The Bra Metamorphosis is a series of posts that show photos of women before and after finding out their correct bra size. If you'd like to share your before and afters and inspire women to re-measure themselves, do contact me!
Today's metamorphosis is locally sourced, as JC lives in Germany. Her measurements are: underbust 27.5"/70cm; and bust 101cm/39.76" in standing up and 106cm/41.73" bending over. JC writes:
This reminds me very much of a friend who also got painfully expensive bras from a "specialist" shop because she though she was extremely busty. That lady turned out to be a 65F when I measured her.
"There is a store in my hometown that "specializes" on sizes up to a German I cup and stocked some 70 bands. I used to buy my bras there, thinking it was normal that I had to spend up to 80 Euros on a bra because my breasts were big. Only my straps were adjusted, nobody cared to check the fit of my band or cups or told me about scooping.
At the local Triumph store it was the same, at the local Hunkemoller store I purchased some 75Fs."
Her is JC in Triumph True Curves in 80E/36DD. Can you spot the problems? Answers below.
The breasts are spilling over at the top, and hanging lower than they should. Below you can admire the band which is riding up at the back. Also, you can see that JC has a small ribcage and waist, and there is no way she can be a 80 band.
Now, the next two images are interesting. The first one shows how many women mask the bad fit of the bra by adjusting the breasts so that they stay in the cup. Things look ok at first glance (even though a slight quadraboob is still visible), but in the long run breast tissue will migrate towards the armpits and back, and the breasts will lose their shape and firmness:
And below the bra has been put on correctly, using the scoop and swoop method. You can clearly see that the cups are too small. JC notes that "The straps are not fully adjustable and not short enough for me. If I could adjust the straps correctly, I probably would end up with a lot more boob spillage."
JC found her correct size via the busenfreundinnen forum as well as anglophone bra-fitting blogs. JC measures 27.5 inches underbust, so she makes do with snug 28 bands (often worn on the middle hook) until her custom-made Ewa Michalak bra arrives.
Here is JC in a correctly fitting bra, in this case Cleo Lucy in 28J:
Not only are the breasts more lifted and there is no quadraboob, but the back is much more smooth. You'd have thought that a snug band would create more bulges, but actually the opposite is true. Compare the smooth back here with the photos on the top of the post.
The breasts don't point downwards anymore, and this gives an optical "lift" to the entire torso. Her waist looks even smaller.
JC also shares about how correctly fitting bras changed her body as well as her self-image. What she wrote touched me a lot, because it once again proves that bra-fitting goes way deeper than finding pretty and flattering things to buy and wear.
"I remember that when I was a child I was told to stop making a hollow back. As soon as my boobs kicked in, I reverted to the opposite: I hunched over, putting my shoulders forward in the vain attempt to hide my boobs, a habit that I'm struggling to get rid of today.I suffered from shoulder pain.I hated running and tried to avoid it mostly, when I had to I tried to support my bouncing boobs somehow with my arms.I hated it when I noticed that boys would make fun of me and obscene gestures behind my back and I didn't dare speak up for myself.I hated how my little sister was my sister was able to wear cute, frilly, flowery, regular bras, while I was stuck with bras that I didn't necessarily find ugly but felt much too young for.
I didn't know whom to talk to about my issues.My surroundings aren't exactly populated with fuller-breasted women that are knowledgeable of bra fitting. Most of my female friends are smaller breasted.That is probably one of the biggest problems: I live in an information wasteland. No one taught me how a bra should fit. No one taught my mom, my friends, relatives, store assistants or random women I see in changing rooms.
Today, I have been in better-fitting bras for about half a year. I've experienced a little growth bump, probably from remigrated tissue.I have an idea of what fits me and I started sharing my knowledge.Finally, I succeeded in convincing my mother that she is not the 75B she always thought she was. My flatmate recently asked me if I could take a look at the fit of her bras. My boyfriend knows what quadraboob is.Still, it hurts and angers me, when my best friend claims she doesn't need a sports bra because her boobs are smaller than mine.When my sister said she would rather stay in her old band size because she knows how hard it is for me to find a bra.When my friends joke how I'm obsessed and "oh, here she goes again".How could I not be? How could I not care?!
Being in a fitted bra didn't only help my shoulder pain, it resolved so many of my personal issues. Finally, I'm at peace with my body.
But I feel so sorry for the sad, insecure girl that was me."
A huge thanks to JC for sharing her metamorphosis with us. If you'd like to share yours, I'd love to have you! The "contact" button is on the top of the page.
