Boob size

[EllieP]

I'm amazed how all that works. Waist size, for example, is pretty straight forward. You're either a 32" or a 34", perhaps a 33", but pretty standard stuff. Bra size involves two metrics, cup size and measurement around the chest (I think anyway). That all seems straight forward as well, but it doesn't appear to be. The most crazy sizing (in my humble opinion) is dress size. You can be a 1, 2, 3 - even a zero, but those numbers don't correspond to anything else .... but I digress.

Uh, shoe sizes can be just as inscrutable.

Many women do not understand how to accurately size a bra. I used to be one of them. My advice is to get professionally fitted.

 

[MickeyLee]

Women's sizing is why it takes women so long to shop. You have to try on everything because there is no real sizing system. Oh, then you get into vanity sizing.

This is why most of my clothes are men clothes. Buy pants to hang just above my hips, buy shirts that won't bunch up around my boobs. You can go from designer to designer and get a pretty standard fit.

 

[EllieP]

Women's sizing is why it takes women so long to shop. You have to try on everything because there is no real sizing system. Oh, then you get into vanity sizing.

This is why most of my clothes are men clothes. Buy pants to hang just above my hips, buy shirts that won't bunch up around my boobs. You can go from designer to designer and get a pretty standard fit.

I think you have a great advantage to buying men's clothes that most people overlook - dry cleaning is much cheaper!

 

[Shackleford]

Uh, shoe sizes can be just as inscrutable.

Many women do not understand how to accurately size a bra. I used to be one of them. My advice is to get professionally fitted.

I hope I don’t get accused of trolling for wank fodder with this, but I gotta know: how exactly does a professional bra fitting work? I can’t imagine you just go into a back room of a lingerie shop and whip ‘em out for some stranger to do a geometric analysis, but OTOH, I also can’t imagine getting good measurements if you’re already wearing a bra at the time. Do you just wear a super-baggy t-shirt so the gals can roam free despite being covered? Or does the establishment have a big stash of test bras of every band & cup combination, and you keep trying them on until you find the right one?

 

[Tattooed Goddess]

I hope I don’t get accused of trolling for wank fodder with this, but I gotta know: how exactly does a professional bra fitting work? I can’t imagine you just go into a back room of a lingerie shop and whip ‘em out for some stranger to do a geometric analysis, but OTOH, I also can’t imagine getting good measurements if you’re already wearing a bra at the time. Do you just wear a super-baggy t-shirt so the gals can roam free despite being covered? Or does the establishment have a big stash of test bras of every band & cup combination, and you keep trying them on until you find the right one?

All of the above.

 

[EllieP]

I hope I don’t get accused of trolling for wank fodder with this, but I gotta know: how exactly does a professional bra fitting work? I can’t imagine you just go into a back room of a lingerie shop and whip ‘em out for some stranger to do a geometric analysis, but OTOH, I also can’t imagine getting good measurements if you’re already wearing a bra at the time. Do you just wear a super-baggy t-shirt so the gals can roam free despite being covered? Or does the establishment have a big stash of test bras of every band & cup combination, and you keep trying them on until you find the right one?

What TG said. Yes, there is a certain degree of undress required. If I want the girls to be comfortable I'm willing to do whatever is necessary.

It's very discreet, and they were very professional in how they went about their business. Unfortunately, the first one was not as comprehensive as the real pro. The first one was pretty quick. The pro took his sweet time. In fact, I was becoming a little impatient.

But the first thing he did was show me how bad the bra I was wearing was for me. Even though the cup size was too small the band size was too big and the girls weren't sitting properly. He could almost measure by sight, but he did in fact measure me everywhere.

When I tried on the suggested bra it was almost as if the heavens parted and the angels began to sing! It was glorious. Glorious up until the day the damn underwire stabbed me in the side.

 

[Dport]

Allow me to rant... My ex was tall as shit. But her jeans only had one number on them.. She'd have to try on 46,283 pairs of jeans until she could find a pair she could live with.

And even then most of her pants were always a touch too short on her.

How the hell are women supposed to find jeans long enough (or short enough I imagine) if they just say 6 or 12 or whatever.

