Bras for my mom
I just saw Demeter made a similar post, and I figured I would ask this community for help too
My mom is uncomfortable with her body, so I have not actually fitted or measured her, neither has a fitter.
I found out she was wearing poor fitting UK 42E's. She has a very similar body to mine, though her hourglass figure is not quite as defined as on me, as she is older, has had kids (and C-section), and has been overweight for many years - because of this, she is also 'softer' than me, both bust and back (and I am already pretty soft, so this is a factor when looking for bras)
I got her into Change Lingerie, where after "fitting" her (I would ask her questions of the fit, tell her how to put it on + look at her with a shirt on), and she ended up with a UK 40G and 40FF.
I ordered Oriental Bloom in 40FF and Alana in 40G. She was very happy with these 4 bras I had now helped her get (which, I think is saying a lot - she wouldn't comment on such things as bras, unless it really really was good), and showed me the bras I had ordered - and omg, the band is so loose! I think she is probably a 36/38 (depending on band). The cups looked fine, though I suspect that if the bra is forced closer to her body (in a tighter band) it could quadro a bit.
She doesn't like padded bras and she likes traditional looking bras - not boring (actually, she thought the Alana was just a tad too boring for her), but 'young looking' things like a lot of the printed bras is not her thing. Big laces in color is more her. She doesn't want too much coverage, as she likes wide and/or deep necklines. Also, she cares about how the materials feel: Those I ordered for her were both polyamide elastane polyester mixes, and she was dissapointed that they felt so cheap.
I think the band is pretty crucial: It has to have the least possible back-fat-creating as possible, because she is already so conscious about such things. So very wide band, with very wide seams would be good.
I think Elomi would be a good place to start? But since she is with in the band size range of non-plus size brands, are there some of those that would also work, do you think?
5 comments
Change Lingerie has its quirks.
Quite a few Change Lingerie's styles run small in the cup so keep that in mind, in other brands you may need to go a size down. Usually the smaller CL size is the "average" fitting size with other brands.
As for the bands I feel that although Change Lingerie ones do stretch out to true size they are a bit resistant to stretching so the bands feel a bit tight, especially when they're new. They may start to feel looser and closer to true size a little bit of wear in (most of mine do, a few stay "tight").
So, yeah, I wouldn't be surprised if your mother actually needed a 38G cup most of the time and should probably even go for UK 38G/GG (so, J/K?) in Change (with an extender the first half a dozen/ten wears).
Well, she also has those two from Bravissimo, so I am not basing it 100% on change ;)
And yea, Change can be all over the map. Their sweimwear and other bras made of similar fabrics tend to be tight, I think. But the others, I would say loose. And I think their size chart can really throw people: They have a DD cup as it's own size, but no other double letters. So they are not standard EU, UK or US.
These are some of the reasosns I am looking outside change now :)
She won't wear an extender. When ordering those Bravissimo bras, I also tried to convince her to rather get a too small band than too big, because she could always wear an extender, she almost called off the whole order - she feels like it would be a cheat: As I said, she is body-uncomfortable, so size and bras are a very delicate subject.
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