Fitting Room Diaries: Entry #012, 36DDD, Very Full-on-Top
Customer: Ellie, Size 36DDD
Ellie is an occupational therapist and is fairly physically active at work. Her version of “supportive” is feeling contained and hugged – and not spill out no matter how she moves. She prefers underwire bras, both unpadded and very lightly padded. She used to shop at Change Lingerie.
Her measurements: 34’’ underband, 41.5’’ standing bust, 42.5’’ leaning bust.
She prefers a somewhat relaxed fit, going with a 36 band. The most salient feature of her shape is her breasts are very full on top, and very shallow at the bottom. Her roots are wider than average for her size range.
Bra #1: Quinn in 36DDD
Quinn is a perfect fit for Ellie. The center gore tacks softly (lightly touching but not poking the sternum). The band stays parallel to the floor and does not ride up. Her breasts are lifted, fully contained by the taller cups, and the cups give them a beautiful, round shape. Quinn’s underwire is wider, which suits her wider roots well – there is no space between her breast tissue and the underwire. Bonus: they are not very visible under a white t-shirt.
Bra #2: Salma in 36DDD
Salma fits Ellie just as beautifully as Quinn. Soft tack, lifted profile, and a close shape match with the underwire. The two bras have the same underwire, and use the same pattern. Salma uses a softer lace and mesh, whereas Quinn uses a more rigid spacer fabric. As a result, Salma gives a more relaxed fit – some lift, more separation (letting breasts sit on the sides instead of bringing them toward the center), but less roundness.
Bra #3: Sierra in 36DDD
Sierra is built for the opposite shape – shallow on top, full on bottom (from the side, this shape kind of looks like a ski slope). Ellie has a lot of fullness on top, so she spills out of Sierra badly. This bra covers less than half of her breasts, and certainly will not pass the bend test. The underwire fits her well (wide), and the projection level suits her as well.
Bra #4: Shea in 36DDD
Shea is too shallow for Ellie. Her breast tissue is pushing the underwire down and the center gore out, seeking a place to go. For people with similar projection level as Ellie, we recommend seamed cup bras over molded cup bras.
Bra #5: Harper in 36DDD
Harper is similarly too shallow for Ellie. Her breasts are not fully lifted away from her torso and are pushing the underwire down, because there is no room for them.
Bra #6: Ivy in 36DDD
Ivy’s fit issues are the same as Shea’s and Harper’s. It’s too shallow for Ellie. The bottom of her breasts is still touching her torso, and the center gore is pushed out.
Bra #7: Zoe in 36DDD
Though it’s not a perfect fit, Zoe is a very forgiving bra. The bra cups can be deeper to allow the center gore to lie flat against her sternum. But Ellie said Zoe is very comfortable, and she wears this bra often. Compared to Sierra, Zoe has a bit more coverage, so there is no spillage. And even though Zoe’s underwire skews narrow, it’s very flexible – no underwire discomfort here.
Bra #8: Eva in 36DD/DDD
For the last 3 bras, Ellie tried some wireless options. Full on top + shallow on bottom + a fair bit of projection is a difficult shape for wireless bras to work. Eva did not give Ellie much lift.
Bra #9: Hugger in 36DDD
Like Eva, Hugger did not offer much support for Ellie. She said she would only wear this bra around the house.
Bra #10: Amber in 36DD/DDD
Amber was the most supportive of the 3 wireless options Ellie tried. Ellie said it felt like sports bra, but not uncomfortably compressive like one. She also liked that it’s minimizing.
Final thoughts
At the end of the fitting session, we asked Ellie to pick a winner. She chose Quinn. The underwire was a perfect match for her roots, the cups gave her a beautiful round shape, all while keeping her breasts lifted and separated.
