Hey girls,

Here is a better and more accurate way to measure bra size. This includes band and cup size.

It's more complicated but here it goes:

1) start without your bra.
2) Measure under your bust, around your ribs. Take this measurement down as A.
3) Measure around your body, just under your armpits and above your breast. Try not to include any parts of your breast in it.
Try to keep your measuring tape in level.
Take this measurement as B1.

4) Now, put on the bra that fits the best.

5) Measure under your bust, around your ribs again. If this measurement differs from A by alot, this is could mean that your band is worn incorrectly. (i.e. slipping band, band riding up your back, band too tight etc)

6)Measure again around your body, under your armpits and above the breast. Try to keep the tape in level. This is to measure how much your breast tissue is spilling out of the cup.
Take this measurement as B2.

7) Measure around your body, across the widest point of your breast, which is usually across the nipple. Try to keep the tape in level without making it too tight or too loose. ( Don't squish parts of your breast, and make sure the tape is not sliding down your back.)
Take this down as C.

Calculation time!!!

1) For band size, A should be converted to centimetres and used as the band number.
Round down the number if it's less than 3 cm to the next band size.
e.g. 67.3cm = band size 65(30). 69cm = band size 70(32).

You can choose to round up or round down the number to the nearest band size depending on how tight or how loose you want your bra band to be.
Usually I round down as the bra band will stretch after much wearing.

2) Cup size - All the following measurement is done in inches.
B2 minus B1 to get your cup overflow measurement.
3) Add C to cup overflow, then minus your calculated band size.
This number will be your cup size.

Here is the cup sizing in Inches

Calculated number / Cup size
-1 / AAA
0 / AA
1 / A
2 / B
3 / C
4 / D
5 / DD or E
6 / DDD or F
7 / G
8 / H
9 / I
10 / J


Then add your band number and your cup size from the chart, and ...
You get your bra size!!!

Try it!
(IMG:http://www.flowerpod.com.sg/forums/style_emoticons/default/flower.gif)



**Adding more info**

Can't believe you have up your cup size?
That's because you have reduced your band size to a more fitting band.

How to know if your current band is not the correct fit:

-Strapless bra keep slipping down.
-Your bra band keep ridding up your back.
-The band at the front, centre panel, is not lying flat on your chest against your skin.
-When you move around, jump, twist your body, jog around, your bra band shifts position.
-Bra straps keep sliding down. (This may suggest you need a smaller band, or you need to change the style of your bra)



Here's some pictures to better illustrate the idea of band size vs cup size..

This is the same cup volume across various band size.
30F is roughly estimated to be the same cup volume as 38C.
Hence when you down your band size, you up your cup size.
(IMG:http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_l8SD1yDWAWs/TCuwhtuvk9I/AAAAAAAAAcw/tu3dpaozrus/s1600/Cup_size_comparison.jpg)


This is the cup alphabet size comparison across various band size.
DDs are often mistaken to be giant watermelons.
Compare the bra 26DD to 40DD. BIG difference.

Here's some pics to illustrate the point.
(IMG:http://b75.blox.pl/resource/DD_comparison2.jpg) (IMG:http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_kRtu3QFUkWc/THnPnDYVshI/AAAAAAAAEAc/G7h6asIr5mo/s1600/tlbc4.jpg)
(IMG:http://x90.xanga.com/a43c6af161635189028364/z145347499.jpeg) (IMG:http://xf3.xanga.com/534c70f674733189028343/z145347481.jpeg)

Videos to illustrate the point...

From 32A to 28B:


How to fit for bra:


What a bad fit looks like:


Bra fitting stories from Brastop.com
(IMG:http://www.brastop.com/images/site/brafitting/bra_fitting_story_amy.jpg)
Being slim, wearing band 38 is far to large for her to support her boobs, hence she experience backaches. 38B cup has a very wide wire and shallow cup to contain her boobs. Hence her boobs were flattened, and widened. Her boobs pressed down to form the deep under-boob line. In the long run, that compression will cause saggy boobs.

After she changed to 30F, she has better boob weight support, and her boobs are lifted to prevent the forming of under-boob sag line. 30F has a narrower wire and deeper cups, allowing the breast tissue to be migrate from side to the front, forming bigger firmer breast.

(IMG:http://www.brastop.com/images/site/brafitting/bra_fitting_story_chloe.jpg)

As you can see in 36C, there's a slight quad boob forming at the sides showing the cup size is too small. Her breast can't fill the bottom of the bra because the cup is too shallow for the boobs to reach the small space. The side wires cut into the sides of her boob, showing the cup is too small for her.

32DD has narrower wires with a deeper cup. With a much smaller band, the wire is able to be pulled back to near the armpits, where the breast ends. It doesn't cut into her breast. No more quad boobs on top, cups to cut into her boobs there either. The cup is filled with no flattened parts. Boobs appear more perky to the front.
Smaller bands allow for better support hence less slipping of strapless bras.





DDs and GGs, you may have it too !

Here are some pictures of DDs and GGs in various band sizes.
Mind you, most of these are unpadded bras that come in beautiful designs.
Big bras are NOT all plain and ugly!

DDs
GGs



Sites where to find bandsize 30 and below...

http://www.ebay.co.uk
http://www.brastop.com
http://www.figleaves.com - UK lingerie site
Effuniak - polish site, can custom made a bra size on order
The Little Bra Company - sizes from 28A onwards to C cups

*****

Tips for those with implants:

- Usually you'll need a deeper cup, as your breasts are projected forward, hence your breasts doesn't end as close to the armpits as compared to natural breast.

- The width of the underwire and depth of cup will be important to take note.

- You may want to consider downing your bandsize and up your cup size.

- For underwire width, you need to check brands that produce bras with narrow underwire, as well as the model range that uses narrow underwire.

More info can be found on this blog.
http://bybabysrules.com/