Maybe you have already heard of the mysterious "scooping" or "jiggling" - we'll explain what it means and why you should think about how you put your bra on! Maybe you learned how to put on a bra the way I did, which is not at all, and therefore "just" put it on, maybe you still do that today. But there's a better way to do it. :) And it can have dramatic results!

Put on your bra

Put on your bra in some way, close it on your stomach and turn it around, or hang it over your shoulders and close it in the back, or throw it in the air and jump under it so it lands on you. Close the snap.

Scooping, grabbing, jiggling

Now try and work all of your breast tissue into the bra. Do this by grabbing it and putting it into the bra or scooping it into the bra. Another method is to jiggle all of your tissue into the bra. Especially if you're new to this method, a lot of breast tissue may be hidden in places where you wouldn't expect it. A lot of "armpit fat" turns out to be breast tissue and some have experienced that their breast tissue reaches all the way to your back. Just try and put it all into your bra. Check out the posts lingerie bloggers have already posted about this to learn more about the methods you could use:

Scoop:

And jiggle:

To see the dramatic difference scooping, swooping and jiggling can make, look here:

On Bras and Body Image: Putting your bra on properly

The straps

Now check the straps. This is not a step you have to repeat every day, but at least the first time you're trying a bra on: Check if the straps are comfortable, if they're cutting into your shoulders or whether they are, as they should, supporting around 10% of your breast weight and not cutting in. Adjust if necessary - if you adjusted, repeat the scooping, grabbing and jiggling.

Done! :-)

Now that you have your bra on, you will want to check if the fit is correct.

Things you may experience

If you have never used this method and may be wearing a bra that has a too large band for you the cup may look as if it is overfull for a short time and then return to its normal looking state. This is because the band isn't tight enough to support your breasts and hold them in the cups. You should try out a smaller band (and most probably larger cups, too!).
For a lot of women a bra in their correct size may look empty before they've put all of their breast tissue into the bra. That's normal.
After having used this method for a while, you may be experiencing what is called "migration". Breast tissue which has been sitting at your armpits or beneath your band wanders back into the cup, it is migrating. This may mean that you could need a bigger bra size after a while, but it doesn't have to. We're all different. :)

Resources and further reading

On Sophisticated Pair's Youtube: How to Put on Your Bra (video)
On Youtube: How to put on a bra correctly (video, with age restriction)