| The Fashion Encyclopedia: An Essential Guide to Everything You Need to Know About Clothes
By Catherine Houck
BRAS
The 1960s question of "to bra or not to bra" has been answered affirmatively. A woman who wears an A cup or a small B doesn't need a bra, but everyone else does. "Wearing a bra prevents the stretching induced by gravity and maintains the shape of the breast," says Dr. Richard Ellenbogen, a plastic and reconstructive surgeon in Los Angeles, California. He likes to point out to dissenters that the barebreasted braless young women shown in National Geographic photos usually show excessive premature sagging. Here are a few pointers to help with bras:
SIZE
For numerical size, measure the rib cage just under the breasts, and add five inches to this figure; if you measure an odd number, such as a 33, go on to the next number, 34. For cup size, measure directly over the breasts. If breast measurement is an inch bigger than rib cage size plus the five inches, you're an A. Two inches, a B; three inches a C; four inches a D.
FIT
A well-fitting bra should fit without your having to tighten straps -- tightening straps doesn't lift the breasts, it merely lifts the back of the bra. Perform the strap test: drop one strap -- if support is lost on that side, the bra doesn't fit.
Wrinkles in the cups could mean the bra is either too small or too large. If too small, the breasts are pushed to the sides rather than outward, filling out the cup.
To get a good fit, call your favorite department store or lingerie shop and make an appointment with the fitter. They're professionals at seeing that you get the bra that's most comfortable and flattering, and their services are free.
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