Hate bras

Lingerie
21

My perspective on this is going to be a bit different as I'm a man with boobs and I wear a bra all the time. I get fitted by an expert about every 6 months and with that guidance I can usually get a good fit when I buy bras elsewhere.

I would, in general, support the view that if you don't like being fitted you haven't found the right fitter, though there must be a few (very few) women who simply can't find bras in the right size. All the fitters I've had over the years (obviously, all ladies themselves) have been very vocal on the subject and their view is that women are sh*t at buying bras.

The sad fact is that any measurement system is not going to work for more than one maker at a time, and then not for every style they sell. I have bras in 38B, 38C, 38D, 36D and 36DD that all fit me. Anybody who measures you then tells you what size you are is going to be wrong, then, so you do need to persevere and find a fitter that does know what she's doing.

Alternatively, if you know how to check for a proper fit on yourself, mail order is OK if you're truly prepared to return any failures and plug away at it until it's right. I've worn well-fitting bras and I've worn badly-fitting bras and the difference is night and day, not just in comfort, but in shape, support, clothes fitting better and you feeling better.

Incidentally, I never wear soft bras, and I don't have wire problems because I make sure the cups are big enough for the wire to go round my chest underneath the actual boobs. This does mean that I may need 'chicken fillets' to fill the cup completely, but that's also because being male my boobs aren't the same shape as most women's. Few women would need to do that.

Also, make sure you wash your bras carefully - in a close mesh bag on a delicate setting if you use the machine - and don't overfill the machine. Delicate programmes aren't much different from normal cycles, but if you leave out the towels and jeans, your undies stand a chance, at least! If you let the wires get bent you will have trouble.

I have done lingerie fitting when a girlfriend some years back had a shop, and the feedback was pretty good. But I have to say the sort of women who shopped there were pretty young and fit as a rule and quite likely to trry things on in the middle of the shop rather than bothering with a changing room, so I guess they felt being fitted by a man wasn't such a big deal! If I could help out some more bra haters before I'm taken, I'll go happily ...

One last thing. Mrs P. told me to have fewer but better bras a while back, so I've gone a bit more upmarket over the last four or five years. I can truly say that with occasional exceptions, the better brands do work better for me. But I do have cheaper ones that work well, so not a total financial disaster. Don't give up girls; I'd hate to think that men can get better-fitting bras than women. Goes against all logic, doesn't it?

22

Wow mr pink that's not the sort of reply I was expecting!
Very informative Thankyou. Most of my issues stem from I get back pain and sometimes it is right where my bra sits. Last thing I want Is a anything touching a painful area when it's sore.

23

Well done MrPink! I feel bad that you've made such an informative post about this and all I did was whinge about the lady in Sadie's cold hands :( Back to bra school for me I think.

24

Sunshine,Lollipops wrote:

I used to hate bras too until I got measured and found out I was wearing COMPLETELY the wrong size! Now I've found some really great fitting, pretty bras for my small back/large cup combo and I don't ache any more.

This is the problem I had, I'm a 28-30 back but DD cup. I had to suffer for years wearing wrongly sized bras. I still struggle finding well fitting ones now, mainly because they tend to be ridiculously expensive and I have very little money most of the time :-/ I have to say though, the Rene Rofe bra that I received as a tester not long ago, is fabulous! It fits perfectly and is so comfy. I wear it pretty much all the time as it's the only good bra that I own. I need to get the other 2 in the range, but again, money is non existent :-( I *will* get them at some point though! Maybe I can convince relatives to buy me them for Christmas.
25

I'm opposite. Small boobed but slightly larger than I should be

26

I hate bras too and now my bewbies have started to sag because I'd rather go without. Hope you find some suitable ones PA x

27

I know how you feel. Bras are one of my most hated things. Love buying pretty and sexy ones but I hate the fit of every bra I normally buy.

Only bras I've found that work are so ugly and not atrrative one bit.

Your either pulling the straps all the time or trying to stop them from digging into your skin.

I wish I didnt have to wear one.

28

because of this thread ive just bought some nice comfy sports bras that i can wear around the house rather than nothing or an uncomfortable one.

29

Oh that's good y&f yes I want to look for some more comfy things for day to day and just wear normal bras for work etc.
I'm glad I'm not alone in my bra hatred.
I have loads of lovely bras and hate them all even my new one!!

30

Have you tried those stretchy pull on comfort bras one of the pound shops does their own version they are surprisingly good primark have their own version best suited to smaller busts my boobs seemingly spill out of them and asdas have one lightly padded with lace and a pretty pattern on really comfortable for every day wear

31

My fitting ladies are pretty scornful about those pull-on bras but I can't comment personally as I've never tried them. I prefer the shaping I get with a wired, padded bra since my boobs are not very attractive on their own!

I would say that nearly all my bras fit well enough to sleep in them - yes, padded, underwired push-up or plunge bras, but the few I have that are 'shagging outfits' pure and simple are not so forgiving and if I happen to fall asleep after you-know-what with one on, I pay the price the next day. And then I don't want a bra digging into any sore bits. Most of the time I don;t have anything sore at all.

Thanks for your kind reactions to my previous post, ladies. It was thorough because I've had to be thorough to get myself comfy in a bra full time and I've had all the problems you've mentioned on this thread at one time or another. So that in itself points to there being hope for you all, doesn't it? Fortunately the first fitting I had was with a really good fitter who not only did all this stuff but explained what she was doing and talked andlessly about bras, probably because I was prepared to get to the bottom of the matter and not just go off in the first thing that was somewhere near.

PinkAnimal, you're probably a bit like me as I have a large frame relative to the size of my boobs. Have you tried chicken fillets? You won't know you're wearing them but they'll improve your shape and may allow you to go up a cup size or two. Most of the activity in the bra market seems to be at the small back/large boob end of things, but I did a lot better with a bigger cup, and even without chicken fillets a larger cup lets you get more of your squidgy bits in the bra (if you have those at all). You will need to 'swoop and scoop' but I can often fit as well into a 38D as my usual 38C simply because the cups cover more of my chest.

But I can't deny that it is complicated and takes commitment and persistence. I can understand why you ladies find that difficult when you've had so many problems before. If you were set on the path to bra-wearing by your mother, you're more likely to have problems than otherwise; did you know that? Mummy doesn't always know best!

32

You need made to measure/fit, and could look horrid but feel great, or at least thats my male view, never understood why women put up with it not fitting correctly, too small/big digging in etc, yes it will cost much more though.