I Feel Perky

(Title of this post is courtesy of my friend Jen)

I’ve known for a while that my bras don’t fit right.  I have bras that I’ve had since before I was pregnant with Jack.  For those of you counting, that’s four years.  A lot has happened in those four years.  I’ve had two babies, nursed said babies for a combined 14 months and lost 40 pounds (well 60 if you could my highest pregnancy weight).  For a little perspective, when I was nursing, I was a 38 H/I.  I think it would be an understatement to say that my boobs aren’t in the same condition as they were four years ago.

I’ve been wearing bras that are 38D basically since I stopped nursing Xander, so about a year now.  I think even then they were too big, but I dealt with it.  A few months ago, aerie was having a sale and I popped in after work one day.  Nothing fit right. D cups were too big, C cups too small.  I left the store frustrated and have been so ever since.  Until last week.

Last week, I decided that I was getting new bras.  Bras that fit, dammit.  I decided the best way to do that was a bra fitting with a professional.  I asked my trusty Twitter friends where to go and  received many suggestions.  My friend Becky’s suggestion was the most intriguing.  The Pussycat Unlimited in Squirrel Hill.  I was afraid to google it (come on, you know you would be afraid too!) but once I did, I was pleased to discover that it was basically on my way home and it is a well-established (think 40+ years) family business.  So I effortlessly convinced my husband that we should have pizza from Squirrel Hill for dinner, ran out the door at 4:00 and headed to my destination.

I walked in and was greeted by a young 20-something sales person.  I was momentarily disappointed because I didn’t want to be fitted by a young girl.  I wanted someone with experience.  I was quickly reassured when the owner peeked her head out and explained that the sales girl was in training and that she would be acting as the sales girl’s assistant.

I told the sales girl my plight.  My bras are too big.  I’m definitely wearing a band size that’s too big and the cup is too big too.  Essentially my bras were too loose and there was WAY too much room in the cups, particularly at the top of the cup.  I told the sales girl what size I was currently wearing and based on my description she grabbed a few bras and we headed to the fitting room.

I honestly expected to get measured at this point, but I was kind of surprised to find out that this store doesn’t generally measure its customers.  Why you ask?  Well apparently, measuring is fairly inaccurate if you aren’t wearing a well fitting bra.  GO FIGURE!

So, I tried on the first bra and let the sales girl in the fitting room to take a look.  She had given me a 36 C.  It was apparent that the band size was still too big, but the cups were too small as I was “spilling out”.  A 34D appeared in my fitting room.  Band size was perfect but the cups were too big.  AAARGH.  The sales girl switched bra styles at this point.  We tried a 34D and a 34C in a different style.  Neither was quite right.  But we were getting closer.

Each time a new bra showed up, I closed the curtain, put the new bra on and then let the sales girl in.  She helped adjust the straps and too a look at the fit.  Space at the top of the cups or puckering of the cups meant that the cups were too big.  Spilling out meant that the cups were too small.  I was instructed to bend over and raise my arms to check the fit.

The owner would peek her head in as well and check on the fit for each bra.  She assured me that it typically takes 5 or 6 tries to find the right fit. and not to get discouraged.  At one point she suggested going back to the original style.  Apparently that style has a “regular” cup and a “full” cup.  A 34C with a “full” cup appeared in my dressing room.  A few strap adjustments and DING!DING! DING! WE HAD A WINNER!

So based on the fit and style of that bra, they had a few more recommendations. I finally settled on the original style for everyday wear and a second style that is a bit more *ahem* shall we say, sexy.  I wanted two of the “everyday” bras, but they only had one in stock so they ordered the second one for me.

All in all, this was a great experience and really I recommend everyone get a bra fitting.  The ladies at The Pussycat Unlimited were great and answered a bunch of questions for  me.  So, how about some advice based on my visit and some other research that I’ve done?

*Seriously, if you have had any changes in your body, had a baby, lost weight, gained weight, etc you likely need new bras. Get thee to a store.

*You don’t need to go to a specialty store. A lot of department stores will do bra fittings. Just call ahead to make sure that there will be an experienced bra fitter available.

*Some bra fitters will stay in the fitting room with you.  Most turn around so as not too see you completely topless, but it’s perfectly fine to ask the fitter to step out as you change bras.

*If you aren’t really into a true bra fitting and want to find your own bras, try on four or five bras in different styles, cup sizes etc.  The bras that I had been wearing had a deep plunge. After my fitting, it’s apparent that a plunge style does not work for me.  Keep trying on different styles until you find one that works.

*Don’t forget to adjust the straps when you are trying on bras. It makes a HUGE difference.

*The cups shouldn’t pucker or pull and you shouldn’t spill out of the top or bottom of the cup.

*Move around in your bra. Bend over, raise your arms. Put your shirt back on to see how it looks under clothes.

*A bra that fits should not be uncomfortable!

A couple other comments.  I’m told that you should have three well fitting bras.  Frequent washing on a gentle cycle and laying your bras to dry will extend the life of a bra.  Also important to extending the life is to rotate your bras and try to not wear the same bra two days in a row.

Alright so there you go.  Thoughts? Comments? Have you done a bra fitting? What did you think?

(Sorry, no picture with this post. I can’t bring myself to add a picture of the boys on a post about bras and boobs and there is no way in hell that I was gonna make this a pictorial post)

(Oh, and I’m kinda interested to see what kind of spam and searches pop up for this post. The analytics on this post are sure to amuse me!)

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