Bras- Absolutely Desperate for Help! :(

[estx1987_sale]

Hi everyone! I am so desperate for some bra help. Right now, my 40DD/42DD bras from Fredricks of Hollywood are too big (not to mention they are all so worn out!) They lift away from my chest, and the straps fall down. My problem area is my back, as I have some back fat that I like my bras to "hug," this way my back looks smooth. If i tighten the

Comments

[kakugori]

First off, let me recommend this:
http://www.reddit.com/r/ABraThatFits/wiki/quick

Yes, it's reddit. Just trust me here, it's a great resource for bra fitting. Also, this:
http://www.breakoutbras.com/sizing

I 100% recommend grabbing a measuring tape and fitting yourself, rather than relying on a store to do so. There are a huge, huge range of bra sizes beyond what most US manufacturers produce - even Lane Bryant's size range doesn't near cover enough. I order my bras online, from places like Breakout Bras, Her Room, Figleaves, Bare Necessities, Ewa Michalak, Bra Stop or Bravissimo.

Basic fit tips: the band should be very tight. If you put your bra on, you shouldn't be able to pull the back part away from your body very far at all. (Yes, this might mean some back lumps...but that comes with having a body at any size. Also, correctly fitting bras will contain some of this in the cups, as will a wider [taller not larger around] band.) Cup fit will be secondary to band fit. Sometimes, I think more often for plus sizes, wider underwires that don't project forward as much as they wrap around to the back can be a better fit.

[mi_nion]

Totally agree with this recommendation. Soma has great bras, but they are pricey. However I have had good experience with Woman Within bras. Just sort through to the ones that say back fat smoothing. They are also really easy with returns.

Personally I dislike Victoria Secret bras. I find that they tend to size up for some reason.

[kakugori]

VS is pretty terrible all around. They're notorious for trying to make people fit their bras, rather than finding bras to fit the person, including sizing wrong and encouraging "sister sizing" (going up to a too-big band to get the cup to sorta fit) to make sales. Would not send someone there, even if they do fit "standard"* 32-34-36 B-DD sizing.

*I have complaints with this, clearly.

I forgot to mention that One Stop Plus is another place to find bras, and they do a buy 3 get a $25 coupon thing. Unfortunately, their "full beauty" "designer" bras never go on sale, and all those tempting 30 and 40% off coupons that I seem to get every-single-day don't apply. :/

[mi_nion]

OneStopPlus and/or WomenWithin have a bra club as well. I forget the specifics, but I think it's buy 3 get one free, or one free after 12. I do occasionally find their bras on clearance.

[estx1987_sale]

Aren't both of those places online retailers? I wanna stray from that considering I'm not sure how anything will fit.

[mi_nion]

Yes they are. I mentioned in my first post it would be good to measure yourself and that they are easy with returns. However if that is really an issue for you I would go back to Lane Bryant and specifically asked for back fat smoothing bras.

[estx1987_sale]

I tried on literally every bra in that store and really had an awful experience. I don't think I'd go back there because nothing fit me right :( that's why I'm interested in the avenues bras- have you had any experience with them?

[mi_nion]

Did they show you the back smoothers? Sometimes they have to order them, but you can ship to store for free and try it on there.

I haven;t bought a bra from The Avenue in years. I buy most of mine online from Women Within with good success. However, I buy at least 85% of my wardrobe online. Another option might be Catherine's if you have a brick and mortar store near you. Regardless of where you go I would ask the sales people for back fat smoother styles to save you some aggravation.

[gunblade_girl]

I definitely second r/abrathatfits. Following their advice I went from a 42dd to a 40G and it's made such a difference. Being measured properly is such a relief.