• If you were my daughter & we were shopping , I'd say try the 28DD since your underbust measurements are all so close to 28 . So confusing when brands are all different.
  I hope you update how you go

• I'd try 28DD and 30D, since the gore doesn't tack in 30C. You may have to try a few different brands and styles to find what works for you.

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14 comments

• I'm short as well, as are some others here. I find the molded cups are often too tall. Have you tried 3 or 4-part cups?

• I think overall height has little to do with how bras fit. I'm ever so slightly above average at 5'5" (165 cm) with a long torso. I have trouble with wires under my arms and I also have a relatively short root, so I tend to get gaping near the arm too. I wish I had some good suggestions, but maybe try halfcup styles that won't come up too high.

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3 comments

• I've never tried Sculptresse , but they're the other big name aiming at the same niche. alisa has tried both, are they similar at all?

• Hm...I have only tried 1 bra of each brand but I can add some info... so far I prefer my 36J - Sculptresse » Bellise Balconnet Bra (6891) to the 34JJ - Elomi » Caitlyn Underwire Side Support (8030) .
  The Bellise has the typical stable and sturdy Panache wires, while Caitlyns wires are rather weak and do easily distort :/ Both bras are imo constructed with more bottom heavy / side heavy boobs in mind, since both do not offer lots of space on top and towards the center gore.
  Since I am very full in upper inner (full on top) I size up in cups and take in the center gore to make these bras work for me. So Sculptresse may work very well on your shape without altering. Materials are of high quality and feel very comfortable.
  Oh and the band on Bellise runs tight! The 36J band feels more like a small 34 band! (note: I can wear 36 band in Sculptresse, when I wear usually 32 bands in other brands)

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4 comments

• DIY I think. That's how I got the best fit. Reading info here and other sites, then trying on bras and saying, oh wow...this is not like the other experience.

  DIY and luck. I got lucky. Read about what was likely my proper size, and ended up in a town in England that had a large department store with good variety. No help whatsoever from the staff (probably just as well) and came up with the right fit in the right bra.

• Well, I've figured at least that I need a band that's smaller than a 34 -- right now a 32 in one brand, but I think I could even do with a 30 in some of my bras. Cup size ... well, still not there yet. I know that I need to look at something around an F or FF, or maybe even a G, at least... trouble is, I don't live in an area with a good selection for bras, so I have to order online.

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6 comments

• Well, better is always more comfortable and supportive. We put up with flaws only for the ones looking or shaping beutifuly :)
  But the channel thing is interesting, I had a couple of bras that had extra space in the wire channel and found them to be way more comfortable.

• Vee , that's so interesting that you find it more comfortable! I absolutely hate it, and frequently wonder why they do it. I think virtually all my bras have significant extra space in the channel. it tends to make wires dig in more at the side on me, and I'm constantly pushing them down to the side when I put bras on because I always want lower gores and higher sides. but then then cup at the front gets fussy, and they never stay pushed over anyway.

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Harmony, what the heck?

My 30KK - Panache » Harmony Underwired Balconnet (4031) arrived in the post today. I didn't actually expect it to fit. Any bra which makes alisa look like I look in most bras isn't going to end well, but I thought I should share some pictures owing to the sheer ... hilarity of it.

As far as I can tell, Alisa has a medium wide root, not too high on chest, close set breasts, with wider shoulders and medium - high projection.

I have a short root, very high on chest, very narrow root, incredible amounts of projection, I'm smaller in frame than she is and have sloping shoulders. I also have a ribcage which only measures in at 64.5cm 'break the tape', and about 75cm loose and inhaled so I shouldn't really be wearing 30 bands, but owing to the distinct lack of 26Lish bras, I make do.

Whilst the bra wires wrapped around to my back, somehow the bra was still slightly too top centre shallow for me, and I didn't feel very contained at all. The bit where the apex of the bra should be was actually off the front part of my torso. Did someone say east-west? The curve of the underwire is too shallow as well, so it doesn't fit the curves of my breasts at all. I ate the last banana this morning, so no fruit to go in the cups, but I did add some local flavour by shoving in small jars of vegemite. I also took a picture emulating what the bra would look like if my frame was more in line with the shape of the bra (wider shoulders & effectively lower-set breasts). It's still quite laughable, even if I magically had linebacker shoulders.

