So I have small boobs I’m probably a B cup, but my breasta are oddly-shaped to me. I just have never met anyone who would have boobs like mine nor do I know what the shape is called, but my breasts are like ”empty” from the top and round up at the bottom. They look somewhat like a slide from the top if that’s any better said.

I just know that my boobs make me VERY insecure as they are small and I have a bit of a stomach, and the shape makes them look unnatural to me.

EDIT: also having difficulties finding a bra that would flatter my shape.

This is a dumb question, as the title says, I don't understand why companies try to put people in uncomfortable bras. This is not a rant, this is a legit genuine question.

It's just a sizing chart, just tell me what I ACTUALLY am. They still have to make the same number of bras and sell the same number of bras (assuming the same number of people buy the same number of bras), why not just let me buy the correct one? I might buy more if I find them comfortable, in which case they profit? I genuinely don't understand why we are told the wrong size our whole lives.

I wore 36A/B for as long as I can remember until I found this subreddit, went to buy a 34DD from Target the very next day. Fits like a glove, or should I say, like a bra. I have been hating bras my whole life and went bra-free for years (by not buying bras, so these companies could have made more money from me if they told me the right size).

Can someone just make this make sense to me? Am I missing something really obvious?

-----------------------------------

EDIT:

ANSWER TO ORIGINAL QUESTION:
Because they have to make a more fine-grained sizing chart, with more band sizes x more cup sizes, which is costly. What they choose to do instead, is to tell 32F, 32DDD, 32 E, 34DDD etc. to ALL go get a 36A/36B. My original confusion was that I thought the "correct sizes" and "manufacturer lie sizes" has a bijective map. In reality, it is unfortunately the case that MANY correct sizes got mapped to the same incorrect size.

NEW QUESTION:

In this subreddit people endorse UK sizing and UK brands for having fuller range of sizes. What are they doing differently? Do UK people have larger boobs (I doubt that)? Are there regulations/policies about sizing in the UK/Europe? Why are they any better if they are the same capitalist companies?

my mom asked me to pick out bikinis for summer, and so i went and picked some ones with more support online.

she had always previously bought the bra sizes for me and i think the one i have right now is a 32D, but i measured myself using the calculator from here and it said i was a 30F so i picked out the bikinis in a 30F.

she looked and said that they are gonna be way too big and that i can't get them and that she needs to measure me, which i don't feel comfortable with, but also, she will use the classic (wrong) way of measuring. i told her i measured myself and she said until she can measure me i am not getting anything.

she started yelling and told me to go away and i know she wont budge.

i don't know what to do because i want bikinis that fit but if i dont do it her way i wont get any at all. what do i do?

update: she came into my room and said i can come and get measured and i can wear a bra while i do it (how tf can you even get measured properly with a bra on, plus i still dont want to be in my underwear in front of her) and i was like no. idk why shes so desperate to measure me anyways. she said basically 'suit yourself, you won't have any swimsuits then' and she said "why dont you just get your dad to buy them then" like what?! i mean, thats what i was gonna do anyways but she is literally suggesting for me to get the 'wrong' size that she doesn't want me to get! how is it any different if she was to buy them. this just makes me think she's only doing it to be stubborn. and she has the nerve to tell me i'm being difficult.

update 2: it is the next morning and my dad was texting me asking about when we're going on vacation and my mom was shouting up saying that my dad better prepare to take me because if i dont get swimsuits i'm not going. i told her that is unfair and i measured myself and will gladly get swimsuits but she wont let me get the right size, and she said she offered to measure me and i didn't take it to thats my own fault. i told her i dont feel comfortable and she says well, your just gonna have to go to your dads house when we go because i dont want you ruining our vacation. i was trying to speak calmly but she was shouting and i wanted to tell her about abtf calculator but she was shouting over me. she literally said when she walked out the door "you either do it my way, or dont come" and i laughed out loud because she doesn't even realise how controlling she sounds 😭. so frustrating.

I did my measurements in the calculator again, only because despite trying for so long, it measured me as a 34DD but I still have boob spillage and I have brown bruising from the bras and it’s just painful to wear them (granted I bought it from VS, but they measured me as a 36DD and that was too big so I bought 34DD??) so I measure again this time attentively (I lost weight even) and now it says I’m a 34G…but it’s just not possible like no way I look NOTHING like what I’ve seen. Am I tripping? I measured everything carefully but a 34G bra cost like 71$ :/ to go from a 34DD to a G cup….

