Like many women of a certain age, I have been a fan of Marks & Spencer for more years than I can remember. There was a time when I split my shopping between M&S and Next but nowadays, I like to mix things up a bit more. Shopping in independent shops means that I can be a bit more unique as they generally don’t sell lots of the same styles as they don’t have the buying power. I do however love Marksies cashmere jumpers (and H&M’s), knee length boots (although I’ve moved over to Sosander for these now) and, like one in three women, their underwear.
Why do I love their underwear so much? They do basics very well; t-shirt bras and seam free thongs (I hate VPL with a passion and have worn thongs for so long, I no longer feel the thongy bit). It’s the fit and the comfort factor of the underwear that I love the most. I’ve tried buying them from other stores and have tried other brands, but for the price and convenience, I keep coming back to M&S.
I prefer the balconette style. It usually has a half or three-quarter coverage so lifts the top half of the bust and enhances the look of my boobs. I think this style suits smaller boobs and bigger ones alike. Marksies has a great selection of different styles though, from full cup strapless and multiway, post-surgery, sports, maternity, and nursing bras, plunge and moulded cup.
Every so often, I ask for a fitting as I find my boob size changes with weight gain and loss. The ladies I find are professional and so helpful. It’s a known fact that around 80% of women are wearing the wrong bra size in the UK, so I would recommend doing this every six to twelve months or when you’ve either put on a bit of weight or lost some.
Not all of the bras that I’ve tried on fit like a glove, but I’ve learned that there are reasons for this.
Here is the science…
How Should Your Bra Fit?
Who would have thought that there would be so many things to consider in getting the right fit but here are the main things you should be looking for.
* The band should fit snugly around your body and be the same level at the front and back – no riding up at the back.
* You should be able to get two fingers the whole way around the ribcage in between your bra and your body.
* Your boobs should be fully supported – no puckering, no overspill, no loose cups, and no double boob effect.
* Underwires should always fit flat against the ribcage and not stand away from the body.
* Boobs should always be fully contained within the underwires’ wires shouldn’t dig into the breast tissue or armpit; and breasts should definitely not fall out of the bottom of the underwires!
* The bra straps shouldn’t be digging into your body.
* Don’t be alarmed if you have to go up a cup size, you will look smaller, and your posture will improve. The best way to check if your bra is fitting correctly is lift up your arms, twist your body and the bra will fit perfectly in place.”
* Lean forward and hold your bra under your breast to drop into your cup, this gets the bra correctly positioned from the root of your breast. Shape each breast into each cup to sit in correct position.
* Adjust the straps individually, some ladies have different height of shoulders so they may not be adjusted the same. The perfect position is when you can just put two fingers under the strap when adjusted.
* Your bra needs to be able to support you throughout the day. Lift your arms above your head, checking that the bra stays in the same place. A well-fitting bra will smooth, support, and lift no matter how much you wriggle.
* Check that the back of the bra hugs the narrowest part of your back and is sitting at the same level as the front. Make sure you can run your finger comfortably along the inside of the band, if not then the bra is too tight.
Why is it important to get a well-fitted bra?
It’s vital to make sure your bra fits perfectly – not just for support for your bust, but for all-round health. Constant headaches, a stiff neck and upper back pain could all be caused by bras that are too tight, too loose, or simply the wrong shape for you.
A good fitting bra will help your posture, give you confidence in your outerwear, and even make you look slimmer and discover your waist again.
You often see bras travelling up the back when the band is too big, and this offers no support to your breasts. The most important area of any bra fit is getting the band right first, with only enough space to get two fingers underneath.”
5 top tips to find the right bra size:
* The under band is most important area to get right, it’s the foundation of finding the right sized bra. You should only be able to pull the bra 4 or 5cms away from back
* Wires at centre front should always sit back completely
* Wires at side should sit on ribcage and not breast tissue
* Cups should fully encase the breast without spillage!
* Straps – you should always adjust on, and you should only be able to fit two fingers under the strap and your shoulders.
As I said you should get fitted every six to twelve months, no matter what your bust size.
Always try before you buy – there is little to no standardisation when it comes to sizing and fit between brands online or department stores.
If you go up a back size, go down a cup size. Down a back size = up a cup size.
Be conscious of your silhouette, what you want to emphasise, what makes you feel good and what’s comfortable.
Your bra should be snug when you first buy it, the fabric will give as you wear it, so ensure it’s tight on the last hook so as it softens, you can go up the hooks.
My recent purchases
I’ve been really happy with my latest purchases. As well as being very pretty, they are so comfy. I can wear them all day with no ill effects.
I hope you like my choices and have found the pointers in this post helpful.
Happy shopping!
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