Ladies, can we discuss "Boobage Overflow"?

Victoria’s Secret doesn’t cater to the small-boobed among us, either. I wear an A cup and they don’t have As. At all. At least, not in the one I went to. I’m sort of inbetween A and B, but I don’t pop out of As and Bs are wrinkly in front, whether I try different band sizes or not, so Victoria’s Secret is out for me.

In fact, suddenly 36As are incredibly hard to find. And 38As, which would probably work, are even harder to find. I may have to buy one of those bra extender thingamabobs and get 34s. Hello, people, some of us have big ribcages AND small boobs, really!

For the longest time, I wore 36As, then on a whim one day I tried on a 34B and found that it fit so much better. You might want to give that a try.

Do a seach in IMHO and you should be able to find an old thread called “Ask the Bra Professional”–I pulled it up during a vanity search not long ago, so I know does exist. She gives some great responses to specific questions and information on how to get a fitting and what happens during one. I was fitted when I was in New York and discovered that my cup size was fine, but the rest of the bra was too big–by two sizes! I thought I would die when she said she was getting me a 40, but it is surprisingly comfortable, it lifts and separates, no spillage, and doesn’t poke me any where. They were pricy, but they fit and that’s important. However, I bought my one "favorite style cheap bra in the new size, and it rolls and pokes and digs in, so not all sizing is equal, as has been pointed out.

Hi harmless, Victoria’s Secret doesn’t admit there are bra cups larger than “C”
Believe it or not, the best place to go for an accurate fitting is a place that specializes in mastectomy recoveries. They can fit you and put you in an attractive bra (with 2 cups). You’ll be amazed at how comfortable a bra can be! :cool:
Nordstrom’s carries up to “DDD” in chest sizes as small as 32.
Unfortunately, we pay a premium for comfort and proper fit. A 32 DDD at Nordy’s is at least $40.00 Larger cup sizes at specialty stores can run as hight as $100.00. I guess they think we all bought our big 'uns and should pay to keep them contained :frowning:

Lane Bryant kicks butt for those of us with the big boobage. Their bras are usually around 30 dollars and they almost always have a buy one get one half off dealio.

Also, if you’re uncomfortable about getting fitted, everytime I’ve had it done, they do it over your clothes. And if you want privacy, I’m sure you can ask them to measure you in the fitting rooms.

I have. Several times. They just didn’t work. The cups are too big, or at least shaped wrong, and that’s in different brands. I think I have slightly oddly-shaped boobs, but I like 'em, and my boyfriend likes 'em, so who cares!

Originally posted by picunurse

Really? Are they open at 11 at night? :smiley:

harmless, I know exactly what you mean. Some days, I think I need a whip and a chair to keep mine under control. I am a DD (and probably should be in a DDD, if I could find the things). I am between a 34 and a 36 band size. I hate bra shopping :mad:

I have also had pretty good luck with Frederick’s of Hollywood. If there is a Kohl’s near you, you might try them too. I find a lot of my over the shoulder boulder holders there lately. And they have good sales.

Oh, and I almost forgot…I have had way less problem with, uh, Quadroboob since I started paying more attention to the fabric at the top of the cup. Anything with flimsy lace (especially if there is a strip sewn to it to “stabilize” it) is off my list. That strip cuts in, boobs flow over, people get hurt :wink:

Going and getting these pricey bras is great, but what do you do when you are allergic to Lycra and only Playtex seems to work?

PS- 38D with most of it being on the side, so I have to pull them into the center to get a really good fit.

I dutifully made an appointment with a professional bra fitter at a major department store before I last went bra shopping, and I was hugely disappointed. Aside from her rather cavalier attitude about appointment times, she really didn’t seem to know what she was doing. She took a tape measure, ran it under my arms (over my clothing) and told me I needed a 36B. This surprised me greatly, since I hadn’t worn a B-cup since junior high school, but I’d lost a great deal of weight over the previous year, so I thought I’d at least give it a try. I tried on all the B-cups she showed me, and they were all ludicrously small. Her reaction to that was basically a shrug, so I went out independently and found myself a bunch of 36Cs to try. She talked me into buying two of them, and I’ve been feeling like I’m binding my breasts ever since. The 36 and 38DDs I was wearing are definitely too big, but I’m thinking the Cs are too small.

I’m assuming that the store (my local JC Penney, if anyone’s interested) didn’t train its bra fitters properly or that this particular lady was marking time until she could reasonably retire. I plan to go to a different store next time, which should be soon. Can anyone tell me how a good bra fitter assures a decent fit?

The bra measurement is taken in 2 places. Under the breasts around the ribcage, and just over the largest part of the breasts.

The first number is your band size, and the difference between the two numbers is your cup size.

Some helpful links (not really work safe unless looking at women in bras is fine at your work…)

How a bra should fit
Common problems and solutions
and the best of the lot How to measure your bra size along with another how-to with accompanying charts that tell how some brands vary. The last one also has the European conversion.

As much as I love La Senza, their bra sizes aren’t even internally consistent. I always try theirs on before buying because I have one that’s labelled as a 38B and is probably more like a 36A or maybe even a 34A and another where the cups are at least the right size, but the band’s too small. On the other hand, when I was in there on the weekend, I ran across one so-called 38B that had to be at least a 40 or 42D, if not bigger. I can’t say how I’d do with other brand bras because I haven’t bought any elsewhere in ages, but I’m pretty sure I wore a 38B in Wonderbra, etc. as well.