I just don't see how this bra could logically work for anyone who actually is a 30KK. The wires take up nearly 2/3 of the at rest length of the bra, and the base is so insanely shallow. Do people even stop to think when they scale bras? It is sturdy. Definitely sturdy. No complaints there. I think that the wire channels would be torturous though if I wore it for any length of time.

I wonder if anyone else around this size is up for the Harmony Challenge? I'd love to see it actually fit someone, or if not, we can just pass it around the world and it can be more travelled than me. Thinking of cellosubmarine brasandbodyimage . If you're up for trying a bra which probably won't fit you for bra science, I'd be happy to pass it on to you.
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Harmony 30KK - Imgur

http://imgur.com/a/sbHlL

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Shared on Jul 16, 2013 Flag this

28 comments

• Hahahaha I love it!

  What I think: 2-3 extenders and pass it on to someone like Elphabra or something. That's more likely to fit her than anyone 30KK :D

• Holy fuck xD That's the worst bra fit I have ever seen! Bring the Shaq Attack and give him some implants! Hahaha! Dang... That would take some wiiiide-shouldered woman for it to fit properly!

  Seriously though, is it possible that the Harmony runs extremely big in the cup? Considering it's too big for you both width-wise and depth-wise. Correct me if I'm wrong but it looks like the depth is off for you too.

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10 comments

• Wow! I wish that bra would fit me in the same way but I doubt it would. I completely agree it looks natural. Regency cleavage definitely!

• Awesome, isn't it! :D

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6 comments

• Congrats on finding a bra that fits! Andorra is awesome <3 I used to love it so much when I fitted into the size range.

• @drownedsalad: Yay!!! I am about to get one more of my own I think because I have lost the 32H Andorra somewhere.

  Which color did you get?

  Could you measure that bra cup depth stretched over knee for me I'd be happy :)

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6 comments

• Have you tried bras that don't have wires are aren't as wide? Like Fantasie or something?

• Where does the wire sit? Right in the fold beneath your breasts or a little lower? If a little lower, and you are full on bottom, the problem might actually be that you need a deeper cup. I have that problem with some bras.

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• It probably won't fit. The Deco runs large and Showgirl runs small. I'd look into 36FF or 34G since the Smoothie also runs large in the cup and firmer in the band than most showgirl bras (though they seem to be rectifying this slowly, so the 36FF might be the better suggestion).

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3 comments

• Cleo Juna might be an option, it has a very similar contruction. It runs larger in the band and smaller in the up than the Delphi though, so you'll probably want a 28GG in the Juna.

• I never care about it if my bra seams or details shows through thin clothes, so I never have this problem! Every bra is a t-shirt bra :) Am I the only one..?

  But yeah, if you want "real" t-shirt bras, I guess Juna is quite good (I´m wearing one right now - seams and upper lace show through just a little bit, but not much).

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7 comments

• i think that Cleo Meg might work - i have a 30GG and the wire is only 14.5cm wide, about 5.7inches? It is my best fitting non-comexim bra! The cleo Alexa is also around the same size. Might be worth trying?

• Thanks! I've seen that on sale recently too.

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21 comments

• Based off of your measurements alone, I'd try out 28F bras. If you have shallow bras, I'd stay far far away from the Deco. It won't do you any favors. The half cup might work, but the band runs large. If anything, you'll want a bra that runs small in the band.

  For cleavage-y purposes, I'd look into Masquerade, as their bands runs really tight, tend to work better on shallow breasts, are made out of better quality material, and do give cleavage. You might even end up preferring 30 bands in Masquerade because they run so tight and because people with smaller ribcages often find that sizing based on their underbust measurement is uncomfortable due to less fat on their ribcage.

• I´m sorry, but is there a typing error in the post, or is it really 23,5 inches underbust measurement? That is smaller than 24!

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• They always only made 24-28 bands custom. 30 and up is non custom.

  If you think you might want to try to return to Poland, try a 30 band for purposes of figuring out your cup size, then exchange for a custom size.