Makes no sense that they don't size women's pants the same as men's.

 

[ItsAll4Kim]

Allow me to rant... My ex was tall as shit. But her jeans only had one number on them.. She'd have to try on 46,283 pairs of jeans until she could find a pair she could live with.

And even then most of her pants were always a touch too short on her.

How the hell are women supposed to find jeans long enough (or short enough I imagine) if they just say 6 or 12 or whatever.

Makes no sense that they don't size women's pants the same as men's.

There are other aspects. Sizing is also divided into petite, juniors, misses, women's, tall and plus. I'm not sure how tall "tall as shit" is, but women's tall sizing is meant for about 5'9" and up. Given that women's bodies have far more variance than men's (their hips n booty), all these additional size groups are needed. Their hips/booty shapes vary more than height, so inseam sizing isn't as important. But as soon as you leave average, you're screwed for clothing regardless of sex. I'm 6'2" with a long torso, and wear a 12 4E shoe. I'm not tall enough or fat enough for most "Big & Tall" departments, and basically can't buy shoes outside an extremely limited brand/style range. I feel for your ex, as the clothing world doesn't care about low volume market at all.

 

[EllieP]

Try being a size 8 with a 32H bust. There is no designer anywhere who makes a combination like that. I've always had to shop for separates.

"Do you have the bottoms in an 8 and the top in a 14?"

I could have put that on a business card and hand it to the clerk.

After my surgery I cannot tell you how excited I was to find an outfit on the same rack! I was literally crying in Belk's looking at everything I could buy and wear immediately!

 

[AlteredEgo]

Allow me to rant... My ex was tall as shit. But her jeans only had one number on them.. She'd have to try on 46,283 pairs of jeans until she could find a pair she could live with.

And even then most of her pants were always a touch too short on her.

How the hell are women supposed to find jeans long enough (or short enough I imagine) if they just say 6 or 12 or whatever.

Makes no sense that they don't size women's pants the same as men's.

I have a 32" inseam and small hips and butt (which is a bit awkward to dress on a 5'8ish frame. I always buy pants one size smaller than my waist would indicate (it'll stretch, with a little time and effort) and get the tall cut. I shop misses or juniors. My problem is the difference in sizes between tops and bottoms for me is a numerical difference of 8-10, about four sizes. This is why I rarely wear dresses or swim suits.

 

[lapdog2001]

It's very discreet, and they were very professional in how they went about their business. Unfortunately, the first one was not as comprehensive as the real pro. The first one was pretty quick. The pro took his sweet time. In fact, I was becoming a little impatient.

But the first thing he did was show me how bad the bra I was wearing was for me. Even though the cup size was too small the band size was too big and the girls weren't sitting properly. He could almost measure by sight, but he did in fact measure me everywhere.

My wife went to a lady's bra & undergarment store for a 2nd attempt at a correct fitting. Like you, that person was definitely better at her job than the person at the large brand-name department store. She wore her most comfortable/best fitting bra to the shop, as that is supposed to help in determining the correct size.

When I tried on the suggested bra it was almost as if the heavens parted and the angels began to sing! It was glorious. Glorious up until the day the damn underwire stabbed me in the side.

That's exactly how my wife felt after her fitting and purchase of a properly fitted bra. Her new bra size (band & cup) was slightly different from what she thought was her correct size.

There are a few 'top-heavy' women in my family circle, and I've heard their grief at trying to find something that fits on top, without being waaay too loose down below.

 

[Fencepost]

This thread has been an education for me. The initial post evolved into the struggles ladies have in getting clothes to fit properly. I had no idea it was as difficult as described, but I now know to be more patient with the process. I still do not understand the difference between a 32G and a 34 F, but perhaps I am not meant to know, especially since bra sizing apparently is not perfectly standardized. Ditto for many other clothing items (i.e. petite/junior/miss/small). How in the hell do you ladies manage to get dressed in the first place? My only challenge is to find pants and jeans long enough in the inseam, small enough in the waist, with a high rise in front. Thank God for Eddie Bauer!

 

[TexanStar]

I still do not understand the difference between a 32G and a 34 F

Someone can correct me if I'm wrong, but the numbers are how wide around the bra is if you measure it in a circle. The letters are how big the cups are that are holding the boobs.

