Support Bras - advice please on getting one than that actually fits right?!!!!

[Meels-Spot]

Hi

I am having real trouble getting a support bra to fit me. I have now gone to two separate Mothercare stores and have been measured, both times I have not been convinced they know what they are doing. Before I was pregnant I wore a 34E in La Senza bras, now I've heard La Senza can sometimes size you a little bigger than other makes, but Mothercare seemed to think I was measuring 'around' a 38D size. I thought 'no way am I a D cup' although I know the back size is bigger, that's 2 cup sizes smaller and my boobs have definitely got a lot bigger during pregnancy and my La Senza 34E bras don't even cover me up now! Anyway I tried a 38D as suggested by them - too small! So I have no faith in their measuring system!! Anyway I then tried a 38DD which was ok ish width wise, but the problem I have is that the area of the bra that rests between the boobs underneath at the front stands at least an inch away from my chest. What I mean is the elastic bit that goes all the way around is flush, but then the bit that comes up where you would traditionally would have had wires sites right out almost in line with my boobs. Surely this whole section should be flush to the skin, with the cups then coming up inbetween the breasts if you see what I mean??? I also tried a 38E but this was gaping at the back of the cups under the armpits, so basically none of them fitted properly one way or another! I have been trying 't-shirt' type bras, which are the type I would normally wear, but is this kind of fit normal in a maternity support bra where the front stands away from the ribcage? Or am I just not being fitted correctly? Should I stay at a 34 ish chest size as pre pregnancy, but go for a bigger cup size maybe?

Help!!!!!!!!!

 

[alice&bump]

hey hun, my bras dont come right in they're more like a crop top lol. i got mine in marks, they're really comfy and they're dead good at measuring. they're not the prettiest of things, bu they keep them in lol! the likelyhood is that you will need to go up a back size cos your ribcage and everythin grows and expands xx

 

[moomin_troll]

dont ever get messured at mothercare lol i was a 32dd before being pregnant and knew they had got bigger and they said i was a 34 a/b! i said ur talking out of ur ass love and said give me a c cup ile prove its too small so she did n yes it was too small so my sister then measured me n i was a 34e lol n they didnt even have my size in the shop so ive gone thru pregnancy with a bad bra lol

try marks and spencers to get measured.

and i would go for a bigger back than cup and u can always buy bra extenders which i have done

 

[Meels-Spot]

Oh thanks that's interesting about mothercare so it's not just me then!!! Will go to M&S next week then, see what they say!

I can understand my back measurement going up although 2 sizes at once does seem a tad excessive when I am size 10 and have only put 4lbs on so far, but even so it seems weird for them to say the cup size has not got bigger, but in fact smaller!!!!! And I know for a fact that my boobs have definitely got a lot bigger!!! It's very frustrating. I did buy back extenders and used them on my La Senzas until about a month or so ago, but most of my bras are plunge style so my nipples kept popping out the sides of the bra as the cups were just getting too small to cover them lol!

I would be really interested to know if anyone has the t-shirt style bras and if the bit in the middle front sits between the boobs like it would on a normal bra, or if it does the crop top thing as Alice&bump says? Is it just the fact this style of bra on a large chest will never sit flush as it has no wires to give it stability??

 

[PeanutBean]

I would just try stuff on to see how it feels. Try and cup size up or a chest size up and see what helps. I've gone up one cup size but my chest size hasn't changed at all. As long as you know how a bra should fit you don't need measuring and I find different makes can have a lot of variation in size anyway!

 

[charliebear]

Hi, I went to M&S to get measured!!

Both before pregnancy and in 1st tri. Much better than anywhere else for measuring.
I was chatting to the lady and she said La Senza's sizes are on the small side - which makes sense as once measured properly the size im wearing now from La Senza doesnt fit

I'd lost weight during 1st tri when i got measured and went up a back and 2 cup sizes.
I also asked the lady about the middle bit of bra not sitting against skin and said as bra wasnt underwired it wouldnt and was normal!!

Sorry for the essay!! x

 

[bex]

I got my first bras from M&S. They were comfy but like granny bras. When they started to get a bit tight i decided to go to mothercare.

I was fitted with no problems. I was a 36 E at m&s, but this cup size was to big at mothercare, so i was fitted with a 38 D.

I chose the t shirt bras and they give me fantastic lift where as the m&s ones made me feel like my boobs were falling into my armpit!!

No maternity bras that i have had stay next to the body in between my boobs. Think its due to the lack of wire.

 

[alice&bump]

i lost half a stone when i went to get measured and had still gone from a 34dd to a 38f,i think your boobs have a mind of their own when preg!!

 

[Hevz]

I used to get measured at M&S but for the majority of people "measuring" doesn't actually work as it doesn't account for how full (or not) your breasts are

Put it this way...at M&S I measured a 40D and I was actually a 34G (this was a while ago by the way).

