what About the Wires!?

After making the Shelley bra failure, I started searching for more information. That’s when I came across a blog showing the fitting of a bra underwire. She showed the proper fit, too tight, and too loose.

Here are three styles of underwire, all the same size:

I ordered two fitting sets. The first set only went up to about a 40, the other set went to about 50. I tried them on, one at a time and discovered my biggest fitting issue: I fit about a 46!? Is that only when the wire is at rest? The bra is made to pull on the wire... So, should I use just a 42 or 44, or what? And, I fill the cup of a 34DD, but with a quarter inch difference for each size (thank you, breastfeeding), that puts me at least an half inch wider than the patterns allow for! That’s the equivalent of a size 34G or H. Which is how big they were during the early months of breastfeeding. Hullo!