Why don't you shut the door, and close the curtains?

[venta]

I have an enquiry of a delicate nature.

I'm having difficulty finding bras which I like. At some point in the last few years, the fashion industry declared that if you are any smaller than a DD, you'll be wanting to conceal this dangerous information with a bra which is padded, shaped, and various other things.

If you go somewhere cheap and nasty like Primark, every single bra available A-C will have impressive cleavage all by itself, without even a person in it. It's terrifying. If you go somewhere posh and pricey... well, it's a little better. But even then the unpadded bras will be embroidered, beaded, be-ribboned and generally all a bit much. Most stages between Primark and posh seem similarly afflicted.

A few places will have, tucked away at the back, a small display of boxed, cheap, dead-plain bras. They won't be execiting, or available in anything other than white, but they will be functional. Interestingly, the mother reports a recent haul from this department of M&S included a bra which (in very small print) had the warning "do not wear for more than 8 hours". We could only deduce it was due to the non-slip coating on the inside of the straps, which was akin to the odd rubbery stuff they put on hold-ups. Which, incidentally, doesn't work; but I digress.

So I turn to you, the bra-wearing section of the LJ-reading public, to help out. Where can I find "nice" underwear, preferably the sort for which one can buy matching pants, which isn't padded? I'm happy with underwiring, I just don't require gel-filled, air-filled or anything-else-filled enhancement. (Except, of course, according to the underwear-making world I do require it. I just don't want it.)

I'd prefer a real live shop, as buying things which need to fit well online is a bit of a gamble.

Comments

[valkyriekaren.livejournal.com]

I buy mine from M&S but then as I'm an E-cup they generally will only sell me non-padded ones, in case I frighten the horses. BHS is OK too though their sizing's a bit odd so you'll need to try on.

[venta.livejournal.com]

I'm glad it's not just me that thinks BHS is weird! Admittedly I haven't been there in years, but when a student I concluded that they just didn't make anything which fitted me. Sure, they sold my size, but it was just... strange and the wrong shape.

[sea-of-flame.livejournal.com]

Ignore the labels, just get the size that fits - grabbing a standard bra in what you think your size is, plus a couple in either direction (increase cup + decrease back, & vice versa) should help you locate what size you are according to the shop.

I'm anything from a 34FF - 38DD (in the same fitting session) depending on the manufacturer....

[venta.livejournal.com]

Yup, I know... what I meant about the BHS bras was that they were just fundamentally the wrong shape for me. There wasn't a size that fitted. There was one size that was clearly intended to be mine (I can't remember what the numbers on the label were) but it was just weird.

I'd have said "not designed for a human", but that would be a bit of a mistake across their entire range, so I presume it was just me :)

[lanfykins.livejournal.com]

There are certain brands I've learned to just avoid, because they are designed for a shape other than mine.

I love the look of Freya bras, for example, but they all without exception stab me in the sideboob. And people start asking awkward questions when they find blood on my clothes...

[valkyriekaren.livejournal.com]

When I was between sizes I went there to get measured - they tried to convince me I was a 40F. Erm... no.