There are very few companies out there that want women to know the truth about sizing. They tell you that you are part of the 85% or more of women who are in the wrong size but then guide you into either the same wrong size you were already wearing, or another wrong size. Regardless, your bras still don’t fit. You still have a drawer full of bras that seemed to fit in the store but drive you crazy once you got them home and wear them for more than five minutes. You still have that band riding up your back all day or the under wire poking you under the arms or your “extra boobs” spilling out over the top of your cup. So keep reading, and your days of hating your bra will soon be over. Before I start though, let me say that if you have any questions or need help, please feel free to call me, Melissa Thomason or any of my fully trained Customer Service Representatives toll free at 1-866-870-8911 or email us at sizing@breakoutbras.com. Instructions For Basic Bra Sizing: (SEE MATERNITY & NURSING BRA SIZING BELOW) Step #1: Get a soft measuring tape. This is the only type of measuring tape that can be used for accurate measurements. If you do not have one, you can get one a Wal-Mart or many other stores for less than a dollar. Step #2: Take off your bra. The measurements you take will be much more accurate if your bra is off. Almost all women wear cup sizes that are too small which smashes the breasts down causing the measurement to seem smaller than they really are. If your breasts hang or sag, just try and get someone to help you so that you can prop your breasts up while measuring. If you really need to, just take the measurements with a bra on. The size will still be a lot closer than anything you have been wearing and the fit a whole lot better. And if you need help or feel the numbers are just not making sense, just take BOTH measurements, one with the bra on and one with the bra off and call us and we will help you determine the best size. Step #3: Measure underneath your rib cage. This measurement will help you determine your band size. So measure right underneath your breasts where a bra band would normally sit. Make sure that you keep the tape level all the way around and pull the two sided together until they meet and lie flat against your body. Do not pull it too tightly but it does need to be somewhat snug. Whatever number you get here, in almost all cases just needs to be rounded up to the nearest even number. So if the measurement is 33 than you would just round up to 34. Very easy. But there is one exception to this rule. If you measure 34 1/4 or even 34 ½, you should round down to 34 instead. The reason for this is simple. Bras lose elasticity every time you wear them so the fit will only get less and less supportive the longer you wear the bra. So when you first purchase a bra it needs to feel snug but not too tight on the LOOSEST hook. Then as the bra stretches from wear, you can move the hooks in tighter to maintain a higher level of support longer. If you buy a bra and need to wear it on the tightest hook from the start, you have nowhere to go but to buy a new one when it starts getting stretched out. For a bra to be supportive, you must wear the correct band size. **So for the above example, the band size is 34. I will use this measurement again below to determine the final size needed. Step #4: Measure across the widest part of your bust line. (NEVER MEASURE UNDER YOUR ARM PITS AND UP OVER THE TOP OF YOUR BREASTS AND NEVER ADD INCHES.) Just measure across your nipples at the widest part of your breasts. Nothing at all needs to be done to this number except rounding it up if the measurement falls between two numbers. So if you measure 41 ½ just round it to 42. That is it. Nothing else. Step # 5 Do a little math. Now take the number from step 4 and subtract the number from step 3. This then gives you a cup size to go along with the band size that was determined earlier. The band size we had earlier was 34 and for the above example the bust measurement was a 42. So you have 42-34 = 8. So you have a band size of 34 and an 8 inch difference for the cup size so your bra size is a 34H. Each number represents a cup size as the chart below details. 1 = A 2 = B 3 = C 4 = D 5 = DD(E) 6 = F(DDD) 7 = G 8 = H 9 = I 10= J etc. etc. Now you have a size that will fit you so much better and support you so much better and make you look so much better than anything you have ever worn before. MATERNITY & NURSING BRA SIZING Determining which size to order in a nursing bra is trickier. Most women want to order bras before they deliver and before the milk actually comes in. This is the first mistake. THE BEST TIME TO MEASURE FOR A NURSING BRA IS ABOUT 2 WEEKS AFTER DELIVERY. That way your milk is in, your swelling is gone, and your size well established. In this case, you still use the above detailed method to measure. The size you determine will most likely fit very well throughout the duration of your breastfeeding. If you are measuring before you give birth you need to take into consideration the fact that most pregnant women gain between 1 and 4 cup sizes during and after pregnancy. It is a guessing game, in most cases, figuring out what to order before your milk actually comes in. Normally the cup size and the band size increases during the middle to late parts of pregnancy. In most cases, the band size will go back to the pre-pregnancy size after the baby is born because the baby is no longer pushing your organs up into your chest. The cup size, though, almost always increases after birth and even more so if you nurse. It is really determined by the individual change that happens when the milk comes in and that is why I normally suggest that if you can, size-wise, go with a Bravado bra or one of the sleep bras by Fancee Free until after the birth of the baby. They will be great sleep bras regardless of your final size and that way you are not investing a lot of money on bras that will most likely not fit in the end. Whatever you do, DO NOT buy a bra that fits perfectly while you are 9 months pregnant. It will not fit after the birth. If you have to buy a size specific bra before you deliver, just make sure that the band fits pretty tightly and the cup size is a little large. That way when the baby is out and your rib cage gets smaller again, the band will be comfortable and the cup will be large enough so that when the milk comes in, you will have a big enough cup to accommodate the change. And your breasts will get bigger. Count on it. The best thing to do here is to email or call us to help figure out the size that will most likely work the best for you. I really hope that all of this information has been helpful to you in some way and remember you can always email me or call me if you need help or have any questions. |
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