Franchesca,
Give your daughter a hug from me. All my friends in 8th grade were wearing
bras and I didn't have a thing to put in one until I was in 11th grade. I
learned later in life that being small chested was a blessing. My DIL also
feels the same way. My youngest sister was well developed before any of my
other sisters. Baby Sis is six years younger than me.
My mother used to say, "Wait until you have a baby and they will come."
When that did work after my first child, she said, "Wait until you are
middle-aged, and they will come."
After son #2 was born, I refused to breast fed, then they "came in"
engorged. The pain was unbelievable! I decided that I would be happy with
what I have. MY DIL used to wear a size 0 dress, and after her second
child, she became engorged. She said that she never wanted bigger breast
again.
When I was pregnant with son #4, I was living with my MIL. He was an active
child and loved to run his feet into my ribs. This caused my bra to move
upward and I complained to my MIL. She was WELL-endowed and said, "Honey,
if I had as little as you, I would NEVER wear a bra." I got it! Official
permission from my MIL to not wear a bra!!! This was 1985 so the no bra
fashion of the 1970s made it acceptable. I have probably worn a bra 50
times, at most, since then. My breast have not sagged and are still like
they were in my 20s. I gave my MIL official permission to my DIL to not wear
a bra and she doesn't wear one now. What my MIL said not upset me. She
immediately showed me the reason. She pulled up her blouse and showed me
the heat rash under her breast, and the deep cut sores on her shoulders from
her bra straps. She said that she has had them for years and they were very
painful. My mother is large chested and showed me the same problems that
bras have done to her. Last year, my mother told me that her petite chested
mother never wore a bra and looked great her whole life. This was the
greatest gift my MIL ever gave me. I have never found a bra that fits me
correctly.
If you are an A cup, you really do not need to wear a bra. But I understand
the teenagers wanting to be in bras when everyone else is wearing them. If
you really want to put your daughter in something, try a sports bra. My
daughter hated training bras but loved sports bras.
Today a lot of the teenagers to young adults are not real! They are
enhanced and this is socially acceptable. We live in the fake generation.
Fake hair, tans, boobs, hair-color, bleached teeth, etc.
There are ways of hiding not wearing a bra (the nipple issue.)
***I started growing my hair long after son #4 was born. My hair has been
below breast length since 1986. I never had it trimmed shorter since. Also
son #4 when a baby would go to sleep holding my braid. Until he was five
years old and he was upset he would sit in my lap and pet my long braid.
***I wear t-shirts around the house. When I first started not wearing a
bra, I made sure the t-shirt had a pocket or printed logo on the front. The
opposing side of the pocket, is where my braid or ponytail resides. If my
shirt/blouse does not have a pocket or logo, I let my hair down.
***A Maidenform saleslady taught me this one. Don't purchase those fancy
flesh colored stickers to go over the nipples. Only purchase the fancy ones
for hot dates! Go to the drug store or supermarket and purchase large
Band-Aids. They generally come 10 to a box for a dollar or two. I use the
store brands made of plastic. The cloth ones have too much adhesive and can
cause bruising or irritation when removing. Also remove the Band-Aids while
taking a bath. Put a little baby oil on the breast after removal. The
removes all the band glue and moisturizes the skin. For a person with small
nipples, you can cut the Band-Aids in half lengthwise and use the remainder
on the other breast. Someone with larger nipples, use the entire band on
each breast.
I have professionally dressed many of ladies and teenagers over the years.
Here are some of the tricks of the trade for enlargement:
***I once had a student crying in the bathroom because her chest did not
fill out a dress that she had to wear immediately. I am a pro at "making
boobs." I pulled some tissue paper and increased boob size the
old-fashioned way. Needless to say, she stopped crying.
***This is my newest solution! Most of the cammies with an open space to
slip pads in. There are also cups like a bra without straps or a back that
will slide into cammies easily. But they do have a piece or elastic joining
the cups. I have also sewn cups into some evening dresses.
***Another solution that I use, is to purchase these empire waisted tops
with the cups built in without underwires. I wear them under close fitting
tops. These tops come in various colors and have spaghetti straps. I have
found at Macy's and JC Penneys. I purchased every color available. The
down side to these tops, I have found very few with cups stitched into bust.
When you wash them, the pad will fold over like a shoulder pad. You either
have to stitch the pads in place from the back lining or pin them in place
prior to washing.
***My kits has several breast pads in various cup sizes. I purchase them at
Hancock Fabrics. If I am working a play, before dress rehearsal, I buy pad
that they have in stock. The key to cleavage, is to put the pads under the
breast and slightly toward the armpit in a bra cup. Make sure the wearer
pulls "the girls up" before putting the pads in. This pushes the breast up
better than an underwire and they look more natural. My first play, I
purchased the pads for two actresses. After the other actresses saw how
nice the two actresses looked, they came in begging me (in their words) to
"make boobs" for them. After that play, I have been know locally as the
person who can make boobs.
***You can also purchase the "Natural." I have only used these once. They
adhere to the breast and feel like real breast but do not breathe. So you
can fell hot quickly.
***In magazines, film, etc. They are using spray-on cleavage. They are
actually spraying a line down the center of the chest in a darker shade than
the person's skin color to create a shadow. This process is also used to
create abs on stomachs for those diet advertisements and music videos.