• When they had their little Strapgate temper tantrum they removed the 28 and smaller band sizes from all the custom order description pages. The custom bands are back, but they haven't yet gotten around to adding the size range descriptions back. Just email them the size you want. S Szykus is available for custom orders.

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Masquerade Orla!

Holy crap! I'm in love. Seriously, vertical seams in an unpadded bra is exactly what I've been missing out on. EM, please please please, make more HMs! Masquerade, make this in a more interesting colorway!

This has to be the most comfortable bra I've tried right off the bat (I'll edit at the end of the day ... in case that changes).

It's almost upsetting that more people didn't ever give this a shot.

Some things to note:

This runs extremely small. This fits like my Panache Confetti in 30GG, but with the band of my Masquerade Rhea in 28H, even though it's 30H.

This is a shallow bra, so take note my shallow boobied friends.

EDIT: The band is tight, but I think it will stretch out to a comfortable length. Which is to be expected since I'm breaking in the bra.
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Pictures for Orla Non Padded Balconnet Bra (7031) | Brata...

http://www.bratabase.com/browse/masquerade/orla-non-padded-balconnet-bra-7031...

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Shared on Jul 12, 2013 Flag this

Jillsas

2719 reputation

63 bras

10 comments

• Wow, really pretty!

• I know. It almost made the asinine sizing on the simplybe website worth it to me.

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13 comments

• Interesting...HH and K aren't technically equivalent sizes, but they both fit? (I'm not doubting you, I hope this means that Comexim plunges are like Ewa's, where as long as you're within a couple of cups they still work, because then I can order a K and hopefully have it not be too much bra for my short boobs :-)

• psyc2321 Comexim uses completely different sizing. European I think.

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Another way to explain breast shape

I've started to use the medical descriptions.

Upper inner, upper outer
Lower inner, Lower outer
Tail of spence/axillary tail

It's very easy to understand that boobs full in the upper inner will quad quad quad (but possibly gape in the upper outer) and boobs fuller in the upper outer will gape gape gape. (But instead sideboob).

Full in the lower inner will project ... project project and full on the lower outer will be fat fat fat wide root.

And from here the idea about how a bra "was made" or "should fit" leaves this sad notion:

Bras made for full upper inner: Cleo, open top bras.
Bras made for full upper outer: fullcups.

As far as I can see this is how basic bra fitting works.

A lot of times I've said that full on bottom boobs projects more. That's true, if they are full in the lower inner. If full in the lower outer they don't have that much projection. Full in the lower outer will need side support panels and just as much cup depth as those full in the lower inner, but distributed way differently. Full in the lower inner will say they need "immediate cup depth". Just compare Panache Andorra Full Cup (5675) to Panache Jasmine (6951) and you'll see what I mean.

Full in the upper outer will consequently be the most shallow boobs often tapering up to collarbones. But a lot of people will say "your boobs are not full on top". Because when people judge breast shape for some reason they often exlusively look at the inner quadrants.

I want the full picture.


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• I have a very full upper inner quadrant, and full upper outer, lower inner, and lower outer quadrants over a relatively small area. My tail of Spence goes up very high, much, much higher than my armpit almost to my shoulder. I think that tall/short tails affect fitting and aren't things which we talk about much.

  Something which interested me though and I was almost tempted to make my own adventure but I thought was relevant here is I was in the bath the other day, and I noticed that my upper inner boob quadrant was the last to submerge if I lay flat on my back in the bath & slowly lowered myself down. I wonder if this would happen to everyone, or if it's related to boob fullness? Does anyone else even like to take baths? I do think upper inner is the fullest part of my boobs (just), but I don't know whether that's why it was the last bit above the water or if that was totally unrelated.

• Hmm, how are Cleos supposed to be made for full upper inner..? Most (or at least a fair deal) of Cleo's bras seem to be balconettes that come quite high up and curve back, which at least for my full upper inner breasts means a definite quadboob.

  But a very interesting picture and analysis! Again something I hadn't even thought about.

