Bralette for the large of boob

March 18, 2017 3:49 PM

Seeking personal recommendations for bralettes that have worked for people with boobs on the larger side.

Specifically a bralette that will work for 34DD boobs, preferably in black, preferably not too frou frou. I'm not a huge fan of regular bras and have been eyeing the recent bralette renaissance with interest and skepticism. I've tried a lot of bralettes that look cute, but cannot actually handle my boobs. I've searched Amazon/Aerie/etc but can't determine if they will actually work for a not-B-cup chest.

posted by annie o to Clothing, Beauty, & Fashion (17 answers total)

I'm a 36E on a small frame and I find these work well. You can get them at Kohls.
posted by fluttering hellfire at 4:47 PM on March 18, 2017 [3 favorites]

I haven't yet tried it but I've been seeing ads for a company called Third Love that sends out bras for you to try in and return if you don't like them.
posted by the agents of KAOS at 5:07 PM on March 18, 2017

Are you looking for an all-purpose bra substitute, or are you more in it for the cuteness factor? I'm a 34D and like the look of bralettes but I have yet to find anything as supportive as a regular bra, if that's what you're aiming for. I usually bum around the house in them. My favorite is this one which is cute and comfortable and which I don't fall out of, but it's nowhere near an underwire bra in terms of support. It might not work for you, but then again it might? (It's really stretchy; I have a large but would consider sizing down to medium for more support, to give you an idea of fit.)

I've had a couple Aerie bralettes over the years and found they run pretty true-to-size, but I haven't found one I really liked.

I can't recommend other specific styles, but in general I have more luck with styles that have one or more of the following: structured cups, a wider/longline back band, thicker straps, and/or crossed-back straps.
posted by Metroid Baby at 5:51 PM on March 18, 2017

Response by poster: Mostly looking for an all purpose substitute for super-casual wear. I've been wearing sports bras on the weekends for the comfort factor, plus I tend to be kind of active - lots of walking, misc fairly active chores - gardening, cleaning, etc - so I don't want to be changing my bra all the time. But I don't really need a full on sports bra for this stuff - I want something that is less constrictive support, a little cuter and lighter weight, less of a total uni-boob look. Maybe sports bras for like, yoga is what I want? Which ones are good for larger boobs? My issue with bralettes/sports bras is usually when the band fits, there's not enough material to cover the actual breast, and when I can fit everything in, then the band is way too loose. Maybe yoga bras that come sizes in band/cup size??
posted by annie o at 6:02 PM on March 18, 2017

I wear a 36F, and have had surprisingly good luck with Torrid's bralettes. They sort of run the range of being more for looks and more for support, but, for example, this has become an often-worn one for me. (In a size two, if that helps your calculations at all--their sizing is 0-6, if I remember right.) I just wore it while moving house, and it wasn't a sports-bra level of support, but it did a good job of constraining what needed constrained. I have two in that style and wear them often.

I also have one in this style, which is A Look that I super dig, and is still remarkably functional--not *as* functional, but way more than I would've expected it to be.

Those styles I'd rec almost unreservedly. I'm less sure about reccing the bandeaus--they don't seem to constrain my tiddy much as I'd like, though I have a few friends who swear by them. If you have a store near you, it's probably worth going in and trying on some stuff to see if any of them would work for you.
posted by mishafletch at 6:12 PM on March 18, 2017 [5 favorites]

Cannot recommend Third Love. Returning was a NIGHTMARE. They send you a link to a shipping label. Mine didn't work, they don't respond to emails and have no phone number. It was kafkaesque returning that thing. And the bra itself was nothing at all- super cheap- basically the exact bra as some amazon cheapies I bought for $25 a couple years ago. To the point I think they might actually be the same bra. It also didn't fit at all, despite their fit finder thing.

I like the Glamorize no bounce sports bra for this kind of casual wear. It's really comfy and has adjustable support plus they are $25. Not cute or anything but I find myself wearing mine nearly all the time now.
posted by fshgrl at 6:16 PM on March 18, 2017 [1 favorite]

Are you familiar with r/abrathatfits? I usually avoid reddit, but I found that subsite via mefi a little while back, and it's literally a magical repository of information. Aside from discovering that there was a reason my 34Bs felt like medieval torture devices, I also found brands I hadn't heard of, almost all of which are aimed at larger cup sizes. My personal favorite is Freya, and they have some bralettes, although I haven't personally tried them. Panache is another brand I really like.

I bet if you ask this question over there, you'll get a some good recommendations for brands that aren't as well known, at least in US department stores.
posted by litera scripta manet at 7:04 PM on March 18, 2017 [8 favorites]

Best answer: Not specifically bralettes, but bras for all types of activity with different support level ratings: Title 9. Look at the Work to Workout and Beautility bras. Great customer service.
posted by Red Desk at 7:51 PM on March 18, 2017

TomboyX bras are my new go-to for this purpose. I wouldn't use them for full-on working out, but for casual everyday life wear they're comfortable and have good coverage and the patterned ones suit my fairly minimL cuteness needs.
posted by Stacey at 9:20 PM on March 18, 2017

Best answer: I have 32H boobs and recommend the Patagonia Barely There Bra. Seen here. I'm typically a small/medium top but I wear a large in this bra. It is comfy as hell, keeps my knockers reasonably appropriate and in place, and comes in black and pink. I have one in both colors and I wear them so much I might as well not own other bras.
posted by teslacoilswoah at 9:26 PM on March 18, 2017 [6 favorites]

I am a similar size to you. As a substitute bralette, you can wear something like the Bali womens comfort revolution. A small really will stretch to fit you in the brands I've tried and give a bit of separation. It's basically a comfy, slightly separating sports bra.
posted by Kalmya at 6:13 AM on March 19, 2017 [1 favorite]

Laura of the Etsy shop Dreams and Underthings sells custom made cup-sized (not S/M/L) bralettes for $30. (Not a typo!)

If you Google "Dreams and Underthings review," you'll find much praise from the large of boob. I've seriously considered getting one myself (34F), and your question may spur me to action.
posted by virago at 7:55 AM on March 19, 2017

38/40 DDD here. I bought two of these a while ago and they have basically replaced all of my other bras.
posted by mynameisluka at 8:37 AM on March 19, 2017

These days, as soon as I get home from work I change into a bra30 tank top. I'm partial to the long tanks (though the "tummy tucker" name makes me queasy) and I love the color they call "light blue", which is really a medium slate shade.

Their size L works well for me at 32GG/34G.
posted by tangerine at 6:03 PM on March 19, 2017

Jumping back in to the conversation to say that Laura Davenport of Dreams and Underthings is taking a break (as of Jan. 18) because of the "overwhelming positive response" to her wares. According to this note on her Etsy page, she'll be back "in the spring of 2017."

In the meantime (since I can't vouch for the product personally), here are the reviews of Dream and Underthings bralettes from Bratabase and from Etsy. The reviews have been generally positive, especially among the small band/large bust community.
posted by virago at 11:17 AM on March 20, 2017

I've loved third love, but that might just be because they were bras that actually fit after a long period of having bras that didn't.

If you're trying to avoid uniboob you should look for yoga/medium impact bras that have a v to them or aren't straight across. I usually just end up wearing a sports bra after work.

I wear a 36dd.
posted by raccoon409 at 3:44 PM on March 21, 2017

While not an exact match for what you're looking for, the Kohls Sonoma Everyday Camisole in size L scales has an unexpectedly high amount of bust capacity and support built-in, enough that it's dailywear around here. (size L, 32 F+)
posted by crysflame at 7:13 AM on April 9, 2017