Bra fitting help » Best fitting bra still requires boobs to "settle"

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Cleo » Maddie Moulded T-shirt Bra (7201) » 28E 28:6

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  As Robras has said, the Maddie is notoriously shallow, so it's definitely not a particularly forgiving fit to begin with, let alone for someone with the opposite (narrow-rooted, round) breast shape--but on top of that, if we go by the measurements, this bra is at least 1 cup too small for you, even if I go by the average user measurements that put its depth at 7.5" instead of 8-8.5" which is your own breast perimeter. I think the fact you are literally bursting out of it when you lean over (and even just when you're standing there, as far as I can tell) is also a pretty sure indication of it being too small.

  Yes, you should definitely check out Polish options if you are interested! Comexim could be a nice one to try, since it is good for petite frames and has softish wires that would be gentler on the body. However, the fact you found this bra to be the best of 30 suggests you have may have struggled along the way to identify good bras to try, so perhaps with some advice you might also have better luck with other brands too. What Cleos have you tried? I would search for bras with a depth of 8.2-8.5 and a width that is not over 5".

  I am concerned about the pain you experience from wires, etc. and am wondering if your ribcage measurements reflect a big difference between exhaled/neutral and the expansion you experience when you breathe in/breathe normally? I also have a pretty big difference and although I am not nearly as lean as you, this means I effectively need a much bigger band than what one might assume based on my supertight measurements. We do need to breathe after all But this could also be the reason you are suffering so much with the wires. If this bra is too tight to comfortably breathe, all the hard parts will definitely bite into you quite a bit. If that is NOT a factor i.e. you've tried 30s and they ride up and slide around, then this problem could be due to wearing a lot of too-shallow, too-small cups. Excessively small cups prevent the breast from settling in and the whole bra will move around (often downwards) and cause pain especially when you do not carry much body fat on that part of your torso.

  Updated on February 19, 2019 Flag this

  
  

  • Leaning to the traditional smaller band with a bigger cup. It looks like the cups are so small that the band is too low on your rib cage, with the wires being below the IMF. I cannot quite tell with your skin marks. The sides do not look like the wires are too wide though the gore does not look like it is in a comfortable spot. I am thin and find that when I am in a too-small cup size and the band is too big, my ribs and breast tissue ache. Ultimately, that started me on my quest for better fitting bras. Good luck in fine tuning measurements and bra selection

  • Thank you SO much for your detailed reply! I will try to address all of your comments/suggestions/questions.

    Before finding the ABTF subreddit, I was wearing a 32C, and exclusively Aerie Sunnie push-up bras. I had a suspicion that the band was too large, but did not have the financial means until recently to explore other options. When I first filled out the bra size calculator, it recommended a 28DD, which, when I tried several bras, was obviously too small for me. I strongly identified with the "shallow breasts" description, so I began trying bras that were "very shallow," but always had issues somewhere else (which I see now may have had to do with the fact that I have more projected breasts than I thought).

    I have tried the Cleo Maddie (28DD-F, 30E), Mimi (28F), Kali (28E), Piper (28E), Lucy (28E), Neve (28F), and Juna (28DD). In Panache, I tried the Jasmine (30D), Clara (28E), Tango (28F), and Petra (28E & 30D). I've also tried a frankly ridiculous amount of Freya bras in a modicum of sizes: Deco Vibe (28DD-F), Daisy (28F), Fancies Underwire Longline (28F & 30DD), Rhea Padded Half-cup (28F), Freya Hero (28F), Fearne (28F), Etched Escape (unsure on the name) (30DD), Marvel (28E), Mode (28E), Harmonie (28E), Tempo (28E), and Forest Song (28E). Early on I also tried the Parfait Charlotte in a 28DD and 28E, which was a complete disaster.

    I have tried several 30 bands and they were all too large and riding up my back, so the 28 band is my best bet. I also find it pretty comfortable aside from my issues with the gore on several bras. I think your latter explanation (the cups being too small and the bra moving around/down) is close to my issue, except for the fact that my bra tends to move UP throughout the day and bite into the base of my sternum. I do think this is mostly a Cleo Maddie problem, however; my "best" fitting bra (i.e., the one that fits my left breast the best) is the Freya Fancies Plunge, but I am uncomfortable wearing it out as my right breast is a full cup size smaller than my left, and the wrinkling in the right cup is visible under t-shirts. As I mentioned in my reply to Robras, I recently uploaded pictures of myself in the Freya Fancies, so you may be able to access those from my profile to see what I mean. However, with that being said, if the Fancies ends up being my best option, I am not averse to finding inserts and sewing them into the right cup.

    Thanks again for your help!

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    OK I will check out some of your other photos to see if I can come up with any useful ideas! I agree that like many people with a somewhat streamlined bust profile you may have misunderstood this as having allover shallow tissue distribution and this probably caused you to waste a lot of money/effort on bra styles that were not going to work.

