Dress me!

[ailbhe]

You were all so helpful last year that I'm asking again, as the bras I bought are no longer comfortable; as far as I can tell the elastic has gone brittle and they've shrunk. It occasionally happens that the temperature and spin speed dials on our washing machine are adjusted mid-cycle, so that's quite plausible.

My current measurements are:

under bust 72cm (28.5")
fullest part of bust 89cm (35")
waist 64cm (25")
fullest part of hips 94cm (37")

My old 30G bras don't fit. You'd think they should be too loose, since they are old and I am smaller, but they are too tight in the band and too loose in the cup. However, I am back in my favourite skirts again, so that's some consolation.

I think I'm going to order exactly the same bras, one cup size down, and just resign myself to their not lasting more than a year. They're nursing bras, you see. That's very limiting, though not as much as if I was looking for a 28 band. Perhaps I should experiment with those low-cut cups in a non-drop-cup bra, instead, since engorgement isn't as much of a problem any more. Bras that don't fit are a horrible pain though.

Comments

Unsolicited advice

[gloriap.livejournal.com]

Don't put bras in the dryer. If you wash them in the clothes washer instead of by hand, remove and hang to dry on a clothesline, shower rod, towel rack, etc. Even moderate heat is damaging to elastic/lycra, etc.

I have a few bras that I love that aren't being made any more and I am babying them along. I'll be very sad when they are no longer usable.

Re: Unsolicited advice

[ailbhe]

We don't own a dryer.

Re: Unsolicited advice

[gloriap.livejournal.com]

Sorry, my error. I mis-read where the possible heat was coming from.

[artela.livejournal.com]

Or look for soft fabric front fastening bras where you could just unhook? No idea how practical that would be though.

[ailbhe]

I *think* unhooking would be easy and rehooking difficult. I might investigate whether any of them open enough if one leaves the last hook done up, though, that could work.

[artela.livejournal.com]

Certainly mine would allow that easily, however I now can't find them online (which is a shame as they're lovely bras, so I'm glad I got 6 all in one go).

[myfirstkitchen.livejournal.com]

I handwash mine. I gave up on them lasting more than five minutes if I didn't, our machine has a mind of its own.

[pauamma]

waist 64cm (25")
fullest part of hips 94cm (37")

I have nothing useful to sau, but I'm curious: how do waist and hips determine bra size? (Or do they?)

[ailbhe]

Um, I just had a tape measure, so did all the same measurements I did last time.

[the0lady.livejournal.com]

Half cup bras would certainly allow for pulling a breast out without unfastening them, but I wouldn't say anything for their comfortableness, as such.

If you want to run a cheap experiment (with added the cost of setting ethical consumerism aside, though) Primark do 3/4 cup push-up bras that I'm always spontaneously popping out of anyway. They cost £2-£3 or so, come in plain colours with no itchy trims, last about a year of delicate wash cycles at 30C, and are surprisingly comfortable, at least for me.

[tammylc.livejournal.com]

When I had my bra fitting earlier this year they said that I should only expect to get about 8 months before needing to replace my everyday bras.

I also learned that a proper fitting bra is tighter in the band than I'd realized. And they stretch pretty quickly, so the ones that were a bit too tight when I bought them quickly became very comfortable. How tight is your 30G band?

More that you may already know... band size and cup size are proportionate to one another. So for every band size you go down, you go up one cup size. So a 30G is the same relative cup size as a 32H.

[wingedkami.livejournal.com]

Based on those measurements, I'd suggest a 32 band and maybe a DD cup, but I have no idea if the bras you're ordering are sized the same as the places I shop.

There's no substitute for trying them on though - I generally go into M&S, pick out 6 or 7 bras I like in my size, and buy maybe 1 or 2 of them if I'm lucky.

Stupid fashion industry.