I go to Bravissimo where they encourage you to try on different sizes (back and cup) until you get one that fits...they will come and look for you and tell you if they think the back or cup size is wrong and tell you what to look for in a well fitting bra. Bras there may seem more expensive than M&S but I'd rather have a couple of well fitting, comfy, supportive beautiful bras than loads of badly fitting ones. They sell a fairly good range of non wired and feeding bras too

Anyway, once you've been show what to look for in a well fitting bra you can always go to M&S and fit yourself

 

[Blob]

I got sports bras soooo comfy

 

[danni2609]

Yeh i dont like M&S as they measured me wrong and i bought the bras that they suggested for £25 and they were too tight and digging in! So i got my sis to measure me using the guide out the catalogue and she measured me a 34E when they measured me a 34 d!

 

[sparkswillfly]

When did everyone switch from wired to non-wired? Im measuring a 30C (up 1 cup size) at the min, which is an impossible bra size to find in shops. I dont like buying bras off the internet as you definitely need to try them on first. Someone needs to come up with a shop for small breasts. I dont think Ive ever had a properly fitting bra!

 

[Blah11]

I'm wearing 34e sports and nursing bras at the moment. I got them in marks.

 

[PeanutBean]

When did everyone switch from wired to non-wired? Im measuring a 30C (up 1 cup size) at the min, which is an impossible bra size to find in shops. I dont like buying bras off the internet as you definitely need to try them on first. Someone needs to come up with a shop for small breasts. I dont think Ive ever had a properly fitting bra!

Unless the wire gets uncomfortable as my bump gets bigger I'm not going to switch to underwired until my milk comes in when obviously I'll get nursing bras. At an F cup a non-wired bra is simply impossible for me.

 

[Neecee]

When did everyone switch from wired to non-wired? Im measuring a 30C (up 1 cup size) at the min, which is an impossible bra size to find in shops. I dont like buying bras off the internet as you definitely need to try them on first. Someone needs to come up with a shop for small breasts. I dont think Ive ever had a properly fitting bra!

Unless the wire gets uncomfortable as my bump gets bigger I'm not going to switch to underwired until my milk comes in when obviously I'll get nursing bras. At an F cup a non-wired bra is simply impossible for me.

I was thinking the same thing. I'm an E cup and non-wired bras are just NOT the thing for me! I'll probably swap to non-wired nearer the time.

Is there an important reason why we should wear non-wired bras?

 

[PeanutBean]

When did everyone switch from wired to non-wired? Im measuring a 30C (up 1 cup size) at the min, which is an impossible bra size to find in shops. I dont like buying bras off the internet as you definitely need to try them on first. Someone needs to come up with a shop for small breasts. I dont think Ive ever had a properly fitting bra!

Unless the wire gets uncomfortable as my bump gets bigger I'm not going to switch to underwired until my milk comes in when obviously I'll get nursing bras. At an F cup a non-wired bra is simply impossible for me.

I was thinking the same thing. I'm an E cup and non-wired bras are just NOT the thing for me! I'll probably swap to non-wired nearer the time.

Is there an important reason why we should wear non-wired bras?

Yeah the wire can put pressure on the milk ducts and cause mastitis. This shouldn't happen until the milk comes in though and my sister who is similar sized to me wore wires up to birth with no problem. I guess just best to keep an eye on anything funny happening with our boobs!

 

[PeanutBean]

Lol just noticed I put switch to underwired when nursing, I did of course mean non-wired! :doh: Preg brain strikes again...

 

[elm]

I don't think you should go too much by what size you're measured at as I've found that sizes vary between both brands and style of bra anyway.

I had a couple of Mothercare bras at about 10 weeks and they were nice but stopped being so supportive a couple of weeks ago so I got measured at M&S. The bra is very granified but it feels alot more supportive. (Mothercare measured me at a 38C and D - different bras, M&S 38E at week 16/17 I think).

Make sure that they check your bra once they've measured you and you've tried one on. The M&S woman that measured me kept popping in and out with different bras til I got one that fitted properly. She said that they won't lie flat because of the lack of wiring.

Hope you find one you like and fits properly x

 

[Meels-Spot]

I really hate the fact they won't lay flat and neat in the middle! And because they come up so high compared to a plunge type bra that I'm used to if you wear a v-neck top or something you can look down and see it sticking out and looking really ill-fitting, it really bugs me! Am tempted to just go and try on some bigger wired bras!

 

[Hevz]

Wires are not a problem as long as the bra fits correctly....if the wires are in the wrong place they can be pretty uncomfortable more than anything. Make sure you get bigger cup sizes not just back sizes as you get bigger as a lot of people just think it's the back size that gets bigger