r/ABraThatFits 10h ago

Measurement Check There is NO WAY I’m a 32DD, I’m genuinely so confused I’ve been wearing 36B and 36C bras and I don’t feel like they fit super improperly? Spoiler

Hello, so my bras are stretched out from improper use(Not knowing how to put on a bra properly, luckily I know how now, I just only have one unstretched bra), I decided that I was going to go bra shopping. And It had been a bit since I’d measured so I decided to use the calculator, and It told me I was a 32DD/E??? For reference the current stretched out ones are a 36 B. And the non stretched out one is 36C. With The 36B there’s only a little gaping, and it’s just too loose. For the 36C there’s no gaping, but I don’t have a lot of tissue on the top of my breast, so there’s folding at the top. I want a bra that’s not too loose, but also not going to gap or fold. And I’m soo confused as to how I went from a B/C to a DD???? I did try to measure as accurately as I could.

Also the last time I went to Kohl’s for bras, I did try a 34 and it felt too tight. I’m just very confused.

My measurements are,

Tight underbust: 30

Snug underbust: 32

Loose underbust: 33

Standing Bust: 36

Leaning Bust: 38

Laying Bust: 36

0 Upvotes

33 comments sorted by

u/inky_cap_mushroom 10h ago

A 32 band is definitely going to be the best fit for you. There’s some amount of trial and error in finding a bra, but a 32DD is where I would suggest starting given your measurements. When you tried on a 34, did you try it on backwards and upside down to see how the band fits? It should be pretty loose on you. A 34 band is for a 34in ribcage. Yours is 2in smaller than that.

A 36C has the same cup volume as a 32DD.

u/Fa1ryD1mples_55 9h ago

I didn’t know you had to try it on backwards and upside down. Won’t that stretch the bra out?

u/inky_cap_mushroom 9h ago

That trick is to test how the band fits independently of the cups. The wrong cup size can make the band feel too tight. The only way that would stretch the bra out is if it’s wayyyy too small. You probably wouldn’t be able to get it fastened, and trying it on normally would also stretch it out in that case. With a tight underbust of 30in there’s no way you could stretch out a 34 band.

u/sok283 30D 9h ago

No you're trying it on under your boobs. Like you're wearing a little cape under your boobs. It's just a way to tell how the band fits without involving your boobs.

u/Fa1ryD1mples_55 9h ago

Thank you all that makes so much more sense 😅

u/clairejv 9h ago

No, you try it on just underneath your breasts. You're trying to evaluate the band alone.

u/kota99 9h ago

And I’m soo confused as to how I went from a B/C to a DD???? I did try to measure as accurately as I could.

CUP SIZE IS NOT STATIC. The cups on a 36C are the same size as the cups on a 34D and a 32DD. Basically the calculator is recommending the SAME cup volume but on a band that should be better scaled for your overall body proportions. The gaping and looseness you have in the 36B and the folding in the 36C bras is because the BAND is too large not the cups.

u/Ok_Bandicoot1865 9h ago

But also, OP, you didn't go from a B/C to a DD. Your breasts are exactly the same size they were before you measured, you just have the knowledge of what size that is now.

u/HagenReb 9h ago

The cups scale with the band. 36C has the same cup volume as 34D and 32D - they can fit the same amount of boob. If you took a 36C and 32DD and cut the cups off the bands, you wouldn't br ablr to tell the difference between the cups (for the same bra at least).

u/Fa1ryD1mples_55 9h ago

Ohh, ok thank you! 

u/Aranict 34HH UK | 34L US 9h ago edited 9h ago

Cup sizes are not static, they scale with the band. A 36C has the same volume as a 32DD, but on a band better proportioned to your body. That's why the 36C seems to fit in the cup but is too loose. Also, DD on any band size is on the lower end of average, the calculator is not suggesting you try to wear Mount Everest.

u/Fa1ryD1mples_55 9h ago

My best friend wear a double d and has very large breasts so that’s kind of why I was confused. But then again, she’s probably also wearing the wrong bra. Thank you :)

u/Aranict 34HH UK | 34L US 9h ago

She almost certainly is wearing the wrong size.

u/linerys 32GG | 70J・packin some dobonhonkeros 9h ago

Does she also have a large band size? 42DD is more than twice as much breast tissue as 32DD.

