Bras are a rough area for a large chunk of ladies – whether they have a large cup and band size, a large band size but a smaller cup size, or a small band size but a large cup size. I wear a 34DDDD (that is not a typo!) and I have personally experienced the torture that bra shopping can become! I’m here to tell you – it doesn’t have to be that bad. Here’s my process for making it as painless as it can be:
- Find a bra shop and get sized. A real bra shop – most of the chain stores (Victoria’s Secret, I’m looking at you!) are notorious for handing out bad measurements. Something like 85% of women wear the wrong bra size – the improvement is immediately noticeable when you switch to the right size! If you don’t have a lingerie shop near you (the one I went to apparently mostly sells wedding undergarments, so maybe check those too), try reading some online information about the correct fit. I was wearing the right size before I got measured, since I knew what to look for.
- Try on several bras. Note the makers of the ones that fit you best, as well as the model number or name. Seriously, bring a notebook, write it all down! Buy one bra if you want, I did since the assistant was incredibly helpful and spent probably 45 minutes bringing me different bras. First bra I’ve bought at full retail price in probably four years!
- Go home. Find bras on eBay. Buy them for $20-30 a pop instead of $40-70. Rejoice in your newfound collection of bras that fit properly.
The brands that I would recommend (at least for others built like me) are Panache, Chantelle, and Freya. To be fair, I’ve only worn one Freya bra, which was fairly well constructed. But I’ve heard great things about them and I love to see cute bras in bigger sizes. Chantelle is probably my favorite, except that their bras are all hand sewn, so there are tiny variations from bra to bra even in the same make – variations that can make the difference between “wow my back feels great” and “dammit, this underwire keeps poking me in the armpit”. But I can find them on eBay for around $20, so it’s worth the gamble to me. Panache is a close second and is more uniform from bra to bra – but that brand is harder to find for cheap on eBay.
The care and keeping of:
Okay, so I know that some people machine wash their bras, but I do not, after the Incident. In which one of my favorite bras was put into the washing machine, and the underwire was somehow extracted from it without any sign of a hole or tearing. Like magic. Evil black washing machine magic.
So now I hand wash all of my bras. It’s surprisingly easy; just put the bras in a thing full of water with the appropriate amount of detergent, let sit, and rinse. I use Eucalan, which is kind of pricyish but smells dee-vine (lavender FTW!). And if you do machine wash, you should probably look into buying a bag for them to be washed in.
There’s my secrets! Utilizing these methods, I now have almost a full wardrobe of bras. Believe me, it’s certainly a step up from a year or two ago.
Have any bra woes or tips to share? What’s your favorite brand?
