Wouldn’t you get better support from two?
Seconded.
But I want more:
“give me the ocular proof”
–Othello, Act 3, Scene iii
And, speaking on behalf of the guys, we’d be happy to “give you a hand” (ambiguity deliberate)
Quadra-boob, I know it well. I used to have this strange variety of vanity where I bought things that were too small for me. This would include shoes too small (foot vanity, another entire topic …), bras too small, pants too small, shorts too small, etc. It was like I thought that if my feet didn’t hurt and I could breathe in my jeans, I was somehow unattractive!
I have outgrown this, in a number of ways.
Bra too small, especially when the cup size is too small, results in what my husand so endearingly calls quadra-boob. Going up a cup size is the miracle cure. Underwire is the main solution to cleavage, in my experience.
-K
P.S. Jarbaby, I’ve been lurking and admiring you from afar. You rule!
LaurAnge, I’m in your camp. I started wearing that type instead of nursing bras (much easier to hoist up, plus nursing bras fit laughably) and got hooked. Long after I weaned the fruit o’ my loins, I still like those bras, and they’re getting prettier as you noted.
jarbaby, I hear that the vast majority of women wear the wrong bra size. We don’t know how to fit them correctly.
I can’t get cleavage to save my damned life, and (according to Mr. Cranky) I have the raw materials necessary. They’re just, well, wide-set. Push-up bras don’t fit me well because the cup doesn’t rise up high enough. I have found that certain varieties of cheap bras fit a lot better than the pricier ones, but it really varies.
Get thee to a Nordstroms (as someone else suggested) or another good department store near you, and let them measure you and advise you on what style will actually fit your shape best.
If you have wide set boobies, a balconette bra is always going to fit better than a plunge bra.
This is incorrect.
To get your bra size (the number) measure under the bust and add four inches if even, five inches if odd. (example: I’m 32 inches under the bust, I add 4, so I’m a 36 bra size) Then measure over the bust. If the bust measurement is the same size as the bra size number, you’re an A cup, and so on. (example: I’m 37 inches around the bust, so I’m a B cup size)
Therefore, a lady with a 36 inch measurement around the bust and a 32 inch measurement under the bust is an A cup, not a D cup.
I’m a 38D (or DD) too and i buy all my bras from Bravissimo - it’s for the ahem larger-busted lady and they do a range of wedding bustiers (they have a brief wedding lingerie guide too). REF: SL49 may be what you’re looking for. Admittedly, Bravissimo is based in the UK but i’m sure they would ship. And they give a fabulous cleavage - I own a gorgeous black lace-up bustier from there myself.
And as for quadra-boob problem, i say (like everyone else) get yourself measured again. One thing to consider also is the shoulder straps - if they’re too short that may add to the popping-outness. Try loosening them a little too see if that helps.
Fran
I must second (or third, I lost count) the idea of going for a fitting. It just amazes me how many women wear the wrong size bra. I work in a department store and see it all the time, I’ve got some horror stories if ya wanna hear 'em. Anyway, women should try to get a fitting every few years, your body changes and so does your bra size.
Most stores offer this as a free service so grab your best girlfriend and go try on some pretty bras!
Okay, I was eavesdropping. But, maybe this story will help.
Ooh — another thing. The support in a bra should come from the band and underwire, not the shoulder straps.
The Bioform bra (by industrial designers Seymour Powell) doesn’t give cleavage, but it’s a fantastically comfortable all-day bra. It comes in sizes from 30DD-G to 42C-DD. Support comes from a 3D undercup armature in firm and flexible polymers. It supports at the side, so there’s no pinching.
Horror stories! I want horror stories! I have an overdeveloped sense of schadenfreud (sp?). Please, go on.
Fran
I just love that line…
Ehhnyeway. Jarbaby, let me recommend Bali bras. They are not horribly expensive and I found some that are made of 100% cotton. Therefore, there’s no itchy lace, no nylon, no krylon, nothing in it that ends with -on.
I think its the synthetics that make bras awful. That, and poor workmanship. So try the all-cotton ones and let me know what you think. (In addition to all this other great advice.)
Here’s a question for everybody: Like bras, don’t you also find it impossible to find really comfortable shoes? I think that is the Modern Woman’s Quest: comfortable bras and comfortable shoes. First one to find both in the same store, wins!
P.S. I’ve found that if I want comfortable bras or shoes, I end up paying out the nose for them. Cheapies just don’t cut it.
I’m so jealous of all you women with C and D cups! I haven’t been a C cup since I was nursing my kids… in fact, my boobs are smaller now then they were before I had kids. How awful.
I really have no advice because I’ll never have this kind of problem. [sub]dammit[/sub] I’m only a 34B and I buy the Vasarette bras from Wal-Mart because they have the padding I need to bring together what little bit of boobs I have.
Please, Rachelle, don’t be jealous. Been there, done that. Thank God for plastic surgery.
No, seriously, I was a D but I’m very short so it was just insanely out of proportion. Now I’m an A (I think I am, anyway, maybe I ought to go get measued) and am much happier. I realize there are lots of women out there who are happy with big breasts, great, fine, I’m happy for ya.
As for me…looks at the old minimizer bra she saved for laughs, and laughs My main problem is finding bras that don’t have underwire. Hello? I don’t NEED underwire!!! I’m an A! I hardly need a bra at all, let alone wires to stick me!
sigh
I guess I do have to go in for a fitting. But I just don’t want to hear the size two supermodel saleswoman say,
“Woah, sister…you’re a lot fatter than you thought, here’s a couple of burlap sacks”
I also like the Vasarette bras…but curiously, so does my dog. She digs them out of the laundry and chews 'em up.
jarbaby
Hi, jarbaby!
I bought this VS bra 'cos my SO liked one of the fabric prints.
But, lo and behold! it is great and comfy. I’m a 36C, and, while it doesn’t give me the cleavage of the push-up bras, it does make my breasts look firm and yummy. I do suggest that you give it a go.
If you do go for a fitting, can we have a sweepstake bet on your new bra size?
I guess 34D.
34? I wish.
My chest is never going to get anything but broader. As a swimmer, I realized that long ago…my shoulders just get further and further apart.
jarbaby
jarbaby said:
:: looks down at self, rereads post, looks down at self again ::
Oops, dropped my pencil on the floor.
:: bends down to pick it up, scoops left boob back INTO bra cup ::
Hmm. She could be talking about MY boobs.
I threw out my Miracle Bra, because I couldn’t keep myself tethered into them. Like you, at every movement they kept getting disrupted.
Another cheap ass checking in - my bras come from Target. That way if they end up not working out, well, I’ve only spent about $12 on 'em.
Oh, and burlap sacks? :: snort :: I love it.
I absolutely CANNOT wear the VS Miracle Bra for exactly the same reason. They’re ridiculous. Unless you have tits that don’t MOVE, you WILL fall out of it. Nightmare. I hate them.
That said, I have had GREAT success with this bra.
It’s the first “demi” that I’ve encountered that I don’t fall out of. Occassionally, I’ll need a little adjustment, but I’ve never fallen out. Plus they’re seamless so are great under tight t-shirts.
To furthur illustrate how much I like this bra, I will tell you that I have 11 of them. Yes, eleven.
BTW, I’m a 36D and breastfed a kid for 1 year if that helps you with the state of my breasts.