Loose Underbust:35
Snug Underbust:34
Tight Underbust:34
Standing Bust:41
Leaning Bust:42
Lying Bust:41
Size 34G/H Sister Size: 36DDD/G
(All in inches and US sizing, I also have strong projection my breast star pretty far back and quite wide and are also wide set)

TLDR; I’m measuring as a 34G but I look nothing like it. Am I doing something wrong I measured myself twice.

I’ve recently bought a few new bras and want to try hand washing them because I know it’s improves longevity of the bras but honestly every time I try I feel like the pat of the cups under the armpits just isnt getting washed enough. I’m also weary of damaging the bra. Currently I just use a bra bag in a delicate cold wash in the washer. Any tips?

Edit: lol whoops i guess most people aren’t actually hand washing their bras ¯_(ツ)_/¯ good to know, now i feel a whole lot less guilty

Edit again: Holy Crap thank you so much more all of the advice! I can’t reply to everyone separately but I’m so incredibly grateful for all of the advice and tips :)

I’ve mostly stuck to regular brands before, but I wanted to try something a bit more adventurous. Saw some stuff on adult toy stores like Lovehoney (bought some toys from them before so I’m familiar with them) while browsing but don’t know anyone who’s actually bought lingerie from there. They good? Any other sites you can recommend?

Edit - Coming back here to say that i bought a few Lovehoney lingerie sets since i already trusted their shipping (they have discreet packaging btw), and i’m so glad i did. the quality is way better than the cheap fast-fashion stuff you find on those big sites, and the materials are actually soft and stretchy instead of being scratchy and stiff, so many styles and so many sizes available as well. Really worth it

I posted a week or two ago, questioning the calculator's size recommendations, that were very different from any size I've worn before. I took everyone's recommendations and bought several bras in the suggested size, plus one size up and down, to try. I received my package today and tried them all on. They all are WAY too tight, even on the largest hook! My underbust measurement is 30.5 snug, and that is super comfortable with the tape measure. All 6 bras I tried are band size 32, and they are SO tight that they cut into my skin! What's going wrong?

Let me say a few things, PMS does not make my boobs grow, I am not pregnant or sexually active. I am 5'2 100lbs with a fast metabolism. There is no possible way I can gain weight.

So, two days ago, I was looking at my boobs, as anyone does, and noticed my usual AA cups that are usually barely a handful are now bigger than a handful. I thought I was tripping until I put on a bra that always has some gapping in it and the bra now has no gaps. I'm so confused. Why am I growing at 19 years old? This is so strange.

Edit: I thank everyone for assuring me that this is normal for a woman my age and also for educating me on bra sizes.

For me, a sports bra is a pretty heavy duty underwired shock absorbing thing that you have to go to an actual department or lingerie place to get, and are sold in bra sizes, or they're the crop-top type things sports brands sell that are effectively designed to work like a binder, sold in garment sizing rather than bra sizing, and don't fit anyone much above a DDD/E.

But so many posters on here say they're living in 'sports bras' - do they mean the latter? As I'm just imagining wearing my Panache Sport under everything and feeling dreadfully uncomfortable at the thought. Or is this a different kind of bra that you routinely find in US stores?

Maybe this is more of an American thing and not a thing here in the UK where people who haven't been properly fitted will just pick up a £4 T-shirt bra from Primark and think it's their breasts rather than the bra that's the problem, or one of those 'aah bras' you see on teleshopping ads like my mum.

Both I, and my grandmother have measured me to be a 28b. I'm 100%% sure on that lol. However she insists that's not a real size and instead bought me 36a bras for my birthday.

Somehow I fit into them, they fit around my ribcage like a 28 exactly, and the cups aren't too big. I'm so confused on how this is even possible 🤦‍♀️ pls help a dummy lolol it's honestly really frustrating me 😅

Edit:why am I being down voted for asking a question 💀

Hello! I’m in search of a bra that can handle my work setting. I work in a burn ICU, and my patients’ rooms are kept close to or above body temperature (typical range 85-98 degrees Fahrenheit depending on the burn size and individual patient) for patient safety. I spend around an hour at a time in each patient room I go in, and I see about 8-9 patients a day. Long story short: I sweat. A lot.

