Because some of the details that I’m going to describe in this series are present in all good bras, I’ll give more background about them here.

First, we’ve all heard that most of the support in the bra comes from the band, but I’ve always wondered how that could be.  This picture from Don McCunn’s blog provides a great illustration for those of us who are visual learners.

Once we understand how the band supports our busts, we can see why the fabric used in the band is so important. When shopping for bras, compare the stretch of the fabric in back.  If you buy an expensive bra, you should be paying for fabric that (i) is difficult to stretch; and (ii) returns to its original shape when you let go. An inexpensive bra can also provide great support, but you may need to replace it sooner.  Tomima from Herroom gives a good explanation on her site.

Second, every quality D+ bra that I examined at Curve had a leotard strap back.  Tiffany Berrier from Chantelle showed me the difference between the leotard strap back and the camisole strap back below.

Leotard strap back at rest
The pull of the leotard strap is balanced in all directions.
Camisole strap back at rest
The pull of the camisole strap back concentrates the stress
at one point, which can cause holes.

I heard that Victoria’s Secret is going to offer D+ bras, but to watch out because they’re going to have camisole straps.  This makes sense because they’re easier and therefore less expensive to create.

Finally, if you’re going to capitulate and buy a seamed bra, look for butted seams across the bust.  I have no idea if my diagram below is even accurate, but here’s the point: butted seams, where two pieces of fabric are sewn together at the meeting point of their two creases, are less bulky than seams in which two pieces of fabric are sewn on top of each other.  Feel free to add more if you know more about this!

It looks like I’ve run out of time to write about Prima Donna bras today, but when I do finally tell you what I learned about them at Curve, you’ll understand why the fabric, leotard straps and butted seams are important.