8
A few more suggestions, mostly about fit variation by dye
I'd really like the option of specifying the colorway of a bra, or other distinguishing characteristics (for instance the manufacture date for instances when the bra has been remodeled but retained the same name/number) because otherwise I think my measurements are likely to be rejected when the bra has a different fit than previous bras. There can be so much variation caused by dye!
I recently bought the Panache Sienna (4471) in spice, and the fit for me is quite different from the lagoon or purple versions of the bra. Of course I said in my review which bra I was talking about, but I don't think my review is linked to a specific set of measurements, is it?
I think when the project was started many of us filling in data were naive about how much variation there can be between different versions of the same model, and the current data structure reflects that. I don't know how possible it is to change that, or if it is easier to make a quick hack of treating them as different bras.
Another thing I've found is that my idea on wire width seems subject to a lot of fluctuation. Sometimes I say the wires are too wide if they aren't against my breast root but do fit my tails well. Other times I say they're fine, even though there's space by the breast root, so long as they encompass my tails. I'd really like the option of not specifying how it fits me there, because it just isn't something I can reliably answer.
Oh, and some defaults for the fit would be nice, as it is quite rare for me to say that the straps are anything other than okay for me, so I'd rather change it in the rare instance that it is different than set it every time.
Filed under Bratabase
These are really good points. I've found that I do the same thing regarding wire width (though I think you mean the width of the cup? Wording variations confuse me easily). I would also like to throw in a suggestion of adding a "cup height" measurement. Often times a bra will have the same measurements as another bra that works perfectly for me except it'll be too tall, resulting in gapping!
For measuring the usual difference is that the cup is slightly smaller. It could be smaller in a lot of ways, although I expect depth is the most common one.
It's unfortunately hard to measure things that everyone wants. I'm not sure how you would be able to get height in some bra styles where there is a lot of lace at the top. For me, the immediate depth in the bottom is the difference between fitting (Sienna, Jasmine) and wrinkles (Andorra, Clara). But I don't know how to measure that so I just look at reviews.
I did mean the wire width (narrow, wide) which of course determines the width of the cup. Here I'm not talking about bra variation but about my perception varying. My breasts are narrow on the bottom, but I have very pronounced tails which mean that as they reach my armpits, they are suddenly in my armpits. The result of this is that I'm likely to mark short and narrow wires as fitting fine, and tall and wide wires as also fitting fine, or sometimes as having extra space in the side, depending on how I'm feeling about my chances of getting the "perfect fit" at the time that I'm filling it in. I recognize that I don't give a consistent answer to this fit question, and that it's also quite possible that there is no bra which fits me perfectly in this regard (it couldn't be U shaped and fit me). Having to fill in the fit for wire width I think reduces the value of the information I may be able to provide to someone who has some similarities to me, but who doesn't have this especially tricky issue. I think there are other women who have discovered similar things about themselves. Consider, for instance, a woman with pectus excavatum: she will never be able to say that the gore lies flat, so a bra will never be shown as fitting her, when in fact it might be the best fit she can get. My data would be of higher quality and more useful if I could just say that this 'fit' criteria isn't so relevant to me.
This makes me think of something else. It would be great if I could find my breast twin, perhaps as a % similar to me. Among people who have tried a lot of bras, many of which I've also tried, how similar are we in our fit of those bras we've both tried? If we've both not fit a bra for the same reason, that's a similarity, and if we've both fit a bra, that's also a similarity. If someone is 95% similar to me, her experience is going to be much more valuable to me than the experience of someone who may only be about 80% similar, but whom I happen to have gotten to know as being similar to me.