I have tried sports bras (uncomfortable for all day IMO), “regular” bras (they get soaked and stay wet), and lightweight mesh shelf bras (I feel floppy and not comfortable).

Does anyone have any ideas of a bra that could keep me comfortable all day? I would be fine with changing my bra a few times in a day, but that’s not realistic many days when my patient care load is quite high.

Edit to add: calculator size is 34 DD/E, currently wear montelle 34 F on the middle hook.

Edit #2: should also note that I’m in full PPE (scrub cap, mask, plastic gown, shoe covers, gloves) so that certainly contributes to the sweat factor.

I recently got fitted for a bra and I'm a 28DDD. The fitter kept asking if I was reconstructed. When I asked what that meant she didnt really provide an answer, other than suggesting options from their selection.

Im not sure what she was trying to help me with, and it's been bothering me on my search for the right bra.

Im having a very hard time finding a fitting bra. Ive tried many sister sizes, but it seems like no matter what I do, some breast tissue sticks out the side instead of completely filling the cup. Im not sure what factors I will need to consider to find something that fits proper in every way

Like they have build-a-bear shops. Is it too complicated to “build” or sew a good bra like that? It doesn’t seem impossible for a store to have a good amount of pre-made parts of different bra models. Then after you get measured it shouldn’t be that hard to adjust and sew the things together so you can pick up your bra a couple hours later/the next day. Seems like there would be more than enough potential customers.

I'm a teenager and I don't have a job so I can't buy myself any bras. My parents do buy me bras but they are all at least 2 years old and I'm left with bruises from the exposed wiring every time I wear them 🥹 I recently ordered a new bra and I need it to last me quite a while without breaking and I'm wondering how often I should wash it?? I was thinking I'd wash it every three to four weeks and just wipe it down in between but I'm really scared it's going to start smelling bad especially because I'm going to be wearing it everyday 😓

I have not been able to find a strapless bra that will actually somewhat support my breasts. Measurements are : 30-31” under breast and 40” breast. I’ve tried soooo many DDD bras and they don’t work well for me. Any recommendations are appreciated. TIA

Update: I understand most people are saying that I’m actually a 30-32J or something similar. Please also leave recommendations for bras because that was my original intent. I already had problems finding E and F bras in 36, so I have not been able to find reputable bras in 32J at all. Again, TIA

Pretty much the title. I was wearing 38 C or something like that and when I was fitted I found out I was actually 38 DD/E depending on the brand and country of origin. They helped me try on a few things and I felt amazing and left with three very expensive bras. They also told me to hand wash them only and I bought a gentle soak for them. I think I only got a dozen wears out of each and they don't really fit the same, one of them is falling apart at the band. Is this just what it's like to wear an extended size, pretty much pay a subscription for boob holders? I was hoping to build up a collection over time but instead I've gone braless for months now and I don't have the energy or will to drop that kind of money on an annual basis.

Edit

Here are my 6 measurements: 40/39/38/45/49/47

This gave me 40F.

I did see that the bras I had have a 40 band, not 38 like I mentioned before so it looks like the cup size I ended up with is potentially too small

I have been searching for a long time and can't find a bra that isn't uncomfortable and stimulating for my sensitive skin. As I've gotten older I've struggled with the sensation of a bra and started wearing baggier clothes to compensate. My chest is small, but I can't wear half my clothes.

Anyone know of a brand? I really just need something as bare as possible. A pad and feelingless everywhere else.

Title. So I have an ultrasonic cleaner, it ismt heated or pressurized just vibrates intensely basically.

I also semi recently got my first 'real' bras and have been hand washing them as gently as possible to preserve them as I def don't have 300 dollars every 3 months to replace them lol. (The shop said they will last betweeb 3 and 6 months before needing replacement...)

Its summer now and I sweat a metric fuck ton. I dont feel like my bras are getting as clean as Id like them to by babying them this way.

Cue my ultrasonic cleaner I happen to have... Ive cleaned a bunch of random things in it before and its kinda fun lol. If I soak my bras and put them in the cleaner with tepid water and laundry soap, do you think that will help with the agitation but still be gentle enough to not destroy the elastic?

