Family chest

Photo from bravissimo.com - an excellent site for lingerie, swimwear and clothes for ladies with chests on the larger side.

According to a sign in Debenhams lingerie department 70% of British women wear the wrong bra size. Earlier on Saturday I could count myself amongst these deluded masses.

Bravissimo have some further facts: 60% of women wearing a C cup should actually be wearing a D cup - my bra faux pas was worse than this. They also think the national average of 36C is probably more likely to be 34DD. How do they know these things?

You would think with so many fashion programmes with clothing gurus such as Trinny & Susannah, Nicky Hambleton-Jones, and my personal favourite, Gok Wan extolling the virtues of correct cups we would all get measured. The effect of wearing the right bra works miracles on the women appearing on these programmes - both aesthetic and psychological - so why are there still so many wearing the wrong size?

My grandma bought me my first bra, a 28AA - so small there probably wasn't much point in me wearing it. The woman in M & S asked my grandma if it was the right size, obviously eyeing up her rather sizeable bosom. I remember the first time I was measured for a bra. I was about 14 and my mum thought it important that I wore the correct size as I was growing up. I don't mind telling you that I was a 32B.



I have been measured a couple of times since then so have stayed in the right size. However, I was measured last year by a lady in a certain high street store, I won't name and shame. I didn't think that her measurement was right but I gave her the benefit of the doubt as that's her job not mine. Unfortunately there isn't a Bravissimo shop in Carlisle so I went to Turnbulls, an independent shop with a great reputation, and in fact the place where I was first measured.



The service in there was fantastic and when the lady thought she had my size correct she got someone to check it. Considering I was only measured about 6 months ago, and I haven't changed in size since then, I can't believe that the high street measurer got it so wrong. Three whole cup sizes wrong! It looks as though the family chest is starting to develop, as ours tend to be on the larger side.

Unfortunately they didn't have the bra I liked in my size so I went round to Debenhams and M & S and ended up getting 4 bras and 2 pairs of matching knickers. I am pleased now as before I could only admire Bravissimo's bras and buy their clothes - now I can look at the bras with the intent to buy them.