Fit, don't measure
Jan. 12th, 2026 11:21 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
baroque_mongooseEvery now and then I encounter someone who is having trouble with her bra. She is almost always wearing the wrong size, so I tell her to go and get herself properly fitted; and if she's obviously at least a D cup, I send her to Bravissimo for that. I explain that they can fit online via video chat, and that they are very good at it (they fitted me; at the time I was borderline between two sizes and they got the wrong one, as it turned out, but for most people they'd get it right first time). This statement is usually met with some astonishment. How, people ask, can they do that?
Well... easily, in fact. I trained as a bra fitter myself, and I used to fit mostly by eye, doing the final tweaking by dint of getting the person to try on whatever size I'd eyeballed her at and then working from there. I'd never be very far out, and more often than not I'd be right first time. But the one thing I never did was measure.
There is a reason for that. Measurement scales for bras were designed when the "standard" size was 34B, which was some time in the 1920s. I personally don't believe that was ever really the average; in the 1920s the androgynous look was all the rage, and women tried to flatten themselves down as much as possible (they wore actual binders, for goodness' sake). Nonetheless, it was taken as the average, and measuring works pretty well if you are close to that. Most women, however, are not; and the further away you get from 34B, the less accurate measurement gets, because it doesn't extrapolate in a nice neat linear way. I once demonstrated this to a group with the aid of a friend who was, if I recall correctly, wearing a 36G at the time. I measured her in the approved way, and she came out as something like a 40D. So I gave her a 40D bra to try on (over the bra she was already wearing); she put it on, did it up, grinned from ear to ear... and then pulled it straight off over her head without unfastening it. "And that," I explained, "is why you don't measure."
If you can get professionally fitted in a specialist lingerie shop, do that, but if you can't, this is how to fit yourself. All you need is access to an underwired bra in a good range of sizes (the Triumph Doreen is particularly good for fitting, as it is very consistent). Underwired is important for fitting even if you prefer to wear a soft cup, because it gives greater accuracy. Take a few of these into the fitting room and try on your best guess. It should fit on the outermost row of hooks (the inner rows are for when it stretches later); the underwires should sit snugly on the rib cage and follow the line of the bust, without either sticking out or digging in anywhere (if you're uneven, fit to the larger boob - you can always buy an insert for the other one); the sides of the bra (technically known as the wings) should fit closely but not dig in - they're what's giving most of the support; the cups shouldn't wrinkle or gape, and they should fit smoothly without any overspill; and the straps should be adjusted so that they don't slide, but they shouldn't be tight, since all they're doing is stopping the tops of the cups from flapping about. They're not essential to the support.
And now to the troubleshooting part.
Does the band dig in, but the cups fit well? Try a larger band size, but take the cup size down to go with it. Cup sizes aren't absolute, but relative to the band size. So if the bra you have on is a 34DD, you need to try not a 36DD but a 36D.
Is the band too loose, but the cups fit well? Do the reverse; if you're starting with a 34DD, try a 32E.
Is the band all right but you're spilling out of the cups, and/or the wires are digging in at the sides? Go up a cup size.
Is the band all right but the cups wrinkle or gape, and/or the wires are sticking out at the sides? Go down a cup size.
Does the underwire seem to fit perfectly but the cup itself is wrong? Try a different range (or even a different brand) in the same size; if this happens a lot, you may want to consider stretch lace cups, as these are much more accommodating than more rigid ones. You have the right size, but not all bras are exactly the same shape (and if you want to wear a soft cup bra anyway, the problem will probably go of its own accord).
I will happily answer any further questions anyone has, because I think it's very important that everyone should be able to get a good fit; and I have, in my time, fitted pretty much the entire gamut of sizes and shapes, from someone who was an AA on one side and a B on the other all the way up to someone who was an L cup and seriously considering reduction surgery because she had back trouble (once I found her the right bra, the back trouble cleared up within a few weeks).
The tape measure, though? That's for sewing.
Well... easily, in fact. I trained as a bra fitter myself, and I used to fit mostly by eye, doing the final tweaking by dint of getting the person to try on whatever size I'd eyeballed her at and then working from there. I'd never be very far out, and more often than not I'd be right first time. But the one thing I never did was measure.
There is a reason for that. Measurement scales for bras were designed when the "standard" size was 34B, which was some time in the 1920s. I personally don't believe that was ever really the average; in the 1920s the androgynous look was all the rage, and women tried to flatten themselves down as much as possible (they wore actual binders, for goodness' sake). Nonetheless, it was taken as the average, and measuring works pretty well if you are close to that. Most women, however, are not; and the further away you get from 34B, the less accurate measurement gets, because it doesn't extrapolate in a nice neat linear way. I once demonstrated this to a group with the aid of a friend who was, if I recall correctly, wearing a 36G at the time. I measured her in the approved way, and she came out as something like a 40D. So I gave her a 40D bra to try on (over the bra she was already wearing); she put it on, did it up, grinned from ear to ear... and then pulled it straight off over her head without unfastening it. "And that," I explained, "is why you don't measure."
If you can get professionally fitted in a specialist lingerie shop, do that, but if you can't, this is how to fit yourself. All you need is access to an underwired bra in a good range of sizes (the Triumph Doreen is particularly good for fitting, as it is very consistent). Underwired is important for fitting even if you prefer to wear a soft cup, because it gives greater accuracy. Take a few of these into the fitting room and try on your best guess. It should fit on the outermost row of hooks (the inner rows are for when it stretches later); the underwires should sit snugly on the rib cage and follow the line of the bust, without either sticking out or digging in anywhere (if you're uneven, fit to the larger boob - you can always buy an insert for the other one); the sides of the bra (technically known as the wings) should fit closely but not dig in - they're what's giving most of the support; the cups shouldn't wrinkle or gape, and they should fit smoothly without any overspill; and the straps should be adjusted so that they don't slide, but they shouldn't be tight, since all they're doing is stopping the tops of the cups from flapping about. They're not essential to the support.
And now to the troubleshooting part.
Does the band dig in, but the cups fit well? Try a larger band size, but take the cup size down to go with it. Cup sizes aren't absolute, but relative to the band size. So if the bra you have on is a 34DD, you need to try not a 36DD but a 36D.
Is the band too loose, but the cups fit well? Do the reverse; if you're starting with a 34DD, try a 32E.
Is the band all right but you're spilling out of the cups, and/or the wires are digging in at the sides? Go up a cup size.
Is the band all right but the cups wrinkle or gape, and/or the wires are sticking out at the sides? Go down a cup size.
Does the underwire seem to fit perfectly but the cup itself is wrong? Try a different range (or even a different brand) in the same size; if this happens a lot, you may want to consider stretch lace cups, as these are much more accommodating than more rigid ones. You have the right size, but not all bras are exactly the same shape (and if you want to wear a soft cup bra anyway, the problem will probably go of its own accord).
I will happily answer any further questions anyone has, because I think it's very important that everyone should be able to get a good fit; and I have, in my time, fitted pretty much the entire gamut of sizes and shapes, from someone who was an AA on one side and a B on the other all the way up to someone who was an L cup and seriously considering reduction surgery because she had back trouble (once I found her the right bra, the back trouble cleared up within a few weeks).
The tape measure, though? That's for sewing.
