Archive for May, 2009

How to Relax in a B-R-A

May 31st, 2009 by Carissa Rose
Finding a leisure bra for the full bust is one of the most challenging lingerie wardrobe gaps to fill. A leisure bra used to be termed a day bra in the industry, but now it is more accurate to call it a house bra. While the aim is to be comfortable, one’s upfront & together appearance isn’t such a top priority. However, comfort does entail support, noone feels good having breasts rest on their ribcage/tummy as they enjoy their day at home.

This is my favorite house bra. In general I advise our clients against wearing an underwire bra at home. One can see it akin to wearing pumps/heels around the house. We may wear them at work and around town because we feel good in them and those shoes are stylish, but when we come home, whether to cook dinner, watch TV, or what have you, we usually rest our feet. Likewise please rest your breasts from the underwire.

When looking for a house bra, consider the “good bra” tenents:

  1. snug back band
  2. seamed cup
  3. rigid fabrication

You can find a soft-cup bra that is made of cotton or cotton/polyester that won’t stretch, but will have a soft hand. I warn you that a soft cup bra usually comes up higher in the center front to give the support in lieu of under wires. When purchasing a soft cup bra, which are available only in full cup styles, you may take a different size than your wired, blacony bras. For example, if you wear a 32F in an underwire balcony/plunge bra, then in the full soft cup bra you may take a 32E. A soft cup has a more universal fit because wires are not involved.

When you come home from work and change your clothes, do you change your B*R*A as well? If so, what do you put on in its stead? Sometimes, a sports bra does a fine job.

As always, please contact Bratique Helene if you have any questions on bras, swim, or clothing for your full bust.

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Posted in bra sizes, bra types | 15 Comments »

Cleavage

May 24th, 2009 by Carissa Rose

Cleavage is defined as the partial exposure of the separation of a woman’s breasts; the depression between a woman’s breasts especially when made visible by the wearing of a low-cut dress.


Rihanna is sporting some cleavage in this picture, where the breast tissue starts to rise up from the ribcage. This form of cleavage is usually seen in a scoop neck or square neck top and can be hard to avoid, especially in summer time clothing a la Anna Kournikova in the picture below. I say that it is harder to avoid because as well endowed women, we look better in necklines that are v-neck, u-neck, scoop, square, etc., and not so good in crew neck, boat neck and similar. As I heard an ample bossomed woman say, “my boobs start right under my collar bone”. The neckline of one’s shirt has to hit right at that sweet spot so as not to show any cleavage, but also give direction and be flattering to our bust-lines.


However, the “bottom crack” as shown below, is really only acceptable when a woman is trying to be overtly sexy, as in at a certain function (romantic date with husband?). This type of cleavage, when not intentional (this isn’t usually an appropriate every day look), is due to an ill-fitting bra. Because as we know, the center gore of your bra should rest flat against the chest wall, thereby seperating those breasts – even if its by 1/2 inch.


So look down at your bust-line or in a mirror, do you have the “bottom crack” caused by the breasts being pushed together? Then get thee to the nearest bra salon for a fitting. Unless of course you WANT to have cleavage, then purchase a bra such as the one below.

Cleavage, when not intentional, is caused by one of the following (listed in order of importance):

  1. improperly fitting bra
  2. neckline too low

And as always, please contact Bratique Helene if you have any questions concerning the best bras and swim for your full bust.

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Posted in big breast clothing, full busted women, how to fit a bra | 4 Comments »

The Back Band of your Bra

May 11th, 2009 by Carissa Rose
The back band is the size of your bra that is typically something like 32, 34, 36, etc. Most of the women we see wear their back bands too loose, this causes the back band to ride up, which in turn creates the back fat that noone likes to see. Please, try anchoring your bra band below your shoulder blades, just a tad lower than the bottom of the bustline in the front (easily done while viewing your profile in a mirror).
The picture on top has the band higher in the back and you can see a back-fat roll. While the picture on the bottom has the bank pulled down a bit and the back fat roll disappeared. We illustrate this to clients all the time.

We recently went shopping with a client – Bratique Helene provides a complimentary bra shopping service to full bust women. This woman is a beautiful hourglass, maybe fourteen inches or so between her bust – waist – hip measurements. Previously she’d been measured as a 34 band size and even she knew herself that was too big. We tried 32s, because that’s all we found at this particular store. But when we found a 30 back band and put it on her she proclaimed, “there, now I feel like I have on a bra”. Really, a snug & seccure (as opposed to moving up the back) back band takes the pressure off the breasts. And takes the pressure off the abdomen (if breasts are laying there), the shoulders (if the straps are super tightened), and relieves back pain from heavy breasts. She purchased Freya balcony plunge bras in size 30HH.
Prior to that we shopped with a client who was wearing a 36G. She had lost some weight and we put her in a 34G. As she wore it that evening she said, “This is really uncomfortably tight (in the back), I think I may return it”. I told her to wear it for a week and if she still didn’t like it, then return it. A week later she says its the best fitting bra she’s ever had and is going to buy more of the same kind.
BH recommends the following:

  • Wear your new bra on the loosest hook, so as it stretches you may tighten it.
  • See how snug you can go. You may be pleasantly surprised at your uplift – both mental and physical.
  • If the bra band can be pulled several inches away from your center back, its time to either a) wash it, b) tighten it, c) go shopping!

And finally, do you have a good bra size story? I’ll start . . . we had a client who was wearing a 36DD from a mainstream lingerie retailer. I could tell by looking at her that she was a 32 band size because her body was a small size 4-6. Sure enough we fit her in a 32GG. Again, an enviable hourglass with more than a 10 inch difference in her measurements (and believe it or not she wish her body was less curvy). We also have a 32GG client who has a size 14-16 body, can you guess on which body (the S or L) the bust-line looks bigger? Because technically they are the same size – 32GG.

Remember, embrace your endowment; it is a blessing and not a curse
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Posted in bra sizes, bra types, how to fit a bra, how to measure bra size | No Comments »