I just went bra shopping

[steph72276]

Uh, I feel your pain ladies. I am going on 18 weeks pregnant and put off bra shopping for a few weeks too long because I hate going so much. I went into VS to see what they had and get fitted properly since I had no idea what size I have become and found their Body by Victoria Full Coverage to be wonderful! It is very soft and covers me up very well now that I am "expanding". I''m hoping to make it a few more months in this same size so I won''t have to go buy many more, but at least it wasn''t as painful as I expected.

 

[Lauren8211]

I''m surprised at how many of you have a hard time finding bras that fit! I just go into VS, pick up the same size, and I''m done!

I feel like maybe I''m doing it wrong since it''s so easy...

 

[sparklyheart]

Date: 8/28/2009 8:41:32 AM
Author: elledizzy5
I''m surprised at how many of you have a hard time finding bras that fit! I just go into VS, pick up the same size, and I''m done!

I feel like maybe I''m doing it wrong since it''s so easy...

I was just thinking the exact same thing.. I didn''t realize this was such a struggle!! All of my well-endowed friends have their tried and true faves at VS and just go for those.. the REALLY well-endowed have all found a specialty shop where they go..

Can I still join in on the wine though?? (maybe not right now since it''s 745am.. but later!)

 

[geckodani]

Date: 8/28/2009 2:41:20 AM
Author: gwendolyn

Date: 8/27/2009 10:27:26 PM
Author: Upgradable
McWilliams Shiraz, 2007


Let''s all lift a glass to our breastesses!!!

Bra shopping sucks. Even the ones that fit best are uncomfortable by the end of the work day, so I usually peel them off and let the girls be free under comfy clothes when just lounging at home. J doesn''t mind in the slightest.

But oy, the strapless one I got to wear under my wedding dress actually hurts after a while...so not looking forward to wearing that! Maybe the dress can be made with extra cup support or something so I don''t need to wear a bra with it? Otherwise am going to be highly uncomfortable all night, both nights of our weddings. Ack.

The bra is the first thing to go when I get home!!!

As for your dress, they should be able to sew in cups, or even some boning for more support. I refuse to wear a strapless bra anymore and get cups sewn into anything that would need a strapless!

I hate bra shopping. Ugh.

 

[Thomperchik]

I have the same problem, however, mine is a little different. My left one is bigger than my right. I mean a cup different. I used to wear C at Vicky''s, but now I find myself having to buy B in order to make the other one fit without looking like I''ve stuffed my bra.

 

[Shoopy]

True story: all of my absolute best bras were purchased for me as a gift by...my MOM. I would be ashamed except its hard to when the girls are sitting high and comfy.

 

[nytemist]

I envy all of you who can go into a regular store and buy them. I''m back in the mindset of seeing if I can get mine reduced.

It''s truly hell being a freak size and having to pay so much for one, then having it die a quick death hauling these around.

Not fun being 36J. But I can rock a corset!

 

[Dreamer_D]

I am also well endowed and cannot shop in the regular bra stores at all.

I finally bit the bullet and went to a specialty shop and got properly fitted and let me tell you WORTH THE HASSEL! And the cost. Yes, my bras cost about $120, but my G cups no longer runneth over, and no longer graze my knees

So if you have issues and have been dragging your feet, cough up the dough and get to a specialty shop. Totally changes the way clothing looks on your body and is totally worth it!!

 

[Italiahaircolor]

Here is an interesting fact upgradable...you can either go up in a cup size/down in band size...or down in cup size/up in band size and still get a pretty similar fit.

I gave up long along on fancy sexy bras. I like soft cotton with a healthy underwire. It takes the drama out of it. I know what I like, and when it comes time to stock up...I buy two in every color. Since devising my game plan, bra shopping hasn''t been a murder/suicide mission.

 

[gemgirl]

Date: 8/28/2009 9:56:45 AM
Author: Italiahaircolor
Here is an interesting fact upgradable...you can either go up in a cup size/down in band size...or down in cup size/up in band size and still get a pretty similar fit.

