Bra Fitting Tips and Tricks

Brought to you by Rose & Thorne

When was the last time you had a bra fitting? While I strongly believe that every time you get a new bra you should have a fitting, the reality is that I buy most of my bras online (and so do many of you). Should you just buy the same size as the last bra you had? What if you’ve lost or gained weight, had a baby or toned up? All of those things will change your body shape – including your breasts – so you need to make sure that you’re wearing the correct size every single time. So how do you make sure your bra fits you properly?

There are a few reasons wearing the right size bra is important – comfort and breast health for starters, as well good posture and making sure your clothes fit well. We all deserve to be comfortable and if you’re wearing the right size you shouldn’t know you’re wearing a bra.

I had a chat to Rose & Thorne‘s resident bra guru Sue Dunmore about how to make sure you’re getting a good fit and I asked her to help troubleshoot a few of the common issues my readers have mentioned when it comes to their bras.

Choosing a bra that fits

If you can’t make it in store for a fitting, how do you measure yourself?
This is one of the most difficult things to get correct. While I recommend using a tape measure whenever you’re shopping for clothes online, it’s Sue’s pet hate when it comes to bra fittings, as it is only a guide and if you don’t pull it as firmly as it should be pulled or it dips slightly you could easily add on 5 cm and put yourself up two sizes! Rose & Thorne have a whole section on their website dedicated to helping you get the right fit, complete with a bra size calculator, an international size chart (which is perfect if you know your size in another country and want to convert that to NZ sizing), and even a pocket bra guru to help you find the right shape and size. It’s all super easy to use

What are the signs you’re wearing the wrong size?
The first sign of your cup being too small is the old “quad boob” look, when your boobs literally spill out of the cup – no one needs four boobs! Alongside this is the wires digging in, again a sure sign that the cups are too small; your wires should never press into your breast flesh but sit back behind it so you don’t even know they are there. Another sign is the back of your bra riding up your back – this means your bra is too big for you. In an ideal world, the band of your bra should be firm but comfortable, so that when you move your body, your bra moves with you – not independently of you.

What are the common issues for plus-size fits?
A lot of plus size women wear bras far too big in the body – just because you’re plus size, doesn’t mean your diaphragm is necessarily large. Women commonly think their bra size is relative to their dress size, but it’s relative to their diaphragm which is a lot smaller than hips or shoulders. I was a good (or bad!) example of this – I wear a size 24-26 dress and was wearing a 24G bra when I first had a fitting with Sue at Rose & Thorne. It turns out my actual bra size is 20J, a big difference!

How do you know if you have a good fit? How should a bra sit against your body?
The underbust band should sit flat and firmly around the body and in a straight line

How do you figure out what shape you need?
Ask your self how you like to look – do you like to be soft and natural or moved out front? I prefer my bra to bring my boobs in line in the front, and to give me a nice rounded shape, and I know that while some bras fit my body, they don’t give me the shape I want. Rose & Thorne has five different shapes in their range, each shape does something quite different and sometimes you might like to look one way going out – maybe more cleavage – and another for work. Pick the shape that works for you!

What is sister sizing and how does it work?
No one is ever necessarily one size, as each shape does something different for your boobs. You might need a different size in different shapes. Sister sizing means that if you are say, a 14D, then the volume in the cup of a 16C would be the same as a 14D as would the volume of the cup in a 12DD. Clear as mud? In a nutshell it’s up a band size, down a cup size; or down a band size, up a cup size. You then just adjust where the hooks and eyes do up tighter or looser.

How to fix five common fit problems

PROBLEM: My underwire digs in to my armpit
SOLUTION: Make sure you’re wearing the correct size and shape for your body. If you are wearing the correct size then it might be that the shape of the bra isn’t right for you – each bra will have a different shaped underwire, so you might need to change the shape of your bra to find one with a wire that’s not as long at the underarm.

PROBLEM: My underwires keep snapping
SOLUTION: Often, underwires snap because the breast is too heavy for the wire – that means you’re wearing the wrong size. It might also happen because your bra has been tortured in your washing machine and the wire has been caught and twisted, weakening the wire. Very occasionally its an actual fault in the metal, but this is rare.

PROBLEM: I get quad boob
SOLUTION: Your cups runneth over, you definitely need a bigger cup.

PROBLEM: My bra rides up at the back
SOLUTION: Your bra is too big around the body.

PROBLEM: My back fat bulges around my bra.
SOLUTION: If you’re slightly fleshy around the back (which is common amongst women) and wearing your bra correctly and firmly, you will get back bulge. If you loosen it off to get rid of the bulge or buy a bra too big for you, then you won’t get the correct support for your boobs! Instead, try a bra with a longer back – instead of a two hook design, look for 3-4 hooks or try a longline bra.

If you ever get a chance, pay the team at Rose & Thorne a visit in store because I think they give the best fit experience I’ve ever had, hands down! They make bras and underwear in a range of sizes (bras from 10-24 A-G and underwear from 10-26) and styles – my favourite is their midi short knickers, which give full coverage while still making me feel great (you can see photos of me wearing them here, but please be warned that I’m not wearing a lot else and it’s probably NSFW). If you’re not near their Drury Outlet store, you can find Rose & Thorne lingerie at The Warehouse stores or online, and yes they do ship internationally!

Do you have any questions about bra fitting?
Ever had any of these problems? Let us know!

This post was brought to you by Rose & Thorne. Please support the brands that support this blog