Really. I’m a B, and I don’t need underwire or padding or anything like that. What I do need is cotton, as I am highly allergic and most synthetic fabrics make me itch like crazy. Finding cotton bras is difficult. I got a few from Lands’ End that I like a lot and that’s where I will be buying them for the foreseeable future, but I got lucky that they fit.
My daughter and I recently took a trip to New York City, and one of the items that was at the top of our agenda was to get a custom bra sizing for WVgirl. She had been stuffing her boobs into a 36DD, and having to wear a camisole over that to keep them from popping out, so it was obvious she needed to get a different size, and we certainly could find anything larger than DD around here.
We went to a place called Intimacy and she came out with $250 worth of bras - three of them. She couldn’t believe how comfortable they were, and was ecstatic to be able to wear a t-shirt without the uniboob look. And what was her size? She ended up wearing 32G.
I think my little girl is growing up.
I hope she’s finished growing out.
If she goes to a good shop, and gets fitted properly by someone who knows what she’s doing, and buys a good bra, she’ll be shocked at the different in her appearance.
FWIW, I finally got professionally fitted 3 years ago at Nordstrom’s. The bras I got included some underwire bras (I’d avoided those because every one I had before was painful). Holy cow, they made a difference. Clothes looked better. The boobs were no longer dangling below my elbows. The things were pricey (60ish bucks) but they lasted for years (until I outgrew 'em 
).
Decent Exposures might be worth checking out. They make 100% cotton bras which are insanely comfy - I wore them for years until weight change made me get fitted. The only downside is they will not give a perky appearance. But they will rein in the bounce-age sufficiently. Also they have a boatload of different fabrics, and will customize them for you.
I second (or third) Lane Bryant. The cacique collection is pretty awesome. The only time I’ve ever been poked with one of their underwires was with a bra that was about three years old, but I was too poor a college student to replace. I pulled out the wires and it was still an adequate bra. They have a really nifty 6-way convertible bra for all of your strapless-backless-halter-ect. needs. That’s the most expensive at about $40. Most of them run at about $30, but they do have great sales in Jan. & Jun. (what a coincedence, it’s June) I’ve gotten them for $10-15 at the “big semi-annual sale.” They usually start to breakdown after about a year of reguar wear.
Thanks! I’ll check out Decent Exposures. I’m acceptable in the perky/bouncy appearance department; just need to limit the chafing/irritation from brushing against my clothes.
UPDATE: Today I went for a second bra fitting and walked out with 2 40K bras.
No, not bras that cost 40,000.00 - bras with a K cup size.
To recap - I had been wearing a 48DDD, tried to size myself and started wearing a 52DDD, and now found out I’m a 40K. (granted, I’ve lost a little weight since I was diagnosed with celiac’s in February).
So I was 6 band widths too large and 6 cup sizes too small. Which, according to what I learned, is a kind of “cheat” - if you are supposed to wear a 46DDD for instance, and they don’t carry it, you can sometimes buy a 48DD and it will still do the job.
However, doing it to the 6th power decreases your umm, uh, umm - elevation. Significantly.
So now the twins, affectionately known as Dolly and Parton and proud members of the Ethiopian Hunger Delegation (as in, they could single-breastedly solve the hunger problem in Ethiopia) - have once again risen to a level that they should be proud of.
And, for your reference, the store I went to was called Break Out Bras - and has an online ordering option - www.breakoutbras.com. Once you order from them, you get a 10% coupon for repeat business.
Thanks for reading!
Okay, here’s what I don’t get: Why in hell is it so hard for so many women to find comfortable brassieres!? I mean, it’s not as if there isn’t a huge market out there for bras women can wear and be comfortable in without becoming personally acquainted with the national debt of Tanzania! My wife has two sisters, and the three women are as dissimilar in body shape and size as any three women can be. All of our female friends – our moviegoing friends, our Friday Night Wine-drinking friends, our friends in Dallas and in Coos Bay and Raleigh and right here in our town – all complain that they cannot find comfortable bras without going to a major city and spending last month’s salary. What a bunch of crap!
I’ve never heard men complain about being unable to find comfortable undershorts. Apparently, somebody has stumbled upon a magical formula for creating male undergarments that cradle, support and coddle without binding, twisting or chafing. And that’s a damn delicate area down there. Why is it so friggin’ hard to design a simple, affordable support system for a couple of sacs of fatty tissue suspended from the pecs?
I dunno what the solution is, but I’m thinking it involves tuning in more to what women need than what men want. Might be a step in the right direction, anyway.
It’s not at all similar. My underwear isn’t required to comfortably support my testicales, be worn all day, and look attractive without creating “uniscrotum” or “quadrascrotum”. I’ve never found a jockstrap that’s comfortable, and I never wear one when playing sports. And I’ll personally shoot the first designed thast suggests an underwire design.