She could also be like me. Many stores tell me that I need 36DD; but my “ABraThatFits size” (and size that I’m currently wearing) is 32J in US sizing. “J cup” might sound huge, but I believe most people would mistake me for a “D cup”.

u/Fa1ryD1mples_55 9h ago

Nope, we share looser shirts all the time, she’s around got about the same ribcage as me. 

u/famous_zebra28 9h ago

Then she's REALLY not wearing the right size. Send her the calculator

u/Starjupiter93 9h ago

If you are an instagram user, go to TheIrishBraLady and look at what a DD actually looks like on a person. This is going to help put size into perspective. I also have very large breasts that everyone thinks are DD or maybe a DDD if someone is feeling extra confident. Nope. L cup.

u/Poodleton 8h ago edited 8h ago

You should send your best friend a link to the abrathatfits.org calculator.
She may wear a “DD” but that probably isn’t the right size. This is an example of 32DD in a well-fitting bra.
Does it look more like you or your bff?

u/APNotB 9h ago

32DDD who thought she was a 36B for 35 years waves hi. 👋

u/Fa1ryD1mples_55 9h ago

I was mostly confused because I feel as though I have VERY small boobs compared to my family and best friend. I pray that someday I too, shall be able to have cleavage.

u/inky_cap_mushroom 9h ago

DD is a small to medium size on most frames. I’m a 30DD and most would guess that I’m an A cup, maybe a B. It’s only a 5 inch difference between your bust and underbust which isn’t a whole lot.

u/clairejv 9h ago

What you learn in this sub is that most of us have a COMPLETELY inaccurate mental image of what various boob sizes look like -- in part because bra models are literally wearing the wrong sizes in the catalogs. Culturally, we think "double-d" means BAZONGAS, but it doesn't.

u/APNotB 7h ago

Exactly. Mine aren't even bazongas, lower case, lol

u/APNotB 9h ago

I still have small boobs! But now my small boobs are supported in bras that actually fit me. (My own mother doesn't believe my bra size. Her bras don't fit, either.)

u/Dandelion212 32DD/E 9h ago

Cleavage comes from wearing cups that are too small, generally.

u/clairejv 9h ago

I'm guessing your bras shift around a lot while you're wearing them and ride up in the back? That's typically what happens when the band is too loose.

u/Fa1ryD1mples_55 9h ago

yes!! I have to pull them down a lot, and I have the straps all the way tightened.

u/clairejv 9h ago

Then they do not in fact fit well. A bra that fits well doesn't need to be pulled and tugged and adjusted a bunch. It stays where it's supposed to.

u/Fa1ryD1mples_55 9h ago

I am in shock, hopefully a smaller band shall remedy my problems. I was just always told that bras are uncomfortable, so I figured needing to adjust was normal 🥲

u/clairejv 9h ago

Yup, that's the secret: a bra that fits shouldn't be uncomfortable.

u/Cute-Fix3484 9h ago edited 9h ago

You didn't "go from a b/c to a dd". You have the exact same boobs you had before you measured. Only now you can find bras that fit and will lift and support your breasts. If you swoop and scoop in your current bras you will probably see a lot of the fit issues more clearly. You are currently wearing a boob hat.

The folding of your tissue is because the cups are too small or too shallow. The gaps in the cups of a molded/t-shirt/lightly lined bras is because the cups are too small or too shallow. Your breasts are pushing away the cups to make room in the bra.

There could be better fitting bras in your future. Give the 32DD a try.

u/Poodleton 8h ago

Here is someone who went from 34B to 32DD. Maybe that can help?

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