Oprah's show today on Bras that Fit

[Beaverhausen]

I'm recording this to watch later - hope it helps.

I really have a hard time finding good bras. "The girls" have sagged on me since I was 13 and it's hard to find enough support that isn't too ugly or "minimizing."

Anyone have any tips on bra buying? I usually find the best ones at Victoria's Secret but I have even had trouble there lately. The regular store brands like Maidenform just fall apart too fast for me (and I'm good and rotate bras daily). Any tips are appreciated! :hi:

[Dora]

1. I do relate.

For me, bras are like shoes. When I buy them, I want personal attention. And when I wear them, I want them to look good, feel good, and hold-em-up good.

I gave up on Victoria's Secret a long time ago. I found their selection in my size was limited, and their performance over time was not satisfactory. They also never offered any fitting assistance, and I hated fishing for my size bra in the stupid drawers they use. I also got tired of their soft-porn television commercials.

Wacoal bras are wonderful, but super spendy. I've tried them on, but could never afford to purchase.

I love Lunaire brand. Their D and DD cups are actual D and DD cups. And they're very pretty.

The best bras I ever bought were from a specialty lingerie shop in town. They sold bridal lingerie (petticoats, slips, etc.) and bras, underwear, and some leisure/sleep clothing. The clerk was a pro at getting me properly fitted. I wore one of those bras to shreds, I loved it so much. Unfortunately, I don't remember the brand. It was European, I believe, because the cup was an F, and the US equivalent was a DD. Look up lingerie in your Yellow Pages and see if you have a specialty store in town. You may find a treasure.

I recently bought bras at a JC Penneys in Phoenix. The clerk was very helpful, and knew all about fit and which brands were best. I wound up buying three Maidenforms, and I've been happy with them.

Dillard's department stores have always given me good service in bra fitting. And their store brand also performed pretty well.

[NashVegas]

3. I'll Second Lunaire

I found them on a website that caries a huge assortment of bras, including bras for us full-figured types. http://herroom.com


I've come to accept that if I want a good bra for my size, especially a good bra that's also going to be pretty, I'm going to pay a minimum of $30.

[DemBones DemBones]

9. Well, you know what Victoria's "Secret" is?

That nobody over 18 can wear their stuff!



:evilgrin:

[politicat]

2. I relate, but my fitter is my husband.

You can borrow him if you buy him an electronic device. :P

He sees how things fit on me far better than I can see on myself, and he has a better eye than I do. Since I've had boobs like cantaloupes since I was 13, I really do relate.

I like Warners, to be honest. They make unpadded 34Ds.

[mrreowwr_kittty]

4. Padded bras in large sizes! Why?!?!

I wear a C or D, depending on the manufacturer, and think that is quite sufficient boobage on its own merits, thank you very much. I cannot for the life of me understand why so many bras in my size come padded! I'm not talking some light foam to add substance. I mean a good 1 inch of the stuff, so that it adds about a cup size in appearance. Why would I want that?!?!

[politicat]

5. I've come up with one reason: they mask cold nips.

When it's 20 below, the perma-hards get a little old, and when they're always showing, it gets a little obnoxious. But summer bras? I dunno.

[oregonjen]

7. I've recently found silicone nipple covers called DIMR'S

www.dimrs.com Pretty nice to "dim" those headlights. ;-)

[Longhorn]

8. Oh, boy, I'm going to get me some of those!

I got some adhesive ones but I find I never use them because I don't want to waste them. Yeah, that makes sense! :)

I figure there's probably nothing more gross to my college students than a 51-year-old math teacher with protruding nipples! :eek:

[Justitia]

11. Amen sister! I HATE padding, I wear a "D" already! And you're right, so many are padded now.

Or have those molded cups in large sizes - ugh.

I just need a good full-coverage, underwire, UNpadded, hook & pulley system. ;-)

I usually buy Bali.

[musette_sf]

6. i have worn the same basic bra

for over 30 years. it's a Vanity Fair and evidently must be one of their popular styles as it has never gone away.

i have strayed, i have tried the Olga, the Bali, but the Vanity Fair fits just right.

everything Maidenform i have ever bought has not been of the quality i prefer. i do think Vanity Fair (and Olga and Bali, for that matter, if they just had My Perfect Bra) are better made.

available in regular:
http://www.freshpair.com/Vanity-Fair-Satin-Solutions-Bra-75-233.html

or industrial strength:
http://www.freshpair.com/Vanity-Fair-Satin-Solutions-Full-Figure-Bra-75-134.html

[Manifestor_of_Light]

10. First you gotta measure around your ribs.

Under your boobs. That's your band size. Most women don't measure it large enough and wonder why it's too tight.

The cup size is separate. It's hard to find a small band size/large cup size, or a large band size/small cup size.

I am a 40B, and you would think I was a cow or something. The only reason I'm a B is because of motherhood and nursing a baby for a couple of years. When they shrank, they were a B instead of an A. Never thought I would be anything but flat.

I have huge ribs (for a short small boned person) and square shoulders and no waist and no ass. I have to wear men's pants to get them to fit.

Different brands fit differently. I can't wear Olgas. I usually wear sport bras.

[OnionPatch]

14. Boy can I relate to that!

I'm a 38 or 40 according to my chest measurement, but I am an A cup. My boobs float around in a B cup. I don't know why bra makers can't understand that not all women with large rib cages have large boobs. Just try to find a 38A or a 40A. Then sometimes when I do find them, the cups are so close together that if I fit one cup over one boob properly, the other cup is sitting on top of my cleavage.

Dear Bra Makers,
You can't just add extra length to the chest strap of a bra for larger sizes. The space between the boobs gets larger as the chest measurement rises. It's called "proportion."

[zanne]

15. I have to buy two identical bras in different sizes....

I'm made funny. I have a large ribcage, kind of like a man's. I have to buy a bra with B+ cups and another one with a 46 band. Then I cut them and sew them together. I have tried absolutely everything else. It doesn't matter how much weight I lose, because my band size stays the same. Well, maybe in the next life.....

[NotGivingUp]

12. yeah...i have a tip...don't buy any. they're uncomfortable, unnecessary, and bad for your health. nt

[BlackVelvet04]

13. I highly recommend getting

professionally fitted. I was told that most women wear a bra with bands too large and cups too small.

[Manifestor_of_Light]

16. I thought it was the other way round.

I thought most women think they're a 34B, when they're actually a 36A.

I was a 36AA then an A cup in late high school. Finally got to a B as a nursing mother. The boobs shrank back to a B which was fine with me.