The seven booby traps in a badly fitting bra: 100 years after its invention 80% of us are STILL wearing the wrong size



A quarter of women have NEVER had a bra fitting

Seven bra faux pas include Side Boob, Quadraboob and Super Drooper

When it comes to finding the right bra, even the most proficient shoppers often despair.

And, according to a survey, it’s hardly surprising – because there are seven different ways in which they can go wrong.

Four in five women admitted to suffering from one of the problems, nicknamed ‘booby traps’, every day.

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The most common, experienced by 41 per cent of the 1,000 women surveyed, is the ‘side boob’, in which the cup underwiring sits on the breast rather than on the ribcage, causing overspill at the side.

And more than a third admitted to experiencing the ‘quadraboob’, in which breasts spill over the top of a too-small cup, creating the impression of four breasts.

What a boob! Britney Spears often suffers the dreaded Quadraboob

The survey, carried out by lingerie firm Bravissimo to mark the 100th anniversary of the creation of the bra, found many women hadn’t had a proper fitting in two years.

Many wear bras that are too small because they cannot find attractive ones in larger sizes, or are unwilling to admit that their breasts are larger than DD – the biggest size in many ranges.

Bravissimo is now launching an online ‘boob school’ to teach women how to choose a well-fitting bra.

A spokesman said: ‘We’d noticed that there were a number of booby traps women were falling into, normally because they’ve never experienced a proper fitting and they simply don’t know how to spot the signs that their bra is no longer giving them the support they need.

‘By identifying the seven classic bra faux pas and launching Boob School, we’re hoping that women everywhere can become more knowledgeable about what makes a really good fitting bra.’

Ladies with larger assets experiencing more problems finding a properly fitted bra and dealing with the challenges of having more to handle in the first place.

The Quadraboob was the biggest pitfall for ladies with a larger bust, with 53 per cent of women who were above a GG cup size falling prey.

Falling into that old booby trap: Christina Hendricks suffers a multitude of sins like the Ledge and Side Boob

The survey found 41 per cent of us suffer from the Side Boob, where wires in the cup sitting on your boob rather than your ribcage.

The High Rider, where the back of the bra rides up, affects 39 per cent, while a third (36 per cent) get the dreaded Quadraboob, where the bust spills over the top of the cup, giving the impression of four boobs.

The Big Stand Off, where the front of the bra doesn't sit flat on the sternum between the boobs affects almost a third (28 per cent) while the Super Drooper affects a quarter (26 per cent) who aren't getting enough support, creating the illusion of saggy boobs.



Another quarter who buy bras that are too big, 24 pr cent, suffer from the appearance of Saggy Cups where there's too much fabric.

Not their breast effort: Denise Welch's cups are a tad small as she's getting some Side Boob, and Super Drooper Lyndsay Lohan isn't supported

The Ledge is created with over uplift, transforming your boobs into something that resembles a ledge, and it affects 12 per cent (including voluptuous Christina Hendricks).

Although all the faux pas identified could be avoided by wearing a good fitting bra, only one in five women said that they were extremely confident that they were wearing the correct bra size.



This is unsurprising, as the study also identified several reasons why women continually experience such uncertainty about their bra size.



Over a two year period, three quarters (77 per cent) have lost or gained weight, 62 per cent have changed their clothes size, 17 per cent have gone through the menopause and 10 per cent have had a baby, all potentially impacting upon their bra size.

BRAVISSIMO! HOW TO GET THE RIGHT FIT

1. The strap around your body should be firm but comfortable.

When you stand side-on at a mirror, the strap that runs around your body should be horizontal and should not ride up at the back at all. 2. The wires at the front should lie flat against your rib cage and should not dig in, rub or poke out at the front. 3. Your breasts should be enclosed in the cups and you should have a smooth line where the fabric at the top of the cup ends and meets your bust.

4. You shouldn't have any ridge or bulging over the top or sides of the cups, even if you are wearing a balconette style or lower cut shape. Perfect fit? You should have a smooth line where the fabric at the top of the cup ends and meets your bust



However, despite the shifts in boob size that women are experiencing, 24 per cent of UK women admitted to having never had a bra fitting and 21 per cent haven't been for a fitting for at least four years.

The Bravissimo research was conducted by Curiosity Research and 1,155 women of all ages from across the UK completed the survey.

They found that around two fifths of women feel comfortable telling a friend that they've made a bra faux pas - with a woman from the North West most likely to be up front (50 per cent saying they'd tell a friend).

Women from the South West and those aged 51 and over are the least likely to make a bra faux pas.



A third of women have had a fitting in the last year. Half of those who are GG+ Cup size have had a fitting in the last year, the same applies to those aged 30 or under, but a quarter of women who hadn't had a fitting in more than two years feel they simply don't need a fitting, whilst a fifth are too embarrassed.

After this lady got fitted by a professional she discovered her true, completely different, correctly fitting size



Four fifths own more than five bras, but less than half wear more than five bras regularly.



Jo Lee, Buying and Marketing Director at Bravissimo, comments: 'We'd noticed for some time that there were a number of booby traps women were falling into, normally because they've never experienced a proper fitting and they simply don't know how to spot the signs that their bra is no longer giving them the support they need.

'By identifying the seven classic bra faux pas and launching Boob School, we're hoping that women everywhere can become more knowledgeable about what makes a really good fitting bra, so they feel more confident about their bra size now and into the future and our brilliant British boobs can finally get the treatment they deserve!'

In response to the findings, Bravissimo is now launching the world's first Boob School to help other women avoid falling into these booby traps, in a bid to help women feel brilliant about their boobs.



Boob School will talk to women about their boobs, give advice on what they should be looking for in a perfectly fitting bra by following their simple lessons online, via a Facebook app or in store.

Women of the UK wanting to enroll in Boob School should visit their Facebook page , website (live from 4 March) or one of their 21 stores in the UK

Bravissmo's sister brand Pepperberry provide clothing for ladies with a larger bust, ranging in Curvy, Really Curvy and Super Curvy.



Their clothes are specifically tailored for Straight, Balanced and Shaped figures in sizes 8 to 18.

