WHAT’S YOUR TRUE BRA SIZE?
It’s said that from a third up to a whopping 80% of women are wearing an ill-fitting bra – so, just how do you measure for the perfect fit?
Of course, at Little Women we have our very handy bra measuring guide where we do the calculations for you to get the very best fitting bra possible. But it’s important to remember that slight fluctuations in weight, water retention, age and fitness can impact on bust sizes.
So, take up the Little Women’s “Measure Your Mammaries Challenge”, grab the tape measure and put us to the test! We’ve added our top tips for measuring your bra size below.
Back and bust bra measurements
This is not teaching a smaller boobed sister how to suck eggs – we’re sure all ladies know that the back measurement is the number and the cup size a letter (doh!). So, how is it that so many of us are still getting it wrong? It’s all about getting the tape measure in the right place and ensuring it’s firmly around you, but not too tight or too loose.
All boobs point east…. Apparently. And ‘point’ they certainly do!
Perfectly engineered bras
Back in 1937, Warner introduced its Alphabet Bra with four cup sizes (A, B, C and D) to its product descriptions. Before long, these cup sizes got nicknames: egg cup, tea cup, coffee cup and challenge cup (we’re guessing this ‘challenge cup’ bra size was for the more generous bosomed woman and have images of FA cup sized boobs encased in silver satin). Things have come a long way since then! There’s a lot more than just the straps supporting your boobs; there’s a lot of engineering in the cups themselves, and you don’t need an underwired bra to hold and support you perfectly – non-wired bras can offer fantastic support coupled with comfort.The important thing to remember with bras is that the support actually comes from how well the band fits primarily. You should be able to drop the straps off of your shoulders and still feel as supported by your bra!
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Well, she’s clearly not used the Little Women bra measuring guide
“Yes, tomorrow I’ll go and get myself properly measured…. Really… I will”
Need a little changing room confidence? Read our body confidence blog
Fitting room fear
On average, women have a professional bra fitting only twice in their lives, but many women have never been measured or fitted professionally. According to the Women’s Health Research Institute “many” (no actual figures, if you’ll pardon the pun) women feel uncomfortable in the changing room - whether the gym or in a shop, Luckily, now we have technology to calculate your measurements into a bra size and the technology to bra shop online at home without being publicly grappled in your smalls.
Read our fitting guide to help when you’ve bought a gorgeous bra from us!
Does boob shape matter when buying a bra?
Yep, it certainly does! There are reasons beyond fashion and sexiness for the differing bra styles, and that’s largely down to boob shape. As we get older the tissue in our boobs breaks down and the elasticity in our skin lessens, so our boobs might sag, and anyway, every woman’s boobs are different. Read our Identifying Your Boob Shape Guide before deciding which style of bra would best suit your needs.
So, how did you do in the “Measure Your Mammaries Challenge”. How many of you are wearing the wrong size? Is it time to buy a new bra?
We’d love to hear about your bra measuring and buying experiences, actually any hilarity around boobs and epic bra fails really – why not post your fun tales from the lingerie drawer on our Facebook and Twitter pages?
By Kelly Rogers
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Little Women creates beautiful lingerie for women with cup sizes AAA-B. We are specialists in lingerie for smaller cup sizes and have more than 25 years' experience.
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