It pinches, pinches and squeezes. Buying a bra can be a difficult thing. Above all: How do you find the right fit? And once you’ve found the right item, you’ll wear it until it falls apart.
“Many women wear ill-fitting bras,” says Stephanie Schneider from Woltersdorf in Brandenburg. She is a lingerie tailor and sews bespoke bras for desperate women.
“As soon as women have flatter or larger breasts, they fall completely out of the German bra size system,” she says. The bra that doesn’t fit is often a taboo subject. “Many think they are wrong or that something is wrong with them,” says Schneider.
Sometimes big breasts become a problem for the back. One of her customers, for example, is an elderly lady from Saxony-Anhalt, says Schneider. Her large breasts gave her a crooked back. With a tailor-made bra, it was possible to lift the breasts 20 centimeters and enable the woman to walk upright again. “In the meantime she has lost 20 kilos because she was able to go for a walk again.”
‘Verband Gesamtmasche, the lingerie manufacturer’: 80 percent of women know their bra size
Anja Barth from the ‘Verband Gesamtmasche’, which represents lingerie manufacturers’ in Germany, says: “An estimated 80 percent of women do not know their bra size and therefore often choose the wrong size. This is where most of the fit problems come from.”
There are various studies on the subject, says Simone Morlock, head of the digital fit laboratory at the testing service provider Hohenstein. A measurement and survey of 1,500 women by Hohenstein in 2001 showed that more than 50 percent of women should actually wear a larger bra size.
“Our size system cannot describe the breast volume correctly,” explains the expert. The cup size does not indicate how big the volume of the breast is and how it is distributed in the cup. Every woman is individual. The cups of the individual manufacturers also have very different shapes.
“And women also forget to adjust their bra size over the years,” adds Morlock. “Even if you always stay slim, your chest will change.” And women, unfortunately, tended not to choose larger clothing sizes.
“Every female body is different,” says Anja Barth. The size system does not offer a perfect fit, but it is a good guide due to the variety of bra sizes. “The high-quality series production of clothing is only possible with size standards.”
But what does the size actually mean? The trail leads back to 1958. Back then, 65 years ago, Hohenstein measured thousands of women in West Germany for the first time. Serial measurements like these are the basis for so-called bodice tables. “And the bra sizes are based on these,” explains Simone Morlock.
When the system of cup sizes was invented cannot be said. But one thing is clear: the number in the bra size describes the underbust circumference, the cup size the difference between the chest and underbust circumference. A science in itself. The Internet therefore offers many instructions. The forum Busenfreundinnen.net has even made it its task to bring women closer to “bralogy”.
Custom-made products and 3D scans
Measurement charts or not – the lingerie tailor Stephanie Schneider does not use them at all. A one-off production is not an option for most women. “It’s not affordable for the majority,” says Barth. «The expensive thing about a bra is the pattern construction. This is insanely complicated. It’s all about architecture and physics, about the derivation of forces,” explains Stephanie Schneider. That does not fit into the profit optimization ideas of many manufacturers.
Manufacturers like Triumph now also offer customers a 3D scan to make it easier to find the right bra. So far, however, the scan offer has been accepted with reservations. “Most women supposedly “know” their size and don’t measure themselves – contrary to what we recommend – before every purchase,” says Claudia Roos, Head of Creative Design at Triumph. She recommends consulting a specialist shop.
Some manufacturers are increasingly trying to free themselves from the size corset. “Our collection includes products with so-called easy sizing, which is advertised independently of the cup size and guarantees a secure fit,” explains Alexandra Schmid, Head of Product Management at Schiesser.
Soft bustiers that adapt to the respective body are particularly popular at the moment, says Anja Barth. “Physical fluctuations are no longer a problem – they adapt.” The trend is generally towards comfortable underwear and more naturalness. “Women no longer want to be pressed into a tight corset,” she is convinced. This also has to do with the body positivity movement, which is trying to fight against unrealistic ideals of beauty. (dpa)