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Maya and Others With Small Bra Band Sizes

chewyspaghetti

Veteran

Help!
I need to get my dd her first real bras. I just measured her, and her ribcage measures 29 inches, and her bust measures 34 inches. Zoiks! I'm not going to be able to find anything local that will fit her (unless we drive to Nordie's), so what are your online sources for small band size bras, and what sizes do you think we should try Maya?

Shopping

35 replies

Latest reply was from MsMary

Aziraphale

Veteran

How exciting -- your daughter's first bra! Her measurements are almost exactly the same as mine. I'm 29.5" across the ribcage, and 34" across the bust. It's not such a weird size -- I wear a 32D. (I have yet to figure out how bra manufacturers come up with their sizing numbers!).

I've had a lot of luck with Calvin Klein bras, which I buy directly from the Calvin Klein store. Most department stores don't stock 32" band sizes, but I'm sure you could get them from the website. Good luck!

Kate

Veteran

I have similar measurements and wore a 32D for a long time (which you can find at Nordstrom and Victoria's Secret), before realizing I should be wearing a 30DD. They have a small selection of the 30DD at Nordstrom, and I for online options I recommend herroom and figleaves. Buying online is a bit absurd because you have to buy A LOT to find a couple that are perfect, but they have a better selection than physical stores, so it's a trade-off. If you can visit a Nordies to get her fitted it might be worth the drive so that you don't have to order a bunch of different sizes when you buy them online.

Vix

Veteran

I agree with Kate that it may be worth the drive to Nordstroms for a fitting and look-around -- cup sizes/styles/fit are so hard to judge from online shopping I think it's good to have some in-person experience first.

Sounds like she will be a 30 band. While again as Kate said the 30s + larger cup sizes are limited at Nordstrom, some of their selection of 32s do come in 30, so you all can make an "educated guess" about ordering a certain style for a trial. [Without paying shipping!]

Aziraphale

Veteran

Kate, I had the same thing happen: I had been wearing a 34C for years, and the band would always stretch out, until I finally figured out I needed a 32D. The band on a 32D bra always seems ridiculously tight in the store, but after two days of wear, it's perfect.

chewyspaghetti, I wholeheartedly agree with the others -- your daughter should visit a store to be fitted, especially since it sounds like she's got a decent-sized bosom. She'll want those things supported!

Maya

Veteran

DD is an inch smaller than me in both sizes (I am 28 and 33).

Having not actually seen her, this is sort of a shot in the dark:

I'd start out with a 30FF (or G, depending on brand). One size up from that would be a 30G or 30GG depending on brand, and one size down would be a 30F or 30DDD depending on brand. Two sizes down would be a 30DD/E. Yes, I know this is getting more and more convoluted by the sentence. My advice would be to buy just ONE bra style in several sizes. You need something to serve as a gauge. She is pretty reliably a 30...but cup size is highly, highly variable.

30's are available at Nordies online but at least in my store, I could not find any, so if you would like to start there, I would give them a call first before making the hike. If you want to give online shopping a try, I really like Herroom.com. They give a lot of good advice and tips about different bra styles. Bare Necessities might be good too but they don't carry my size so I have no personal experience with them.

Once you have a pretty solid idea of her size and needs, Bravissimo and Figleaves would be a good places to look at, since it seems like she will be wearing full figure bras. The only reason I don't advise them right from the start is because you're so unsure of her size right now, and they are UK based so returns are a pain.

Anonymous

Hey there,

I'm another vote for driving to Nordie's for a good fitting. Once you know her size, there are some good online options. I get lots of my bras from breakoutbras.com. They have great customer service and free shipping. Another good option is herroom.com, which also has free shipping.

Your town might surprise and have a good small bra shop, too. . . one of the best bra shops I've ever been in was in Mandeville, Louisiana. (If any of you are from the New Orleans area, check out the Bra Genie!)

