Fashion Friday: Tips for Finding the Best Bra to Help Your Clothes Fit and Look Better!

WARNING:  
This post is about Bras… and everything that go in them.  If you have kids or eyes you don’t want seeing examples of a good and bad fit in a bra, you might want to read this post when you can distract your kids. There are NO inappropriate pictures….But I did want to give you a heads up since this blog is super family friendly!
(Just click the “Click here to see the rest” button to see the ENTIRE post below!)

It’s all in the bra, ladies!  Seriously!  Wearing the right one can shave off a good 10 pounds to your appearance and make your body look more proportionate. If all you had to do was buy a new bra to have more confidence, have your clothing fit better and look skinnier, wouldn’t you?

Since I have been in a bra prediciment of my own lately, (more personal than I want to get, lol), I decided to hit up my friend Courtney from Fry Sauce and Grits who is THE Bra Expert.  She can tell you everything you want to know about fitting, breast shapes, which bras to buy and which to pass on… and tips and tricks to find the right size.  (Don’t let the name of her blog fool you, it is the most awesome site for all things related to “the girls”.)

Courtney and I headed to Nordstrom to do some serious bra fitting and I literally tried on about 50 bras.  But we finally found the exact size and shape I should be wearing… and guess what?  I was off size-wise by TWO cups sizes!  My “gore” was completely wrong.  Don’t know what that is?  Read on!  I learned a lot– that is probably an understatement to be honest. So I will let Courtney take over from here………..

One of the ways I like to live a more beautiful life is to educate women on how to take care of their boobs and the importance of wearing the correct fitting bra. I got my experience with bras when I worked at Nordstrom many years ago in the lingerie department where I would help women find their perfect fitting bra. I saw dramatic changes in women both physically and emotionally when I was able to help them find a bra that fit. I felt like I was changing women’s lives one bra fit at a time. Sounds so cheesy, but it’s true!

Bras are really important because you wear your bra EVERYDAY. They are the foundation to looking good in your clothes.Wearing the correct fitting bra will make you look thinner, your clothes will fit better, you’ll feel a lot more comfortable, and you’ll feel like a new woman, I guarantee it.

A couple weeks ago Melea contacted me because she was in need of a bra fitting. I was so thrilled to help her so I met her at Nordstrom where I fitted her. We had a blast. Like 80% of the women in the world, Melea was also wearing the wrong bra size. While I was fitting her she asked me what she needs to look for when trying on bras. I gave her my tips and today I’m going to share those same tips with you, the five areas of the bra (or steps) you need to check to make sure that bra you’re trying on fits, let’s get started!

1. Top Cup. Do you feel like you’re coming out of the top of the bra? Do you see a lot of cleavage? Do you have the double boob? The double boob is when the top of the cup cuts into the top of the breast and makes it look like you have two boobs stacked on top of each other. If find your bra fitting this way, your cup size is too small and you need to go a cup size or two. Below is a great example of that dreaded double boob and what a bra looks like that is too small in the cup size.

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Below is a perfect example of what a the cups should look like in a correct fitting bra. This is what your bra should look like

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2. Sides. The next area you need to check is the sides. Most women forget to check this part and it’s important to get it right because if the sides don’t fit correctly then you’ll find them digging into your breast tissue and this makes it really uncomfortable. When you check the sides, look at yourself in the mirror and see if the underwire is covering the sides of your breasts. If it’s not, then you’ll need to go up a cup size.

My rule of thumb, is you want to have at LEAST 1/4? of space between your breasts and the underwire or bra on the sides. You don’t want the underwire right up against your breast because that can cause chaffing and that’s not fun. So having it a 1/4″ away from the breast tissue will ensure that digging and chaffing will not occur. Below you can see the top pictures is showing the underwire is digging into the breast. The picture below that, the underwire is completely covering the breast and we did this by going up a cup size.

Here is another great example of the 1/4″ space between the underwire. My finger is pointing to where the breast tissue is.

3. Bottom Cup. Lift your arms up and touch the bottom of the cup, do you feel your breast hanging out? If you are, that means the cup size is too small and you need to go up a cup size. To make sure the cup is cuping your breasts, try to get at least a 1/4? inch of space from your breast and the bottom of the bra. This picture is a great example of how the bottom of the cup is not cuping the bottom of this gals breast, so there’s a gap between the bra and the breast.

4. Band. Do you feel like your band is riding up your back? Or are you constantly pulling and tugging your bra down? This means your band size is too small. Your band is where 90% of your support comes from so you want to make sure it’s really snug. When it fits snugly around, it’s going to lay a lot lower in the back which is what you want. What I mean by lower is you want it to lay below the middle section of your back. The band should be snug on the loosest set of hooks when you first try it on.

One trick to making sure your band is snug enough is do a couple of jumping jacks, somersaults, and move around and see if and move around a lot and see afterwards if you feel like you have to adjust it or if you feel like your bra is riding up in the back. If it is, then you need to go down a band size.

5. Middle. The middle part or some like to call it the “gore” is the part where the underwire in the front separates your breasts. You want to make sure the middle part of the bra is completely lying against your skin and it’s not lying on top of your breasts. If you find this is happening to you this means your cup size is too small and you need to go up a cup size. The top pictures shows what it shouldn’t look like and the bottom is what it should look like.

To get a more indepth version of this post, go here. I hope this helps you! If you have any bra questions or concerns, feel free to leave a comment below! I’ll make sure to respond to all of them! If you need help finding the perfect fitting bra, I offer in person and online bra consultations to learn how they work, go here. If you’re interested email me at cfrysauceandgrits@gmail.com.

Also, check out some of my other bra posts that will educate and inspire you to wear the correct fitting bra!

Bra Sizing Guide

How to Identify your Breast Shape to Find the Perfect Fitting Bra

3 Steps to Finding the Perfect Fitting Sports Bra

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Now, are you ready to go try on some bras?  Ready to find a good deal on them?  The Nordstrom Sale started today.  You will find a lot of bras marked 50% off. It’s the best time of the year to purchase bras…. see my brilliant timing with this post?? ;)  You will also want to check Amazon.  They carry all of the same bras as everyone but their prices might be a lot cheaper.

**If you want to see past Fashion Friday posts, you can head here.  ENJOY! 🙂