As we have discussed before, there is no standard to bra sizing- between companies (olga, maidenform, champion, victoria secret) or between countries (your size could change just from moving to England from the US). I write this blog for information on buying a bra, not for choosing the breast size you want when doing breast surgery.
We plastic surgeons know there is no standard of bra sizing, and the size and look does not necessarily equal the weight and cc volume.
MEASURE TWICE
- Measure first standing staight up
- Then measure again leaning forward at 45 degree angle.
- If your breasts are droopy this can affect measurements a lot.
- If the difference between the two measurements is more than 10cm, choose the number halfway between them.
HOW TO MEASURE YOUR BAND SIZE- 3 techniques
1. Underbust
Measuring tape is used under the bust (just below the inframammary fold). Pull the tape tight. This gives you your band measurement (32,34,36). If it is an odd number (33), then round up to the next even number (34).
- If you are a plus sized woman, you may need to subtract a few inches so the band is tight enough
- If you are a very muscular woman, you may need to add an inch for comfort
2. Underbust +4
This is the same as the method above BUT you add either 4 inches or 5 inches to get an even band size.
- This is a common method in department stores
- Many feel this results in band sizes which are too big and cup sizes which are too small
- Watch out for underwires resting directly on breast tissue
- Large busted women likely are not getting the right amount of support
3. Above the breasts
This one measures the chest wall ABOVE the bust. The number is the band size. If an odd number is reached, then add one.
- Many feel this leads to wrong sizing, as the tape curves over the bust. If you have large breasts or are overweight, you can get inaccurate results.
MEASURING CUP SIZE.
The cup size is determined by measuring the difference bewteen the bust size and band size
- To measure bust size, measure around the chest at the fullest part of the breast
- This is usually halfway between the shoulder and elbow
- usually over the nipples
- while wearing a (nonpadded) bra which fits you properly
- measure in inches or centimeters (whatever you measured the band)
- Cup size is the difference between the band and bust measurement
| Difference | (inches) | <1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 |
| Cupsize | U.S. | AA | A | B | C | D | DD/E | DDD/F | DDDD/G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | – | – | – |
| Cupsize | UK/Austr. | AA | A | B | C | D | DD | E | F | FF | G | GG | H | HH | J | JJ | K | KK | L |
From Herroom.com, sizing information
I know reading this seems like it should be standard. When reading a synopsis on wikipedia of bra fitting and sizing, it reinforced how crazy bra shopping is. Some brands will label D, DD, E, EE; others will go D, DD, DDD, DDDD. There are differences between England and Europe, Australia and other countries. It is a plain old mess.
COMMON MISTAKES
- Large breasted women buy bras which are too small
- Small breasted women buy bras which are too big
- A common error is women tend to buy a bigger band size (36 instead of 34) instead of going up a cup size 34D to 34DD.
But at least this gives you a place to start.