I gave up long along on fancy sexy bras. I like soft cotton with a healthy underwire. It takes the drama out of it. I know what I like, and when it comes time to stock up...I buy two in every color. Since devising my game plan, bra shopping hasn''t been a murder/suicide mission.

That''s absolutely true. The difference is really so very minimal, you wouldn''t know the difference.

I don''t know if anyone remembers the separate store that belonged to the Victoria''s Secret company called "Cacique". They''ve been out of business for quite a few years, but their bras and their sales help was the BEST.
I never thought of being "fitted" for a bra, because I always walked in VS or Macy''s, picked a 34B off the rack and made due. Some fit better than others depending on the brand, but all were basically OK. The Cacique lady measured me, told me I have a very small ribcage and told me my ideal size was really a 32C (which Cacique made in almost every bra). Now there''s no way on earth that I''m actually a C because I pretty much have very little going on up front, but the decreased band size (which fit better) required me to go up a cup size. It made me feel normal instead of being told I''m small all the time

.

 

[kiett98]

Date: 8/28/2009 10:22:49 AM
Author: gemgirl

Date: 8/28/2009 9:56:45 AM
Author: Italiahaircolor
Here is an interesting fact upgradable...you can either go up in a cup size/down in band size...or down in cup size/up in band size and still get a pretty similar fit.

I gave up long along on fancy sexy bras. I like soft cotton with a healthy underwire. It takes the drama out of it. I know what I like, and when it comes time to stock up...I buy two in every color. Since devising my game plan, bra shopping hasn''t been a murder/suicide mission.

That''s absolutely true. The difference is really so very minimal, you wouldn''t know the difference.

I don''t know if anyone remembers the separate store that belonged to the Victoria''s Secret company called ''Cacique''. They''ve been out of business for quite a few years, but their bras and their sales help was the BEST.
I never thought of being ''fitted'' for a bra, because I always walked in VS or Macy''s, picked a 34B off the rack and made due. Some fit better than others depending on the brand, but all were basically OK. The Cacique lady measured me, told me I have a very small ribcage and told me my ideal size was really a 32C (which Cacique made in almost every bra). Now there''s no way on earth that I''m actually a C because I pretty much have very little going on up front, but the decreased band size (which fit better) required me to go up a cup size. It made me feel normal instead of being told I''m small all the time

.

Cacique is sold in Lane Bryant stores and online at LaneBryant.com. I have tried a few from there and really like them.

 

[Upgradable]

Date: 8/28/2009 10:22:49 AM
Author: gemgirl

Date: 8/28/2009 9:56:45 AM
Author: Italiahaircolor
Here is an interesting fact upgradable...you can either go up in a cup size/down in band size...or down in cup size/up in band size and still get a pretty similar fit.

I gave up long along on fancy sexy bras. I like soft cotton with a healthy underwire. It takes the drama out of it. I know what I like, and when it comes time to stock up...I buy two in every color. Since devising my game plan, bra shopping hasn''t been a murder/suicide mission.

That''s absolutely true. The difference is really so very minimal, you wouldn''t know the difference.

That''s what I ended up doing yesterday when looking for a lightly lined t-shirt bra. (I''m working at the high school now and discretion is very important!) I couldn''t find any 34DDD so I had to go with the 36DD. The only problem is that once they''re "broken in" I''m working on the tightest hooks and the ribcage elastic keeps getting stretchier and stretchier!

 

[Upgradable]

Another one of the difficulties I find is that my girls are "full shaped." This means I have to be careful how the top of the cup is constructed. If it isn''t stretchy or made just right I get spillover. Not very attractive.

And I need good support on the sides! These ladies will attempt to hide under my armpits if I''m not in the right bra.

All I want is to have both of them contained, in front and up off my belly button, and have a style that doesn''t look like my great grandmother wore. Is that too much to ask????

 

[jas]

I love that this thread is in "Hangout"

Topic? Bra shopping. Hate it.

 

[somethingshiny]

I despise bra shopping. My size is also hard to find and worse yet is finding a COMFORTABLE one! And avoiding the "four boob" appearance is difficult. A couple years ago I found my size and comfort in one particular brand (Cacique). I have to get new ones every 6 months though because they don''t hold up very well. So, every 6 months I shell out $150 on 4 bras.