Good luck!

qfbrenda

Veteran

Now I'm confused. I thought you were supposed to take someone's ribcage measurement and add 5 inches to it to get their band size. So a 29 in. rib cage would mean a 34 band size. Apparently that's wrong, so what's the right way to do it?

Anonymous

Breakoutbras has a good guide to measuring:

http://breakoutbras.stores.yahoo.net/noname1.html

Kate

Veteran

qfbrenda, check out Maya's bra fitting thread: http://youlookfab.com/welookfa.....ing-thread

Basically, don't add 4-5 inches. Maya says:

Measuring. It's not my favorite method, but it's an option. Get someone to measure you under your bust, where your bra band should fit (see pictures above). This is likely your band size. Remember how I said adding 4-5 inches as per most bra fitting advice is stupid? Well here is why: I don't have proof of this, but my guess is that this advice is a vestige of when bras did not contain any stretch and therefore needed some wiggle room. But bras today DO stretch. They have built in wiggle room! Do you add 4-5 inches to your waist measurement when buying jeans? Do you add 4-5 inches when buying underwear? Of course not! Tape measures don't stretch but bras do, so make sure you get a snug but not tight measurement. I say get someone else to do it because it is very hard to get an accurate measurement yourself. That is why I don't like this method. Too much trouble.

Maya

Veteran

Great link Alicat.

The only point I don't agree with 100% is that the straps sliding off is necessarily related to the band being too big. It certainly can be, but it can also just be the result of having big breasts and little shoulders, as in my case. I still get strap slide down no matter what I do. Even if a 28 was too big, there wouldn't be anything I could do about it since a 26 band does not exist...

CocoLion

(website)

Veteran

I agree to try and get fitted in a store. Even a Macy's would be OK. I wouldn't recommend a Kohl's or Target because they don't have 32 bandwidth with larger cup sizes. And they have little service or expertise.

You can try the tape measure/on line approach but it will take a lot of shipping back and forth to get the right size. Barenecessities.com and Herroom.com are good.

The measurement only tells a partial story. I measure 28 ribcage and 36 bustline and like the way Natori bras fit in a size 32DD (also have a few Calvin Kleins in that size I like). I know the ladies around here recommend a smaller band, bigger cup for me and I'll try that the next time I need to replace bras.

Finally I want to say that I do wear some 34 band size bras from Maidenform and they are not too loose. They are well made and inexpensive. I wear a 34 D from them. Several of their bras have a tighter fit around the band than, for example, Warners or Vanity Fair. Also they have younger styling. I would try some 34 B-Cs from Maidenform for your daughter. As a first bra, I'm not sure an ultra tight band is the way to start (unless she has a lot of cup volume already). Again, I know that around here this is not what's recommended but I find *some* Maidenforms work.

Hope my slightly different perspective helps.

Aziraphale

Veteran

Here's my two cents about measuring: it's a good starting point, but is no substitue for trying on a whole pile of bras until you find out what fits. Alicat, that's a good link, btw. In the expensive lingerie boutiques, they do start off by measuring, but it's the trying on of what seems like hundreds of bras that leads you to the right one in the end.

For me the bottom line is, buy the tightest band size that is comfortable, with the biggest cup size that you can fill out without puckers. Then find one that gives your breasts a nice shape.

Mo

(website)

Veteran

I'm a 28 1/2" ribcage with a 34 1/2" bust and wear 32C by Natori, Calvin Klein, and Maidenform. ( Maybe I'm just not getting it, but if I put the tightest hook on these, I get the dreaded back fat and I'm a relatively thin person.) Anyway, both the Natori and Calvin Klein I found rummaging at TJ Maxx. You really have to keep looking every few weeks for the odd smaller sizes, but they do show up. And at $15 instead of $50.

qfbrenda

Veteran

Thanks for the info. I wish I had read that thread before I bought new bras. I hadn't read it because I thought I knew about how fit a bra. But I can tell that the band size on my new ones is too big. Oh well... they are way better than the ones they replaced. Now I'll know for next time.

