Standards

I was feeling frustrated about bra shopping. There’s only so many you can try on. I’ve found that I can get by with certain bras, like Demi style, or those with a low center front, but they don’t fit. In the last year, I’ve dropped forty pounds. So, now I have to start over in my bra making. Starting with measurements.

Underbust:
-breathing out, as small as I can go is now 28.5”, 72.5 cm
-inhaled, as big as I can fill my lungs: 32”, 81.3 cm

Overbust:
-taken above breast, high against armpits, this goes around my  pectoral muscles and scapula: 34.5 to 35”, 89 cm

Bust:
-brafree as no bra fits and I only own padded ones... 37”, 94 cm

Notes about shape: small bust, fit(ish) shape, fullness in lower bust, short bust!, wide tissue

Wire size:
40 Carmen from Emerald Erin or UW920-40 from Sew Sassy (38 still has a gap underneath, 42 is too big). Most wires are too rounded underneath for me.

Pattern...
I’ve picked up several patterns to try. Sadly, they all fall prey to the normal standard of bust size. Mine are not skinny, tall, or full. So, the main Demi-bra available for sewists to use is Boylston. We will start there.

Boylston directions are to exhale fully, add 4 or 5” to the underbust. 28” and 4 is 32, or round up to 29” and 5” is 34. Measure fullest part of bust (“supportive bra” yadda yadda) and high bust, difference of 2” gives us a B cup. Therefore, I should make a 34B bra... let’s just call it cups don’t fit, but! it gives us a starting point.

Let’s look at that wire, though. I have to go to the website because the pattern does not include wire sizes!? A size 40 (a wire is the size B of said band size, unless otherwise stated) wire fits sizes: 30G, 32DDD, 34DD, 36D, 38C, 40B, and 42A. I’m going with the 34 band size, partly because there is no 32DDD in this pattern, so I’ll print out the 34DD band.

So, now I have a big cupped band, but a little cup size. I need to add to the edges of my cup to make it fit the wire length. What if we add evenly on the edges along the wire line? What’s the simplest way? I’m using the window as a lightbox, overlapping the smaller cup on the larger cup to trace the edges out, then smooth the line...

Inside lower cup, outside lower cup and upper cup all need the increases.
I’m taking photos over a very thin top. The cups are made from cup stabilizer tulle (Marquisette), and the wire is attached with double food bias tape.

Not bad... but, adding those wedges around the edges has put a smidge too much room into the cup. The wrinkles along the center show that I’m not quite filling that part right. We’ll straighten out the curve a bit on the lower cup pieces.

Interesting. This is a better fit than I’ve ever had. Still tight , somehow, but can’t quite tell what to fix next. Let’s try it in a bra!

The dreaded quad boob? I took the photo from this angle to show it. With the elastics attached, I can see that I need to give the upper cup a smidge more  room.  The right side isn’t nearly as bad...

Ah, I know, the upper cup lost its curve when the extra space was added to the sides.  Perhaps, I should use a larger size pattern piece for the upper cup?

I cut out the cups and remade one with the 34C cup widened to fit the cradle.
.

I think it fits better!


Let’s sew a Boylston.

Lefty fits now! I think I could reduce the curve along the wire some more. Righty is my smaller side and the cup is looser. I think the 34B version fit the right, so next time I will have to make the cups to fit each side. The straps attach at an awkward angle and also  need adjusting. I don’t have a photo, but the straps are way too wide set in the back as well. I suppose if I had a low square neckline, then  this would work. I’ve ordered more wires because the Sew Sassy ones fit this and I only had the one pair.

Esplanade Myself

Is that ever a terrible fit? (It’s not, really. I didn’t realize something important before I started this blog post!) The paleness, though, we just live with: there is no proper “tan” for redheads. I do plan to wear a fitted version of this with a bit more coverage on my marshmallowy colored belly. And, it’s currently winter, proper winter. Snow is falling, snow is all around. Snow is several feet deep. There will be snow on the ground most likely into April at the current look of things.

This is my first try of the pattern, and I followed their directions to make the “correct” size. My underbust is about 33”, measured regular (not tight). My overbust is about 36”, and my bust ranges from 38-39” through the month. It must have been closer to 39” when I decided to cut this out. I made the suggested 36C. I’ve pinned out excess fabric from the cups and upper back. I used wires that fit me, which makes wrinkles in the side area because I have a wide bottom-heavy chest (which I’ve learned from the Dress Form fiasco, may also be short).

