Bra shopping is hard. First of all, they’re incredibly expensive. And when you somehow convince yourself to spend that much money, you end up finding out that the bras are either not in your size, have incredibly boring designs or are not inclusive at all. Or worse, all three of them combined.
Then there is the matter of not even knowing if you’re wearing the right size. And when you do find out your correct size, that is another nightmare to shop for altogether.
So it is not surprising that so many people with boobs just absolutely hate shopping for lingerie.
HuffPost UK asked what you hate the most about bra shopping and it turns out you all have A LOT of feelings.
Bra sizes and inclusivity is super limited
Many people online have complained about how limiting in sizes and inclusivity the lingerie industry is.
“I hate searching through all the bras and having to read tags on each chosen style just to find out that it doesn’t go up to my 34K size. Limited and frustrating,” says Natalie Joseph.
Another user on Twitter said: “Being fat and having small boobs that don’t need much support is a combo that hardly has any good, well-fitting, nice looking, affordable bras. I currently know one specific brand with one specific set. If they ever stop making that set, I’m out of options.”
Bigger boobs = bigger price tag
And if you do miraculously find bras in your size, they almost always have a hiked price range.
“Bras for larger boobs are industrial looking instead of beautiful. I have to go somewhere that specialises in larger sizes,” says Rebecca Lowrie.
“Any kind of nice bra is so expensive if you’re more than a D cup and it’s actually not that easy to sort out a bra fitting,” says Charlotte Manning.
“The price hike when you have more than ‘average’. A simple lingerie set can set you back £100 easily just because you don’t fit into the usual A-D cup,” adds Ramona Aning.
It is even more difficult to shop when you’re gender non-conforming, as pointed out by Rimu Bhooi: “I feel so uncomfortable bra shopping in person! Being non-binary, the bra shops are soo gendered and I wish it was more neutral. I shop online without being able to try-on, so unfortunately that means a lot of money wasted when the fit isn’t right/supportive.”
And let’s not forget the awful changing room lighting...
So how can we make bra shopping a little bit more bearable?
According to Eloise Rigby, founder of Pantry Underwear, we need to see shopping for bras as a long-term investment.
“Try and remember that although lingerie is not readily seen in the same way as clothing / style, it is the first thing that you see on yourself ie the foundations to your outfit and it also affects how your clothes hang and silhouette appears. A bra hugs you all day and provides essential support to many who would not want to go braless. That’s a lot of responsibility for one garment,” she says.
Also, buying less but in good quality will serve you better than buying bad quality in bulk.
“Low quality fabrics also don’t give a sense of comfort. Buying less, but better quality is the first step to sustainability and also budget purchasing that we can make. I recommend checking the composition, touching these materials if they are soft enough (especially for sensitive allergic skin and nipples) and check if they are strong enough while trying the product on,” says Magdalena Palmer, creative director of Movelle.
“I would say choose two proper bras for the beginning and then purchase more when you know that this bra shape and type works perfectly for you,” she adds.
Some brands that offer inclusive, good quality bras mostly within budget include Brastop, Bravissimo, Pantry Underwear, MINDD, Movelle and Curvy Kate. And if you would like bras that feel like second skin, try Floatley.