/fi.....sp?cat=234

The Figleaves guide is quite good, you may want to check it out.

I entered my 34FF in Intimacy's calculator and my size on top (12-14). It told me that I should wear 36F... yeah, right. Maybe the calculator is not bad, but doesn't work for me.

Queen Mum

Veteran

haha April... yes, I guess it is quite possible that you are in the correct size Do you try different cup sizes when you try bras? I would just try the next up and down and see how those work on you.
Otherwise I'd say that you win a YLF award for actually being in the correct bra size without professional help

I entered my old info on the intimacy site and it also gave me 34 DD, but on the fig leaves site it told me 36 D... that one seemed to want you to wear a larger band size than you measure.

Mellllls

Veteran

I think you are possibly in the right size. Or at least the right band size. I think determining your band size might be easier than determining your cup size. I think if I am wearing the wrong size, it wouldn't be off too much.

Kristine

Veteran

I found this site also. She swears she can tell your size from a picture. It's free so I might try.

http://www.shopisabella.com/bo.....itting.asp

I tried the Linda calculator that Queenie used and it said 34C! I've always thought I was a 36A/B! It also said "don't be alarmed"!

One site said most women are too large in the band and not large enough in the cup. So they say size down the band and size up the cup, which again would be around a 34C. Me?? I'm going to try to go in for a bra fitting but we don't have a Nordstroms and I can't find a specialty store.

MNsara

Veteran

april - in itari's figleaves link, they do talk about hooking a bra on its tightest settings, at the beginning, to allow for the stretching out that will happen over time. But I guess each of us will have our own threshold on how much tightness we can tolerate. . .

kristine - I have just been poking around these bra sites and the switch from 36B to 34C would be exactly right. If you go down one band size, but don't want to reduce the cup size, then you go up one cup size (per itari's figleaves link above).

April

Veteran

No prizes, Kim -- I spent years in a 34B before trying the "size the band down and the cup up" method, per the YLF bra experts.

Here's another question for you all: I finally understand that a C cup in a 32 is going to be smaller than a C in a 36, but what about the other way round? That is, is the band of a 30D the same circumference as the band of a 30A?

Please tell me that *something* stays constant...

MNsara

Veteran

April, I think the band stays true for all cup sizes within that band number (I hope that makes sense).

Any other votes?

Itari

(website)

Yep, the band in 30A and 30D is the same. It's the cup size that changes. 30D is smaller than 36D (and smaller than 36C, actually.)

Maya

Veteran

Actually, you're supposed to start at the loosest hook and gradually tighten it as it stretches. If you start at the tightest hook on a 32, you would technically be starting at almost a band size smaller, which doesn't make sense...

April, if you put your bra on the loosest hook and have someone pull the band (you can try doing it yourself, though it might be a little tricky), how far does it stretch? It should not have more than an inch of wiggle room. Bras are like jeans. They need to start snug and will relax over the course of the day. Bras today are not like the horrible conical contraptions of the 50's. They have stretch. Therefore there is no need to add to your underbust measurement. As someone with a big bust, I can't even have an inch of wiggle room, otherwise my heavy boobs take advantage of it and drag the cups down and the band up. For less substantial bosoms, you can get away with a tiny bit more space.

If you found hooking on the smallest hook to be unbearable, you may well be a 32. Or you may just be wearing a bra that doesn't suit. Ele, Daw, and I all fall in the 28/30 range and we are bigger than you. However, there is no accounting for rib cage size. You can be a size 12 and have a tiny ribcage, or a size 2 and have a large ribcage. Since you say you measure 32 under your bust, maybe you are indeed a 32.

crazyone

Veteran

I have to say, that online calculator on Linda's website is so bizarre (and I probably did the measurements wrong, too). It told me I was a 36A. I wear a 34B now, and I'd guess that my correct size is 32B or 32C, because I usually wear my 34s on the smallest hook (though it depends slightly on the bra)...oh well, I'll get fitted one of these days.

The one time I did try a 32 it felt really tight maybe I'm just not used to the feeling?

Maya

Veteran

I would not use an online calculator. The only way to know is to have a fitting.

Kristine, you are definitely not a 36 or a 34. You can't possibly be bigger than a 32.

It goes without saying that if you have been wearing a loose band for years and go smaller, it will feel tight. And you also have to realize that you need to wear it all day for at least a few days (not all in a row of course) to really know if it's genuinely too tight. Just like jeans.

Kristine

Veteran

Thanks Maya! I've always worn a 36, maybe a 34 at the smallest. I don't think I've ever tried a 32. Now I'm dying to get a fitting and see where I really should be.

April

Veteran

Okay, so I stand totally corrected. I just measured again, and when I checked this morning the tape measure must have slipped in the back because just now, with the tape measure even all the way around, my under-bust measurement is a little over 28 inches.

Hmm. Maybe I should be trying a 30D? I can't imagine going from a 32 to a 28 without suffocating. I'm going to order a few different sizes and try them on at home. I know I should just break down and go for a fitting but things are a little busy around here during baseball season...

Maya

Veteran

April, make sure you wear the band at the right spot. Most women wear it too high because it is too large. See first picture:

http://images.figleaves.com/uk.....lues_1.jpg

Compare:

http://images.figleaves.com/uk.....g_back.jpg

cciele

Veteran

Honestly Maya, you should do something with your mad bra fitting skills and knowledge!

April -- I find the band will feel tight for a week or so, but then it gets really comfortable. One of my bras was tight enough I used an extender on it until it stretched out a bit! Now it fits well.

Queen Mum

Veteran

Kristine- when you measure around right under your bust, what measurement do you get?

April

Veteran

That's a very helpful comment and visual, Maya -- although that model gets a lot narrower as she goes lower, which I actually don't. Still, I see your point of not letting it ride too high in an effort to make it sufficiently snug.

I ordered a 30D, a 32C, and a 28DD today. Of course, they're different manufacturers and styles, so I'm not exactly using the scientific method of changing only one variable at a time, but we shall see...

Kristine

Veteran

Queenie, I measured and it's 32". I tried on a 32 today and it was so tight it was cutting into me. It could have been the style I guess and I did have it on the tightest notch.

Queen Mum

Veteran

I measure 32 and I'm in a 34.. you might want to go with that. You should wear it at the loosest hooks.

Maya

Veteran

Kristine, wearing a new 32 on the tightest hook is basically wearing a 30. You need to wear it on the loosest hook and you need to wear it for a few hours at least to see how it feels as the spandex stretches.

elpgal

Veteran

Kristine, It depends on the brand. I measure 30 " (surprising on my Size 8/10 frame) and take a 30 in Fantasie but 30s in several other brands did not fit me.