Inside the Closet of . . . Fran, a Video Conferencing Specialist Who Wears a 38F

First, the background. Fran works as a Video Conferencing Specialist for a company that creates audio video communication systems for corporate clients. The office dress code is business casual–one of her co-workers shows up in cowboy boots and jeans every day. The first time that Fran meets with a client, she suits up, but when she’s working at a construction site, she wears jeans.

Fran is 38, 5’6″ and wears size 12 Aeropostale skinny jeans. Those are Cacique 38DDD Smooth Balconette bras that you see in Fran’s lingerie drawer below. She finds them very comfortable for an underwire–no poking out at the side. They only cost $34 and “keep everything lifted up and supported”.

They may be great bras, but I say there’s no way that Fran is a 38F. Her back is as narrow as mine, and she has a little bit of “bonus boob” going on in the cups. Since Cacique’s 34/36 bands only go to a DDD, I don’t think this brand belongs in Fran’s lingerie drawer. She’s been getting bra fittings from a little store on the Upper East Side since she was 13, and I had looked forward to a sentimental story about her bra fitter. Now I believe this fitter has done Fran a disservice. No, Fran didn’t buy these bras from her fitter, but why did she believe she was a 38DDD to begin with? So that’s a story for another post–once I persuade Fran to try a fitter that I trust.

For now, let’s move from what goes under Fran’s clothes to what goes on top: her jackets and coats. It’s gotten mighty chilly here in New York City, so I thought you’d appreciate hearing more about the coat options available to us. Let’s start with the most fun–a leather jacket!

Fran found this through Victoria’s Secret, where they have a ton of zip-up options. Yes, this size large motorcycle jacket does flatten her out a little when it’s zipped, but at least she can close it if she wants to, and there aren’t any button gaps!

This is her classy Jones New York coat. I have an almost identical Jones New York black trench coat, complete with the double breasting, that I always feel strong and powerful in. For all my moaning about the lack of coats for large-breasted women, this simple, classic style is usually available to us. For proof, I post my single-breasted winter coat from Nordstrom’s after the jump. It’s the figure-hugging styles that are more of a challenge to find.