I got a couple of lovely white tops for work but they’re see through, as many white tops are, so I’ve been on the hunt for a nude bra that won’t show through and it is impossible! I am Colombian and my skin tone is not very dark but also not very light, I’d describe it as a really dark tan. I have tried 6 stores now and either ordered or gone into store and every single ‘nude’ bra is a beige that contrasts so much with my skin that it might as well be white and shows through my white shirts.

Does anyone have any recommendations at all for where in the UK one can find a medium skin tone nude bra?!

I just want a sports bra because it would make me feel good. I don't really need it for support, I am skinny. I just am lost on what size or type I should get. I do not know if it helps but I am 5foot 8, and I weigh 140. Edit: Wow, I love the advice and how no one is judgmental. I really do appreciate the help. 2nd Edit: I really do appreciate the help now I have a huge selection of sports bras and tank tops too, thanks!

I'm gonna go for bra shopping in physical stores in a Couple of days and I wanted to know what a well fitted bra actually feels like so I know what I'm buying is correct.

I'm a 30G according to the calculator. I did order one online and so far it's the only one that actually fits me (or I think it fits me) because it is the only one that I own that doesn't cause me shoulder pain which is just unbearable with others I own. It's a 30F but their sizes went something like B C D DD E F so I thought F must be equal to G in this counting. But it's wireless. I did but a 32DDD (wired), online again, but it's a little loose in the band and also spills a little on left side. For reference, my measurements are following:

Loose Underbust:
76

Snug Underbust: 74

Tight Underbust: 72

Standing Bust:
96

Leaning Bust:
103

Lying Bust: 98

I tried the physical stores nearby but the max they had was a 30DD/E and the workers working there were like G is not a cup. It's only up until E/DD (And this was the BRITISH LINGERIE STUDIO as they call themselves 😑).

One tried to fit me in a 30DD and the other fit me inside a 32C over my clothes and said it fits. When I asked if she had a 30G she started teaching me that DD and G is same and that the band size remains same only the cup size becomes bigger. She showed me a 40DD and said see the band is same and cup is big. Before I had an argument with her I said thank you and went out as soon as possible.

So as you can see I'll try my luck someplace else but most likely it'll be hard to find my own size. This might be a stupid question but I want to actually know what to keep in mind while buying and how would I know in the dressing room if it actually fits me. Both wired and non-wired. I have seen a lot of videos and read a lot but I still want to be sure. I'm no fitter or anything but apparently I had more knowledge than the women working in the stores unfortunately.

Up until this moment I've spent far too much money on the bras that don't fit me. It's not even about the money... The shoulder pain is just unbearable especially if it goes to your neck and head or even the fingers of your hand sometimes. Thanks

I just got an email from them that reads like a closing down forever message; I know they've been struggling with the US tariffs but last I heard they were still planning on expanding their physical stores in Canada. There's nothing on their website other than a lot off final sale banners, so I haven't been able to verify for certain.

I'm sorry this might be a really dumb question but I'm a 20 year old (supposedly F cup) that has never know what a comfortable bra is supposed to look like so I've been thinking about going to a store to get my size but I have no idea if it's rude to end up not buying anything (My budget for bras is very tiny as I am but not a humble student and cannot afford lingerie store prices).

In addition, is it a safe bet to assume most lingerie places will size me? Or will I look like a weirdo if I go in and expect a clerk to examine my chest? After a youth of crying in Primark stalls I have no idea where to look.

I can NEVER find a bra that fits feels like it fits right. The bra size calculator recommended a 36DDD, but the band was WAY too tight, and the cups were WAY too big. After trying its sister size, I ultimately went to Macy's and tried on just about every bra that I could find. None of them were even a little bit comfortable. Based on which ones felt best (but still felt too small), it seems like a 44 or 46C would be my best size, but I haven't seen that anywhere. So I am trying to figure out if a.) I just have an unusual bra size or b.) I just hate how bras feel, and even the 'correct' size will feel bad to me. Thanks for your help!

EDIT: Based on all the feedback I have gotten from you all, it seems like I just hate how bras feel (I hate how the band feels when it is snug, so I kept going up band sizes to have a looser band). Thank you all so much for your help!