Actually, the $150 is while they''re on a biannual sale, otherwise they''d be even more!

I remember the days when I could just walk into Vicky''s and buy a bra. I think I was a freshman in high school.....

 

[gemgirl]

The Cacique line that is owned by Lane Bryant is a different Cacique from the one I''m talking about. Cacique used to be a boutique owned by Victoria''s Secret. It was a separate store from VS, but they had more expensive, sexier things. VS closed Cacique a little more than ten years ago. Lane Bryant probably bought the rights to the name.

 

[fairwayflunkie]

I hear ya gals...skip the wine and get the chocolate....

I''m anywhere from a 44DDD to a 42G, can''t abide underwire...plus I''m shortwaisted so when the girls are free they cover the stomach

 

[sunnyd]

I''m going today. Wish me luck...

I used to be a perfect 34B. It was fantastic, let me tell you. Now I''m a 36C in some, 34D in others (though I don''t feel like a D!). I want my Bs back!

I always have the strap falling issue. They just don''t stay on my shoulders, and they''re not even doing much work! Stupid bras.

 

[Black Jade]

Gave up this summer and bought some Playtex 18-hour bras--a brand that I have always associated with middle-aged Jane Russell on tv selling to women like my mom! I find it hard to find my size even in this--I am a 36DD currently and they don''t want to do DD cups for people less than 40 inches around the back.However, being 36DD is better than when I was 38F! that was real misery. this was when I was much heavier. I''m one of those people who gains weight on my chest first, gains plenty of it and little anywhere else. then when I lose weight, I lose it off my chest LAST. I always remember bra shopping being misery from when I was a teenager and wanted to wear the ''natural look'' bras that every body else was in (or else they were bra-less--this was the early 70''s) but had to be put into plate armor instead. But bra shopping was less misery than wearing most bras. I also used to run off and take my bra off, the way some people pull their shoes off. I''m sure many of you ladies know exactly what I mean--the underwires that cut into you, the straps that pinch, the trying to adjust unobtrusively in public because of the ''four boob'' look... Not to speak of, never being able to wear a bikini because the top is a bra, and they never fit, passing by all the cutest tops in the store, because you''d see my bra under them, etc. etc.
I find Victori''as Secret is useless if you are a larger busted lady with a small frame. Frederick''s of Hollywoods is much better. I discovered them a few years back and was happy to finally find bras that fit that actually looked pretty and feminine. Unless you''ve been through it, you can''t imagine the misery of being a young girl,or even a younger middle-aged woman, in "old lady" underwear that is seriously ugly. Even though no one else can see it, you know you are in it and just feel miserable and less attractive than other people. (Something that adds to the problem that I notice that a lot of petite and small framed but busty girls have--we think we''re fat when we''re not. Because we LOOK fat unless we''ve been carefully taught how to dress. Because when you find a top or dress that fits over the chest, it''s baggy and billowy everywhere and covering up the rest of you, which is thin, and everyone just assumes that you''re filling out the large clothing completely). However, this summer I realized that I needed bras other than Frederick''s, because the push up bras are no longer the best thing for a lady my age (over 50). So here I am in Playtex 18-hour, which fits well and feels comfortable, but is UGLY.
Can somebody tell me the name of a store that does this custom fitting thing? Even in this terrible economy, I''d pay $120 for a great bra, I really would.
P.S. I don''t ever wear low cut tops or show ANY cleavage, so the bra doesn''t need to be totally invisible. I''m not against cleavage per se--it''s jsut that after 40 plus years of people looking at my chest before they look at my head, I don''t like to call ANY attention to that part of my anatomy. I''m sure you guys also understand this; I notice that all of my friends who are small-framed and over-endowed are exactly the same. I don''t want to go around in a big sack of a dress and feel dowdy, but I do like to dress so that attention is not on my chest (which is hard, with the current styles. I might be old,but I do like to be stylish.)

