Bra Fit Tips for Soft Breasts

The density of your breast tissue can make a big difference to your bra fit. Today we're focusing on soft breast tissue. You might think all breasts are soft but there is an easy way to distinguish between firm and soft breast tissue.

Firm breasts have a defined shape and need a bra that is as close to their shape as possible to get good fit (the most common problem is finding a cup size that fits but the style cuts into your boobs making it look like you're spilling out). Soft breasts are very fluid and tend to pour into a cup. They can flow sideways, vertically down, over your center gore and they can struggle to fill the top part of a bra. Soft breast tissue also jiggles a lot more and can slide around inside your cup if the fit isn't spot on. You can also find that soft breast tissue wrinkles as there isn't as much fatty tissue in the upper layers of skin.

There are lots of reasons why breast are, or become, soft. Genetics is a big player here, breastfeeding, weight gain or loss and simply getting older are some of the major factors. Soft breasts have less firm fat and collagen in them than firmer breasts. If you think about breast fat and collagen as internal scaffolding then it makes sense that dense, firm breasts can retain a lot of lift and shape even without a bra. Soft breasts, on the other hand, need more support because they can't lift themselves up. Here are some bra fit tips for soft breasts:

The medium height gore and cup shape of Eva have been a huge success for heavy, soft breasts in bands 34+

Fit Tip #1
Look for bras with a medium to tall gore that will keep your breasts separate from one another.

Dessous has been a popular choice for our clients with soft breasts as the seams are soft and the sides are tall

Fit Tip #2
Bras with tall sides (the piece of fabric coming down from the strap) are good for side heavy soft breasts. However, avoid bras with an inside side sling because they can cause a ridge in your breast tissue. If you love the bra you can always cut out the inner sling which is bisecting your boob.

A structure lower cup and stretchy upper cup like Envy by Panache can work really well

Fit Tip #3
Stretchy fabrics can be your friend (especially in an upper cup where you might struggle to fill) but you also want a bra with some structure to minimize the bounce. 3 or 4 part cups with a firm lower cup and stretchy upper cup can work really well.

A molded cup like Wacoal's Basic Beauty can be useful for breasts that dent easily

Fit Tip #4
Some women find that any seams create ridges in their breasts and so need molded cups. Be aware that you might get some hollow space at the top of the cups (especially near the strap) but this isn't terrible for fit.

While there is very little you can do to change your breast tissue density (outside of surgery), remember that breast tissue skin is like any other part of your skin, it benefits from good moisturizing and sun protection. So get the girls lathered up with some SPF and lotion!

As with all things boob, no one solution fits all so if you have questions about soft breast tissue fit then ask them in the comments below and we'll answer as best we can xx

How To Do A Bra Audit

Lots of women have a collection of bras in all sorts of different shapes and sizes by lots of different brands. You may buy different sizes and styles in a hope that you'll find something that fits and before you know it you have a pile of half worn bras and still nothing that fits right.

I do bra audit sessions for some of my clients to help them sort through which of their bras fit them, and more importantly, why they fit them. I go through a series of fit points for each bra and assess the fit of each brand and style to narrow down which styles and brands work best for each client.

I've put together a simple version of this checklist so you can do your own bra audit and narrow down which sizes, styles and brands work best for you.

Step 1
Put your bras into 5 piles (1 = terrible, 2 = irritating, 3 = manageable, 4 = good, 5 = excellent. Immediately place lightly or unworn 1s and 2s into a bag for donation. You can hold on to your 3s for the time being until you have better bras to replace them.

Step 2
Take the good and excellent piles and write down which size and brand are the most common. For example, most of your bras are 32DDDs (also known as a 32F) and the majority of these bras are from Wacoal. If you don't have anything in the Good or Excellent piles then it's definitely time to start from the beginning and get a Free Bra Size Consultation.

Step 3
Try on your best fitting bras and make a note of how the band and cups fit.

Band Too Big Raise your arms straight into the air; if the band moves up your body then you need a smaller band size (bear in mind that old bras have loose bands and stretched out cups so they're not a reliable gauge of fit).

• If the cups fit you on this bra then you'll need to go up one cup letter on a bra that is one band size smaller to keep the same cup volume. (e.g. a 34F becomes a 32FF)
• If the cups feel small then go up two cup letters on a band size smaller to increase your volume by one cup. (e.g. a 34F becomes a 32G)
• If the cups feel too big choose the same cup letter on a band size smaller as this will be one cup volume smaller. (e.g. a 34F becomes a 32F)

Band Fits If your band stays in place then stick with that band size.

• If the cups fit you on this bra then stick with this size, it's working for you.
• If the cups feel small then go up one cup letter on the same band size to increase your volume by one cup. (e.g. 34F becomes a 34FF)
• If the cups feel too big choose the same band size with one cup letter smaller. (e.g. a 34F becomes a 34E)

Band Too Tight If the band feels too tight consider going up one cup size.

• If the cups fit you on this bra then you'll need to go down one cup letter on a bra that is one band size bigger to keep the same cup volume. (e.g. a 34F becomes a 36E)
• If the cups feel small then keep the same cup letter on a band one size larger as this will be one cup volume larger too (e.g. a 34F becomes a 36F)
• If the cups feel too big then you'll need to go down two cup letters on a band size larger as this will be one cup volume smaller. (e.g. a 34F becomes a 36D)

If your cups and/or band feels totally wrong for you it's a good idea to start again from scratch with a Free Bra Size Consultation.

Step 4
Look for similarities in cup material and cup construction (e.g. lace, cotton, stretch material, foam, 3-part bras, 4-part bras, molded cups in a plunge style, half cups, tear drop cup shape). Write down the most common similarities in your best fitting bras.

Step 5
You should now have a short list of size, style, shape, material and brand from which you can start building your bra drawer so that everything fits you. Your Bra Audit is complete xx