So a 32G is a little smaller around with a little larger cups than the 34F.

 

[TheRob]

Uh, shoe sizes can be just as inscrutable.

Many women do not understand how to accurately size a bra. I used to be one of them. My advice is to get professionally fitted.

most actually! I believe 4 out of 5 in the usa are in the wrong size bras.

 

[ItsAll4Kim]

Someone can correct me if I'm wrong, but the numbers are how wide around the bra is if you measure it in a circle. The letters are how big the cups are that are holding the boobs.

So a 32G is a little smaller around with a little larger cups than the 34F.

Yes and no (figures, right?). A larger cup letter on a smaller band number might be about the same size cup as the smaller cup letter on a larger band number. So your example might only differ in the larger band.

 

[Fencepost]

Someone can correct me if I'm wrong, but the numbers are how wide around the bra is if you measure it in a circle. The letters are how big the cups are that are holding the boobs.

So a 32G is a little smaller around with a little larger cups than the 34F.

I think I knew this, but my real question should have been this: What is the difference between a FF and a G? Is a 32H bigger than a 34FF?

 

[lapdog2001]

I think I knew this, but my real question should have been this: What is the difference between a FF and a G? Is a 32H bigger than a 34FF?

In the USA, Cup sizes go from AA, A, B, C, D, E (or DD), F (or DDD) and onward. In your question, an FF cup should be the same as a G, but sizes can vary by company, and even different lines by the same company. Cup sizes are relative to the band size, so all of these bra sizes get progressively bigger: 32D, 34D, 36D, 38D, etc.
So in the case of the 32H, the cup size is technically one size bigger than the 34FF (really G) but the 32 is for a woman with a smaller torso that the 34.

Every woman I've ever known has had to take their bra selection to the fitting room to see if they actually fit!

 

[Shackleford]

Yes and no (figures, right?). A larger cup letter on a smaller band number might be about the same size cup as the smaller cup letter on a larger band number. So your example might only differ in the larger band.

[Raises hand] “I know, I know!”

Yeah, the cup size is relative, determined by the difference between the band measurement and the bust measurement. The bust curcumference on a smaller band size means the boobs themselves are bigger than that same bust measurement on a bigger band size.

Honestly, the way women’s clothes are sized, I don’t know how you all buy anything without using a protractor and a conversion chart. Then you toss in variances in sizing from manufacturer to manufacturer, and it really all goes to hell.

 

[MickeyLee]

[Raises hand] “I know, I know!”

Yeah, the cup size is relative, determined by the difference between the band measurement and the bust measurement. The bust curcumference on a smaller band size means the boobs themselves are bigger than that same bust measurement on a bigger band size.

Not really. Bras are band size, the chest circumference plus the difference between chest and bust measurement. Which is about a projecting inch per cups size. 1 inch difference = A cup, and on up.

A 32b has the same breast size as a 34b
The breast will look larger on a smaller frame.

For instance, I am 5'11" and rock a 36d bra. My breasts "look" like a c cup, if someone had to guess. The same d cup on a 5'1" woman, maybe a 30d, would look huge, most would guess her a DD or larger.

Boobs are magical and cloaking them is alchemy, dude. If cup size goes up or down with a different band size there is an issue with the fitting.

 

[Shackleford]

Not really. Bras are band size, the chest circumference plus the difference between chest and bust measurement. Which is about a projecting inch per cups size. 1 inch difference = A cup, and on up.

A 32b has the same breast size as a 34b
The breast will look larger on a smaller frame.

For instance, I am 5'11" and rock a 36d bra. My breasts "look" like a c cup, if someone had to guess. The same d cup on a 5'1" woman, maybe a 30d, would look huge, most would guess her a DD or larger.

Boobs are magical and cloaking them is alchemy, dude. If cup size goes up or down with a different band size there is an issue with the fitting.

I probably worded my post poorly. Wouldn’t the 34b have a bigger bust measurement (in raw inches) than the 32b, since the latter is 34 + 2 as opposed to 32 + 2? That’s what I was getting at.