 

[tlh]

I don''t mind bra shopping.. not really. But I hate that different stores bras fit differently. There is seriously a consipiracy against women. Otherwise our clothes would be numbered like men''s clothes - and easier to shop for... none of this, I''m a 4 at XXX and a 6 at XXXX it really confuses the heck out of the hubs, so I have a no clothes shopping rule. One time a BF tried to get me sexy underwear, and it looked ridiculous.

I''ve almost all but given up and wear sports bras most of the time. Shoot when I''ve got an underwire, my hubbie gets REAALLLY excited. I can''t imagine if I asked him to go bra shopping with me.. he''d probably think he died and had gone to heaven - and might even grab a donut on the way in...

 

[fleur-de-lis]

Date: 8/28/2009 12:24:33 PM
Author: jas
I love that this thread is in ''Hangout''

Bwaa ha ha!

 

[Kay]

I switched to this Natori bra when I was pregnant and needed a DDD. They carry 32-38DDD in this style. It has a good underwire for support, just enough padding to prevent show through, and comfy straps.

http://shop.nordstrom.com/S/2890088/0~2376776~2374327~6010810~6010833?mediumthumbnail=Y&origin=category&searchtype=&pbo=6010833&P=1

Pre-baby, my long time favorite was Le Mystere. I had multiple colors in the style with the double "linguini" straps (I no longer see it on the website). That style was only available up to DD, but some styles have larger cup sizes. I think their sizes run a bit small though, because I had to buy a DD when I was only a D in other brands.

 

[Kay]

Date: 8/28/2009 12:24:33 PM
Author: jas
I love that this thread is in ''Hangout''

LOL -- I thought the same thing when I saw the title.

 

[that_someone_special]

I also wear Cacique bras.. only ones that fit right. I have 6 of the Balconette bra (or whatever.) THey are PERFECT for me. No spillage, no sagging... perfect. I used to wear a 32B, then a 34c, then a 38DD ... I want THOSE back

I just have huge boobs now that DO give me back problems. Owwie! Scooping cat litter? errrgh.

 

[Linda W]

ACK, I hate bra shopping, I hate wearing bras in summer, tooooooo hot. Around the house I will go braless. At my age, my boobs are down to my knees anyway, so who cares.

 

[Kaleigh]

Date: 8/28/2009 4:17:23 PM
Author: Linda W
ACK, I hate bra shopping, I hate wearing bras in summer, tooooooo hot. Around the house I will go braless. At my age, my boobs are down to my knees anyway, so who cares.

LOL!!!

 

[loriken214]

Since I''m home all of the time now, I go braless and it is SO refreshing! The girls are big and heavy, my doctor calls them large and pendulous, and I have a heck of a time finding bras that fit. I used to wear Bali underwire bras and they did OK until they started wearing down and I would be pulling at them all day. I have divots in my shoulders from the weight of the straps. Right now, my bra shopping consists of ordering online and then trying them on at home. I have a wide variety of bras just sitting here.....still searching for the one that fits!

Also, I got busted, pardon the pun, the other day for not wearing my seat belt across my chest. I wear it over my lap, but put the chest part behind the seat. A cop caught me, gave me a verbal warning and made me fix it over my chest. I told him that I was big chested and I couldn''t stand the strap cutting into me like that....he was sympathetic. Does anyone else have this problem? What do you do about the seat belt cutting into your chest? It is worse when I''m braless, which is most of the time.

Lori

 

[MichelleCarmen]

A friend of mine works in a high end dept. store selling lingerie and says almost all women wear the wrong size bra! She keeps trying to get me in there to be fitted, but yuck, that is just too weird to have her do that.

What a horrible job though. . .

 

[somethingshiny]

Seatbelts do cut in. I basically just try to avoid the nipple area with the seatbelt and deal with it. That means it is either working into the cleavage or tucked under the girls. Sorry for TMI!

 

[DianaBanana]

For all the large chested gals out there...I feel your pain. Or I should say I used to feel your pain! I'm a 36 E and the only bras I wear now are Prima Donna and Empriente - my size is the same in both and I just order them online now since the fit is very consistent. And they're gorgeous to boot! Not cheap but they last for years.

I've had great service from this site: Bigger Bras

ETA - I highly recommend the sports bras from Moving Comfort - so comfy and no uniboob.