    Before I go look at other pics though, just one general response to the extra detail you provided about breast asymmetry--while many of us have that degree of asymmetry or more, the nature of people's asymmetry is extremely variable. If yours happens to be of such a nature that the base of your smaller breast's root is higher than the other, this can be a REALLY big problem in terms of getting even well-dimensioned bra bands and wires to stay put. In a bigger cup size, there is room for the boob on the smaller cup to shift upwards a bit, and in a smaller cup size the larger boob will be forcibly shoving the cups down (and in some bras you'll even get the problem of everything shifting back up again once the breasts have "climbed" out or settled into a different position relieving the downward pressure and allowing the wires to climb up all over again). Really the only solutions to this are wireless bras OR the use of any pad, roll or other item that can be placed underneath the smaller breast. This will block the base of the cup securely into place under your smaller boob so that both cups are more or less at the same level and the band stays horizontally aligned.

  • wendybien I won't lie, the breast asymmetry issues that you described sound a LOT like the issues I am experiencing. I am definitely curious to hear your other feedback, but I will also look into ordering some inserts from Amazon and see if that helps the issue at all.

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    wendybien i can add to this experience also. I currently have 1 breast (implant) sitting a full inch lower than my other one. When i was fitting my higher smaller, less projected side and making my lower, larger side stretch my cup, i always had band and gore pain. That bossy boob pushed everything down. Once i fit my larger side better (and added a cookie )on my smaller side its much better. Cup depth and location of that depth is sooooo important.

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    AprilGoulding Honestly, if that's all I need to do to start having better luck--I would be so grateful and relieved! Here I was, wondering if I would have to get my right breast augmented (only in my most frustrated and desperate moments, but still). Do you have a type/brand of insert that you recommend?

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    Nah. I just wear Ewa Michalek BM style - its stretch lace, so accommodates asymmetry and also CHP and S which comes with cookies. You can take it out on your larger side and keep it in, or even have both cookies in, on your smaller side.

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    AprilGoulding owwwww that sounds HORRIBLY painful! Ouchy ouchy ouchy. You must be relieved to have figured that out.

    nrfrench people use all kinds of different things (cookies vs inserts vs pads) and it's mostly a matter of trial and error since you want it to be just the right thickness and size. Slimmer, soft cookies can be good to start out with since you can try different numbers of them to see how each combination works. Just a word of caution, many of the gel- or air-filled products sold are designed to have a cosmetic cleavage-boosting effect so they can be too thick/round to use easily, especially if they're intended to be placed more on the side of the breast rather than right underneath.

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    Real quick, under Manage Photos, make sure you have checked "Make pictures visible next to my bra information" or only you can see them. :)

  • "...the nature of people's asymmetry is extremely variable. If yours happens to be of such a nature that the base of your smaller breast's root is higher than the other, this can be a REALLY big problem in terms of getting even well-dimensioned bra bands and wires to stay put. In a bigger cup size, there is room for the boob on the smaller cup to shift upwards a bit, and in a smaller cup size the larger boob will be forcibly shoving the cups down (and in some bras you'll even get the problem of everything shifting back up again once the breasts have "climbed" out or settled into a different position relieving the downward pressure and allowing the wires to climb up all over again). Really the only solutions to this are wireless bras OR the use of any pad, roll or other item that can be placed underneath the smaller breast. This will block the base of the cup securely into place under your smaller boob so that both cups are more or less at the same level and the band stays horizontally aligned."

    Wow. I never guessed such variables existed, much less their consequences! wendybien, you are my Goddess of Brafitting!

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  Maddie is known to be best on those who like wide underwires and are shallow, so the bottom going unfilled and the wire and cup being too wide seem to suggest a shape mismatch to me (especially since trying more than one size did not help). I don’t know what else you’ve tried or to what degrees those have/n’t worked for you, but do you have any more clues as to what a good and comfortable shape for you might be?

  Updated on February 19, 2019 Flag this

  
  

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    Thank you so much for your response, and your feedback! I originally thought I was very shallow, but I've learned that I'm closer to the center/average of the spectrum. The Freya Deco Moulded plunge (28F UK) fit me really well at first, but was so uncomfortable by the end of the day that I had to take it off (a desperate move, as I was still at work). The other bra that has fit me well is the Freya Fancies Plunge (28F UK), which is honestly the most comfortable bra I've tried by far, and it fit in EVERY way, except for the fact that because it is unlined, the size difference of my breasts was really obvious, and the wrinkling in the right cup was visible underneath t-shirts. (I just added the bra to my profile, so I think you could see it now? I'm still new to bratabase--I came over from reddit.) I'm not sure what this says about my shape, though!

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    nrfrench You’re super welcome! Always happy to help. What about the Freya Moulded Deco was bothering you by the end of the day? As for the Freya Fancies, have you tried seeing if it will work and still be just as comfy with a cookie added on the smaller side?

    I started (by shyly lurking) on reddit too, but my first formal account was here. Super glad to have you :D!

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