My daughter has the opposite problem of yours. She started blooming at 10
y.o. Her doctor told me that when girls chests start blooming, that their
period will start generally one year later. And it did. I asked why girls
are starting their period so early. He said because of livestock being
given steroids and antibiotics. He also stated that many GYN doctors are
prescribing hormones to girls in puberty to control mood swings. Hormones
are being prescribed as young as 11-12 y.o girls. A good majority of my
daughter's friend have been on hormones in puberty.
When we recently purchased bras at Maidenform, the saleslady told us that if
you can not find the exact bra size to go up to the next number and down a
cup size. This worked for my daughter. We did this because the selection
in styles were limited at her true size. Another test if a bra is fitting
correctly is if the chest strap between the breast lays flat against the
chest. If the strap is away from the center chest, the bra is not the
correct size.
When my daughter first needed a bra, we had a hard time finding bras. I was
pulling my hair out. I can say, do not go to The Gap for trainer bras.
Also Victoria's Secret measured her incorrectly. Training bras should not
be expensive. They want way too much for them. Sears does have a nice
selection. I found a bigger selection a KMart. This was before Sears
bought KMart but you might want to check there. When you find a brand of
bras that she does like and they fit well, stick with it!
I hate underwires for the same reasons as others..the poking problem. I
take a seam ripper and make a small cut to remove them.
One TV series that shows how a bra should probably fit is "Tim Gunn's Guide
to Style" (TGGTS.) It is on Bravo! Thursday nights. They are only six
episodes and I believe this Thursday is episode 5, then Project Runway
begins. The first two episodes really shows how to know if a bra fits
properly. If you don't catch it repeating during the day, let me know. I
have been videotaping the show and can loan you my copies. I agree with the
show that everyone needs a good foundation. Some parts of the show I don't
agree with. But the foundation is very important. Today a women shouldn't
have to suffer with an ill-fitting bra. When the woman on the show has a
proper fitting bras, the co-host or Tim calls it "happy bra face." I have
to laugh because I saw my daughter with the happy bra face last month on our
shopping trip.
Lastly, one of the principal problems with cup sizes is that everyone's bust
is not shaped the same way. Some are completely rounded, some have more
tissue underneath and to the sides, etc. That is why if you find a bra
manufacturer that you like, stick with them. Most manufacturers do not
change their cup sizing molds for years.
Good luck Franchesca! Remember to have a lot of patience. As frustrated as
you are, your daughter is probably twice as much. I really feel for single
fathers when they take their puberty-age daughters bra shopping!
Penny Ladnier,
Owner, The Costume Gallery Websites
www.costumegallery.com
www.costumelibrary.com
www.costumeclassroom.com
www.costumeencyclopedia.com
----- Original Message -----
From: "Chiara Francesca" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: "'Historical Costume'" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Sent: Sunday, September 30, 2007 11:27 PM
Subject: RE: [h-cost] Increasing bra sizes
[major soap boxing approaching ...]
This is exactly what I was telling the Jockey Rep online this past week.
My 12 year old daughter is ready for a training bra. She is 5'2 and a 32a,
she is sooooo different from her current counterparts in JR HIGH!!!
AAA!!!!
They are bearly 5ft tall with busts of 32c's and up wearing underwire
bras!
I so feel for my daughter, to be different in Jr. High is a death sentence
to many girls. It breaks my heart.
In the conversation with the Jockey rep she let me know that the local
stores to me in the entire DFW area are NOT ordering the Jockey trainer
bra.
That there is a trend to order bras for teens with underwire because of 1)
Obese girls at this age and 2) They are not selling anything that is not
wired.
If I want a bra with no underwire or stiffen support ala Victoria's Secret
new wireless line I have to order it online. Either that or I can keep her
in sports bras. I fear that if I do that she will lose her shape and droop
long before she is 15.
I am just not ready to have my non-obese daughter to be forced into a bra
that is being designed for a larger ribcage and bust line and added wire
support for it.
[major soap boxing off]
Chiara Francesca
-----Original Message-----
From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On
Behalf Of Mary + Doug Piero Carey
Sent: Sunday, September 30, 2007 9:34 PM
To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Subject: [h-cost] Increasing bra sizes
That's interesting...I had been Thinking, this last year or so, that it
seemed to me that teen girls seemed to be bustier than I remembered from
the 70s. I had been shrugging it off to the general chubbiness of the
population, but this summer & fall I was really trying to notice, and it
really did seem that more of the slender girls were bigger than I would
expect. Then last weekend I went to my first high school football game
in 20 years. I didn't need to pay attention to the game, since the
nephew was on the sidelines recuperating from an injury. Folks, I
_know_ this crowd. These are the grandkids & the kids of the families I
went to school with. (And wasn't that its own mind-blowing little trip,
but I digress.) Familiar names, faces, and bodies... but with bigger
breasts. Something, or somethings, is different. There was definitely
more boobage than there used to be. I don't mean skin on display, I
mean cubic inches. There was definitely a shortage of candidates for
the teeny tiny titty committee. Very odd indeed. I don't know how much
is hormones in the diet, how much is medical enhancement, & how much is
wonderbras, but the landscape was hillier than I used to see. And lots
of those girls were NOT wearing any bra, let alone anything that could
give that much boost.
Your intrigued,
Mary Piero Carey
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