First, a little background. Someone tweeted a photo of the new blue Chantelle Cachemire recently (style 3371), and I’ve fallen in love–especially after I remembered that the Cachemire is one of the few Chantelle styles with cups deep enough for my breasts. I’m in a bind, however, because I’ve recently refurbished my lingerie drawer and don’t really need this bra. However, when I do need it, I know it will no longer be available. It’s what the industry calls a “fashion color”. Basically anything outside of blacks, whites and nudes is made in limited runs, and the uncommon sizes are the first to go. This already happened to me with the Chantelle Rive Gauche in navy. Even the Chantelle rep that I know couldn’t scavenge one up for me.
However, I’m now even pickier. If I buy a bra in a fashion color, I must own the matching panties. I’ve found only one website that sells the matching briefs to this bra (Herroom has the matching bikini only). Fortunately, I live in the same city as Town Shop, and when I called them last Saturday to see if they had the Cachemire briefs (style 3378) in blue, they said yes (they don’t even have it on their website yet). I’ve already mentioned that Town Shop has a great inventory, but the way they picked up the phone right away both times that I called last Saturday made me appreciate them even more. (I called another store I like that carries Chantelle, but their system transferred me to an answering machine after a long wait for an available associate.) (Of course, after having written that, both times I’ve tried to call today to get the correct spelling of a name, I’ve gotten Town Shop’s answering machine!)
Fast forward to this past Wednesday when I was on the Upper Westside. I will be taking my friend Tina for a fitting on Sunday, so I thought I’d stop into the Town Shop to see if their best fitter would be available then. No, she won’t be working that day. What to do? I’ve had hit or miss luck with some of the other Town Shop fitters (even with their best fitter who, I just realized from reading the post that I’ve linked to, I said I would never return to! ), and Tina’s and my schedules are so hard to coordinate that I didn’t want to risk anything less than a perfect fit for her.
While I tried to figure out my course of action, I strolled over to the underwear rack and found the Chantelle 3378. The briefs were so beautiful that I had to try the matching bra.
The next fitter available to help me was named, ironically, Chantelle Shawntell. Shawntell studied me in my new Fantasie 36G Rhiannon (style 2222) and said she thought I was a 32H. A 32H? Really? She first brought me the blue Cachemire in a 34G and fastened it on the tightest hook. There was no quadraboob, but right away Shawntell critiqued the extra space at the bottom of my cups.
Once she noticed that flaw, I trusted her. I can’t tell you how many fitters I have had to point this detail out to. (See the bottom of this post for Prima Donna’s explanation.) In fact, I have this problem big time in my new Fantasie Rhiannon, but I had thought it was just the nature of its inflexible contoured fabric.
Next, Shawntell brought out the same bra in black in 32H. No empty space between the wires and the bottoms of my breasts. It fit perfectly (truth be told, there was a slight pillowing above the cups, but not enough to show under my knit top.)
Here’s what I love about the Chantelle Cachemire:
- The straps are towards the center of my shoulders so that they don’t slip off as easily as widely placed straps, but they don’t look frumpy.
- The three-part cups center my bust (you know how I feel about the East-West look that a lot of two-part cups give me).
- My hazel eyes look amazing in this blue.
But for all their great inventory, the Town Shop didn’t have the blue Cachemire available in a 32H–see what I mean about fashion colors in uncommon sizes selling out fast? And this is where Shawntell sealed my trust: she didn’t try to sell me anything else. She knew I wanted the blue Cachemire, and she told me I could probably find it online. A lot of fitters would have pushed the black Cachemire on me or persuaded me that the 34G fit.
On top of it all, she brought me the Freya Deco in 32GG just to compare against my Fantasie Rhiannon, which the Town Shop, surprisingly, does not yet carry. I have always been curious about the Deco after so many other bloggers have raved about this style, and guess what? The 32GG Freya Deco fit me perfectly.
Frankly, this is disorienting to me. My underbust measures 35″ only if I pull the tape super tight–36″ is really a more accurate measurement. In fact, back in 2010, another Town Shop fitter told me that a Prima Donna Madison in 36H fit me perfectly despite the extra space at the bottom of the cups (see what I mean about hit or miss fitters?).
I have a little more time to think about this, and I’m definitely taking Tina to Shawntell for a fitting at Town Shop on Sunday. I’ll study how she fits Tina and try a few more bras myself.
I’ve found that Chantelle bands run large, so a 32 is pushing a 34. AND their cups run big too. When I was wearing a 32DDD, I was probably really a small 34F. I’m now a 30E/F, and sadly Chantelle styles mostly don’t come smaller than 32!
Bra sizing is so confusing! I normally wear a 30J or a 30JJ but the last bra I bought is a 32H which really shouldn’t fit but somehow does
I think the consensus is that the Deco runs a size big in the band. Many also find it runs large in the cup, although it doesn’t for me.
Thanks, you guys. It’s good to know I’m not crazy. I just needed to add to my brand/style fit repertoire. And thanks for reading through such a long post . . . I didn’t mean for it to be so lengthy, but I got carried away.
Chantelle bands to run a bit big. (I do, however, find their cups small.) I recently started wearing 30 bands, though my underbust measures 31.5 inches. For high-set breasts (like mine), a tight band is particularly important, since otherwise the band can slide down and leave a bunch of empty space in the bottom of the cup.
Interesting!! So your underbust measures 31.5 inches. If you measure an inch lower down your torso, is it less than 31.5 inches and this is what causes the band to slide down? I meant to check this on myself today but got distracted by the fact that my underbust genuinely measures 36″. The sliding down issue is exactly what my fitter Chantelle was trying to address. She said the Rhiannon was too low on me.
Sorry for the typo in the last comment!
I think the reason they slide down is that the band is loose enough to move around and the weight of my breasts will pull a bra down if the bra can move. 🙂
I agree that the different brands fit differently. I have Chantelle bras in 32F but cannot wear the Rive Gauche which I loved b/c it ran large and I could not get it in a 30.I bought a 30 in a different style which fit perfectly, but had to return it since by the end of the day I had tremendous pain where the bra tacked between my breasts even though it did not feel tight. I recently tried on Fantasie bras and needed a 30FF but did not like fit. As of now Panache 32 F or FF is doing the trick-my underbust is 29.I find it hard to believe the 30 doesnt feel tight on you.
ps-Darlene-Nordstrom sale had a large selection of bras-check online
It’s such a mixed bag. Like the others have said, there are general rules for each brand, but there are always a few bras that break the rule. For instance, I know that I usually need a smaller band in Freya, but then I bought the Pollyanna… that thing is SO tight. I’ve owned it for about a year now and it still hasn’t loosened up.
As for the actual measurements, Darlene, I have the same disbelief! My underbust measures 34 inches if I exhale and really pull the tape measure. Yet, I generally wear a 32 band. It really demonstrates how horribly wrong the +4 method is, as I currently fit into bras that are -2/3.
Nothing to do with this post but I just came across this picture http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VGxlWu-8Bv4/T7-9FyWIypI/AAAAAAAAAfc/XFyfXV4xySw/s1600/aretha-franklin-06.jpg and had to share… think Aretha Franklin needs a bra epiphany too, or maybe just a bra… Someone should help her.
Dear Aretha, love your music but what the hell are you doing to your boobs???
Ouch, my eyes hurt! Some people are in serious denial.