The Esplanade bra is a longline bustier from Orange Lingerie. It looks fun, and has some potential for summer. The cups are supposed to be made from bra cup foam (it comes flat on a roll), with a lovely fabric covering. The center and side front is fabric, and the back is that stretchy bra-back fabric called power net; the front is lined.

My bra foam mine hasn’t arrived yet. Because this was a trial run, I used batting and lined the cups to keep it from stretching out. I’ll be trying this again, most likely in the 38C with modifications (equivalent to 36D, but  looser in the band even though once the hooks and eyes were installed, I had to use the tightest setting to keep the cups up. Just that top hook on the tightest setting was enough!), the waist needed more space. The Orange company must be selling towards skinny minies, haha. I asked them for a chart with the waist measurements included. I did get an email with the polite response explaining that I’d have to figure it out myself. Gee, thanks. It would be nice to print off the waist pieces needed for my size waist and line up the underbust parts of the band that will fit me and smooth the lines... nope. (Note: OL has put up a full size chart on their website well after this was published, but it does not state the waist sizes of the Esplanade.)

From the front, you can’t see the main wire issue. The wires aren’t actually touching my chest wall in the center. I did push them in before pinching out the extra fabric. The cups fall away a bit, so I need to bring that in somehow. Narrow the gore? The waist is tight. An inch above doesn’t look as bad, but it comes in too tight for me (maybe because I’m short-waisted?), so I might need to shorten the length as well as possibly widening it a bit. I can see the side wrinkles caused by my wider wires just beside the base of the cups. Will I be redrawing the wire line to fit my wires next time? that alone may be enough to tighten the bust in.

My darling husband took the time to help me find my breast root with a flexible ruler. That looks pretty wide and relatively flat. I laid the ruler on the pattern and pulled the pattern apart until it was close to where I need it to be. I’ve added about half an inch (1.5 cm) between the front seams so far. I’ll have to draw new seams, and a new curve to the outside edge of the cup curve, then I’ll have to address the cup itself. I’ve taken about an inch off the bottom of the new size to fit my curves better.

So, what was it I hadn’t taken into account? The cup seemed like it was close to fitting when I sewed it together, but now seems big. I think this is because it’s too small!. The back elastic wasn’t pulled  tight enough, and the center front of the band is at an odd angle for me. The band doesn’t have enough room for that bust root. So, I’ve printed out the 36D for the next try. I can always take out from the center back when I get closer to the proper fit. An extra boning center front, maybe one added to each back piece, could help hold things better.

Overall, I do like the basic concept of the Esplanade bra. There are changes that need to be made to the whole thing... Hopefully, I’ll get a cute summer top in the end. 

Not A Body Double

Ages ago, my husband helped me to make a duct tape body copy to use as a dress form. Sadly, when we moved the thing didn’t make it intact. Since then, I have just been trying to finagle clothes to fit with adjustments that don’t always work. A couple years back, I came across a company that sells patterns for dress forms based on actual body dimensions! Finally, this week, I asked hubs to help measure me and ordered the form.

Yesterday, the dress form took form... and what a form she took! That is not my shape. I measured her. I measured me. We do not match.

First issue, the one that brought the issue to my attention, is that the peaks on that mountain range tower into the clouds (compared to me). The measurement from the center back neck to the apex point matches correctly. However, the lower edge is too deep. What did I measure wrong? Well, I think I tightened the tape measure as if fitting a bra. That made the underbust measure an inch or so too tight. The other thing is that the back measure is not clear what is being measured. I suggested that maybe it’s side seam to side seam, but hubs measured between the creases to be from (the back of) armpit to armpit. *His measuring was correct according to the correspondence from the company.

Second issue, the underbust line is too low. How far is it from the apex to the band measurement? On the dress form, that is three inches full of the giant slopes. On me? Two inches. This distance was not asked for by the company.

Third issue, or it may tie into or cause the second, is that the waist seam is NOT where it should be. Sure, it looks balanced on the form, but I’m not shaped like that. The hip line is correct compared to where the bust line is, but I am blessed with my Mom’s “short waist” which is over an inch above where this program placed it. This distance WAS asked for, but was NOT placed correctly.

What to do? It’s the weekend, I emailed Customer Service, and I’m waiting for a reply... In the interim, I’m black box testing the software. On their website, you can enter all the measurements, then request “Get A Free Preview.” Go through the checkout, and in a few (5-20] minutes, you receive a CG rendering of what it deciphers you to look like in your skivvies.