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24 comments

• I had a (somewhat) successful bra intervention with one of my friends based on dressmakers measurements. She's a bigger girl, and was wearing a 16E (that's effectively Australia's 36DD by the way). She's one of my sister's bridesmaids and we're getting dresses made as part of the bridal party (because nothing else would fit me haha). Anyway, my sister and I decided enough was enough, and armed with her dressmakers measurements, we went and picked up some bras in 14G(36G) based on her 37" underbust and 45" bust, which are not terrible when she tried them on. As she's a bit heavy for her frame, her boobs aren't the most firm, so the standing measurement actually wasn't too inaccurate. I'd probably put her in a 34H based on how she fits those bras, but I know a lot of people freak out about tight bands and she doesn't have disastrous quadboob any more. My mum was happy, but then had to redraft her bodice. :P

  So, I'd suggest working from a measurement in a bra, as it's going to be the most like how your friend's boobs will behave in a bra, even though it's not super duper accurate with a bad bra. Moulded/padded will probably be the most comfortable for her if she's used to moulded, and does kind of give you some shaping under a shirt, even though 'cut and sew' is probably better for actual boob shaping. It's like my EM bras vs Cleo Meg. I can have basketball shaped round things under my shirt, or I can have my boobs in an uplifted, more natural shape which is a little pointy. EM doesn't really do anything much in the support department, but it looks pretty great (and the straps on my Toffik kill me but I'm not allowed to alter that bra until after my sister's wedding in August), but Meg is supportive, if slightly pointy.

  If humanly possible, grab a few cheapish bras around her size and try them out? It really depends on how keen she is to keep trying things out. Unless you can take her to a good shop which has a lot of things in her size range and keep trying them on, there's a lot of guessing involved in getting it right with anyone's boobs. Once you've got a better baseline, it's going to be much easier to figure out how to tweak it from there. While I'd get future bras for my friend around a 34H (like I said), going from 'I have no idea except she's smaller than me and bigger than my sister' to a vaguely correct size was the trickiest bit.

• Ereshiy , Do you mean 16E is a 38E? or am I missing something? 38 is a 16 and as we do UK sizing up to F cups(in some brands), E is E? sorry to jump in, wasn't sure if you meant different or had a reason for saying it was equivalent to a 36DD.

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4 comments

• *hugs* you are not the only one that has been fitted into wrong sizes by professional fitters.
  I once got a 32GG Deco claimed a perfect fit at a store (despite quadboob galore) :/ Anyway...
  These bra size calculators are quite accurate:

  http://www.sophisticatedpair.com/bracalculator.htm
  with your mesurements it suggests: 32H or 34GG

  http://www.butterflycollection.ca/bra-size-calculator/
  This one suggests 30J, 32HH, 34H

  Too small cups can also make a band apperar smaller than it is. That’s why you maybe found the 34 band snug. With your measurements a 32 band should be a good starting size in most brands.
  If you add a fit request with your 34G bra we can give further advice.
  

• Thank you!! I can't believe how many ill fitting bras I have. I could open a store! I know all about quadboob!

  By "snug" I mean 34 feels right. :-) But maybe I should try 32!

  I did the Linda bra lady calculator and it came up with 34J/34JJ??

  Of course there are no decent stores where I live that sell large bra cup sizes, so I've been ordering....and returning to/from Bare Necessities.

  I will see what I can do about putting in a fit request!

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3 comments

• The Liliana Bra (TU100) works for me. The caveat is that the wires are very soft so it is very easy to pull the cups too flat. I ordered it in a 28G, so a cupsize up from my usual 28FF and when I first tried it on it hated how it looked. My boobs were squished flat and I had no projection. Laying it out against my other bras, I realized that the band portion of the bra is really short. Most of the length is in the cups. So I tried it on again using an extender after unstretching the wires. Much better! It is still more of a "natural" look on me - not as projected as say the 28FF - Bravissimo » Paradiso Plume Bra (LN141) but certainly not flat. I can fasten the bra in the 28 without the extender but because of the proportion of band to cup, I think a 30FF would have been better.
  

• morgahn I noticed that about the Lilliana, the actual band section of the bra was tiny! But once it was on it was too big :( so sizing up to a 34 would have been a no go for me. I'm actually really jealous that it works for you because it is so beautiful!

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