Steph

Veteran

Brenda, it seems a waste to wear a bra that has a band that is too big. Why not take them to a seamstress and see if she can bring in the band for you? I have had my bra bands altered in the past.

chewyspaghetti

Veteran

Thanks for all of the replies to this! I have to call the closest Nordies to see if they even stock 30's, and start from there.

Maya

Veteran

Mo, you're probably wearing the band too high up.

Mo

(website)

Veteran

Hmm, Maya this got me reevaluating the 'situation' lol. I think I wear my bra low all around. And I think that is so the cup will fit because it likely *is* too small. The underwires poke if I pull it up closer toward the armpit and the cups are not close enough together so that the underwires also don't settle between the breasts. So . . . I have an exact model of my current Natori 32C in a 32D on order. It's a start

Dashrashi

Veteran

Mo, I also had the problem of "the cups being too far apart." Actual problem: cup size was too small. When there's enough depth in the cup, the center piece sits where it's supposed to. I went down two band sizes and up two cup sizes (and, depending on my weight, am about a half-size bigger than that, even, in the cup).

qfbrenda

Veteran

Steph, that's a good idea. I'm a seamstress so I might work on them myself. I hadn't thought of that, thank you.

Kate

Veteran

Brenda, I found this tutorial helpful when altering one of my bras after realizing the band was too big (which was a huge problem because it's a strapless bra!!!) http://sewglamorous.blogspot.c.....orial.html

MsMary

Veteran

Remember a year or so ago when Oprah (I think) did a show about bra fitting? The take-away was that almost everybody is wearing a too-big band and a too-small cup. And I'm skeptical about bra fittings, too. I went to Victoria's Secret yesterday and they measured me and one lady came up with 36D and the other came up with 38 B. I tried on a million different bras and the one that fit perfectly was 34DD. So the lesson is measurement are only the first part of the equation and you just have to try on a bunch of actual bras before you find the one that actually fits.

qfbrenda

Veteran

Thanks, Kate!

crwilson

Veteran

MaryK - I'm especially suspicious of bra fittings at Victoria's Secret, having worked there before. There's only a limited range of sizes available, which means that there's a lot of pressure to put women in bras that don't really fit them but that are available in the store.

Megan

Lindas Online is a great resource for bras in smaller band sizes. I'm 26 around my ribs and 32 around my bust and wear a 30C from the Little Bra Company (their band sizes run a size small as they are made especially for petite women).

http://www.lindasonline.com/

Lena

I'm reading everyone's measurements and I'm puzzled. How is it possible that my measurements are 29 and 33 and I'm wearing a B cup at most? You guys have seen my pictures - I'm small on top. Nordies ladies put me into A-B bras. I hardly fill out an unpadded A cup bra, and I started wearing padded Bs only because the larger cup size fits my breast tissue better (and there's space left otherwise). What's going on?

Kate

Veteran

Lena, what band size are you wearing?

Mo

(website)

Veteran

Lena, a 34B is the same sized cup as a 32C as a 30D and so on . . . they are sister sizes. Once upon a time I wore a 34A or B and even bought a 36A a time or two (oops) but I should be wearing a 30DD. I don't have big breasts. I am just now getting myself to go from 32C to 32D (once the mail comes this week) so I'm a SLOW learner here. Check the links - they are quite helpful. The last link actually has a bra calculator under bra school tab.

Aziraphale

Veteran

Lena, I have a friend who is tall but has small breasts, and we had a conversation about bras after her recent trip to the fancy lingerie boutique. Up until then, she had been wearing an A cup bra with a band size that was way too big. She left the boutique with a size 30D bra that fit perfectly! And she was really pleased about it ("Can you believe it? ME? a D cup?").

I wore a 34C for years until I found out that the 32D "sister size" (as Mo says) actually fits better. A brand-new 34C usually fits me on the tightest hook, whereas the 32D fits on the loosest one -- which means it can stretch out a bit and it will still fit a year later. I know a 30DD is too small because I can't even get it done up.

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