Mmmmmm…boobelage and duct tape! :stuck_out_tongue:

BWWAAAAHHH! I didn’t think anyone other than me referred to the sports bra “uniboob.” I abhor that! Put the wretched sportsbra on, after which you physically lift and separate your assets, of course. But before you even make it out the front door, Thing 1 and Thing 2 have mushed themselves together into an evil super-boob that could take out a third-world country without breaking a sweat. Oh wait. Yeah. Sweat. The cesspool that resides in the tiniest of crevices between T1 & T2 and upon releasing them makes you simulateously go, “Aaahhh” and “Blech!” – or more like “Aaahbleeeccchhh!”

Gezundheit!

I’ve been fitted at Victoria’s Secret. It was only slightly uncomfortable, because I think to really do a good job they need to see how the bra fits once they’ve measured you. And they tend to do a bit of fussing with the bra while it’s on you to see where problems might be – such as checking for under the arm boobage or adjusting the straps or center piece, which is supposed to lie flat on your breastbone, but never does if you’re C+.

Before my fitting, I always wore a 36C (except for when I was preggers and wore a DD :mad: ). But since the children, I’ve settled into a 38D which I find a bit wrinkly in the cup. I didn’t like that measurement, so I’ve dropped down to a 36D (less wrinkly–don’t ask me; I don’t get it either) and I stick with the same style of VS bras every time. No worries about trying it on because I already know how it fits. It’s bland, but meh. Bra shopping used to make me cry. A lot. Just like bathing suits. Now I just wait for the sale, grab the old faithfuls in a variety of colors and plop 'em on the counter.

Annoying Victoria’s Secret sales girl accosting me as my first footfall occurs in the store: Can I help you find anything?

Me: Nope, got it. Now get out of my way, so I can make it to the register before I find a cute pair of pajamas I can’t afford.

AVSSG: ??

Me: And stay the hell away from me with that blasted perfume.

AVSSG: ??

Me: You know, I could take you down with one swing of my uniboob, you…you… you A-cup, you.

:: AVSSG runs off to harass another unfortunate soul ::

:stuck_out_tongue:

You know, they have clear duct tape now, for those oh-so-sheer tanks… :wink:

You know, I’ve tried to measure myself properly, but I can’t quite figure it out. The conventional wisdom says you measure under the bust and add 5 (or 3, depending on which magazine or website I’m reading), then measure around the widest part of your breasts, then subtract the first measurement from the second measurement, and that tells you your cup size. My problem is, when I add 5 (or 3) to my ribcage measurement, I end up with a number LARGER than my bust measurement! I don’t have a concave chest; I think I have a couple of very respectable handfuls perched up there, but according to every measurement chart I’ve ever seen, I should be wearing a 45 minus AA, a size which, as far as I know, doesn’t exist. In actuality I’m wearing a 38 C, which is quite comfortable if a little tight around the band.

I’m going to have to go bra shopping again soon, due to my right breast’s habit of snapping underwires in half and trying to impale me with the sharp pointy ends. Four bras I’ve had to trash. Which means I’ll have to try on a million bras to find ONE that isn’t scratchy, itchy, tight, ugly, bulgy, or so thin my headlights pop out in the slightest cool breeze. I hate bra shopping.

As I’ve mentioned in a previous thread www.brastop.com ! They go up to up to a G cup, in good quality, cheap styles, if a bit out of date. I’ve managed to get some sports bras there, half price after Berlei stopped making them. So I’m very happy!
No, I don’t work for them…

Thanks for all the great advice!
My biggest problem now ('sides the girls :wink: ) is finding a place that will carry my size, once determined.
I haven’t checked all links provided yet, but apparently www.brastop.com doesn’t go large enough. :frowning:
I’m pretty sure I’m reading their size chart correctly.
Right now I’m wearing the biggest I can find from Lane Bryant (I’m in Tallahassee, FL so choices of shops are limited) and about to pop out the top so I’m guessing I’m going to have to order online.
I just hate that, as:

  1. credit cards - bleah! :mad:
  2. can’t try it on first
  3. not so easy to return if something happens.

Suck it up, right? :dubious:

Next issue is I HATES wires and crap in them!
The thingies they put in the sides poke me under the arms, the underbarbwires themselves take turns poking me either under the arm or in the boob.
Will they make a larger than DDD (is that technically an E?) without all that “support” crap in them?
I’d trade someone right now for some smaller ones, but I need mine to balance out my booty. :stuck_out_tongue:

Lane Bryant catalogue has lots of bras in large cup & band sizes without wires: http://www.lbcatalog.com/lbcatalog/layout/layout.asp?dept_id=844&parent_id=843&rootdept=600&
I’m also going to second www.Brastop.com and add www.figleaves.com. Both have pretty bras in big cup sizes. I’ve ordered from both and been happy every time. :slight_smile:

This is exactly why I suggested a shop that caters to mastectomy recoverers. They are well trained in fitting and they do have normal bras for normal people (as if any of us could be considered normal) The one in Seattle is either Mary Catherine’s or Catherine’s, the name has changed, but I can’t remember which is the new one.
The only bra I’ve ever purchased from JC Penney that fit was in about 1957; a “training” bra (??? Why did we have to be trained to have boobs?) Since then, no luck. Nordys is the only department store I’ve ever found that gives * anything* near instruction to their salespeople.