Are the modern bras being vanity sized? So if I were to be FF, I would be feeling pretty mighty about myself So basically no one takes AA or even A anymore? Is this another ploy to make women feel better about themselves?

This has turned my curious mind turning...lol

I've found that different brands make different sizes... And being top heavy was really embarassing until I discovered a store that caters to D cups and up While they don't have the store where I live now, I order online

I would suggest you try on a few bra's and see which ones fit best. Having said that, some bra styles just don't work on certain boobs.

I've found that most cheapr brands didn't even cater to my previous size (38E, UK sizing) and by boobs we always busting out. I've found that VS bra's were more sexy than practical and didn't really cater to the large, heavy breasted woman
I only realized a few years ago that it was actually possible to find a bra that has the wires sitting directly on the skin, under the boob! For several years I just thought the bra was supposed to sit "on the boob"
That and I'd get really bad shoulder pain from the straps. These days the band holds most of the load

From what I read it's more that bra makers were being cheap and just wanted to get most women to wear a few sizes - cheaper for them to make 32-38 A-DD than to make 24A-40G, etc. And since you can "make yourself" fit into sizes that aren't quite right, they just convinced us all that it was OK. Women are finally smartening up and it's still so misunderstood.

And I agree - one bra and one brand is just a start. Not all body types and boob types look the same/feel the best in the same bra. Some people have more boobs to the side (fuller) and others are longer and skinnier.

Found this somewhat tongue in cheek photo, but it does show how we are all different. I'm most like a mailbag or hot water bottles and they have ALWAYS been that way. HATE THAT the point down, but what can I do? That's how they grew.... DH loves them, so that's my hangup.

Okee ladies... I am on a mission I went to Vicky's and had myself sized. Perfect 36D....

I asked the associate if I possibly could be a 32 and she said no way...I asked her to bring me 32 band just to try on; and I nearly died how tight it was. There is no way I would wear a torture devise like that each and every day! BUT I am an open minded person, so I will keep looking for answer and if I am incorrect, I have no problem yielding I will do Nordstrom and MaidenForm later on this week, and perhaps JC Penny. I will report back.

To those who measure under bust; do you get marks? A bra is not supposed to leave an indentation.

But you were trying a 32D. You can't do that. That would be like trying a 36A. Catch my drift?

I was just trying the band not cup.

I put myself through college selling bras for Vicky's; so I know all about how the the band and cup size work....whole reason why I started this one...I am so tired of seeing the back fat that spills, when 80% of women wear wrong size bras, usually too small

But...If things have changed and they measure different now-a-days, I want to know

Ok, at Vicky's they measure wrong. Period. Do not go there to get sized. You might be lucky once and get someone who knows what they're doing but at VS they are in the business of selling bras. Your current measurements indicate that you do NOT fit into their size range. So what are they going to do? they're going to tell you that you're a different size so that you can buy something there.

Most of the time women are wearing bands that are too large. These bands ride up in the back (look around and you'll see women who's bands are riding up. I see it all the time--especially on slim women!) and do not support the breasts. Breast tissue migrates and can migrate to one's back! Most of the time armpit fat and back fat are lost breast tissue which can be fixed if you wear the correct bra.

Measure under your bust, TIGHTLY. That is your band size. Don't measure on top of your breasts, don't add inches. Your band size is your underbust measurement. The end.

Check out runningfromfat's blog: http://braslessinbrasil.blogspot.com/ because she has a wealth of information on the correct way to measure bras and places you can buy them.

Did you see my post...if I were to go by under breast size; I would CHOKE to death.

Vicky's is a big corporation and they want to sell bras, fitting bras; returning customers.

I DO NOT FIT INTO 32!!!!!

Can your bra be seen under your clothes?

I will hit other lingerie stores and see how they measure...you maybe one of those 80% who wear a wrong size bra

okay...take pictures and let me see how your bras fit (from behind)

I think that this post has been approached wrong. Even if you think that it's "outdated" we all know that things have changed, while some stay the same. So it may be that this works for particular companies.

I just don't understand the "I'm right, and you're wrong" attitude that I find on this forum.

Ok, let me try this again.

Sum, you said that you would then measure at a 32H (using Linda's guide I linked earlier). So, trying a 32D is equivalent to trying a 36A.

It's not just your band size that would be different. It's the difference between your bust size (fullest part) and underbust. ALL of it has to be taken into account.

Now, if you said that your underbust was 32 and across your bust was 36, that would make you a 32D. But if your underbust is a 32 and across the bust is 40 (going from the last update from the bathing suit challenge), that would make you a 32H. Trying to shove a H cup into a D cup is "maybe" possible, but to do that you have to have a larger band size to accomodate all the breast tissue that is being pushed outside the cup. If you were to wear a 32 band, the cup would be bigger and would hold the breast tissue.

You simple cannot just drop the band size and not do anything with the cup size when you are looking at a 8" difference between overbust and underbust measurement. Of course you will feel like you are choking to death as all that tissue is now being compressed - as if you were wearing a 36A.

I'm in a 42 band and I measure 42.5. I feel fine and I don't have any indents. In my case I would not be adding any inches to my band. But I did notice in the nordstrom chart that on the upper end of things (40 +) we do tend to just be more or less what we measure within an inch.

But on the smaller end there was a wider than an inch range going in the band vs what you measure. 2 inches, 3 inches and the worst was the 38 band that's supposed to cover people measuring 35- 39 inches. That's a 4 inch spread! So in smaller sizes there does seem to be some adding going on?

Maybe it is a regular vs plus size bra thing we're really talking about here and why we are all confused?

http://shop.nordstrom.com/c/womens-bras-fit

This is why I don't frequent lingerie shops that measure you in order to fit a bra. Tape measures are the devil of bra fitting. Throw away your tape measures, people!

I do, however, think it would be an interesting post to see 3FCers bras. I love bras. I continuously make people uncomfortable, most notably my sister, because I keep showing them my bras. And, I will make you all uncomfortable by posting me in my bra (later, I don't have pictures right now). So, come on, 3FC, show me your bras!!!