It’s so bad that my fiancée has some bras that say she’s a B cup and others that says she’s a D cup. In order to go bra shopping, you have to actually try them on to find out if they fit.

If I had to try on underwear to see if they fit, I might not bother with underwear at all!

  • AGreenPurple@lemmynsfw.com
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    2 hours ago

    When going for brands, like Lounge Underwear or even more expensive ones like Marlies Dekkers, Aubade or Lise Charmel (instead of cheap imports from China) there’s almost never a problem with the size. There have been maybe 2 or 3 bras (cheap ones) that did not fit in the last twelve years and everything else has the same size and fits her.

  • ouRKaoS@lemmy.today
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    4 hours ago

    Trying to buy bras for my wife has been an eye opening experience.

    One thing that I haven’t seen mentioned here yet is the Wild West of standards once you get to big cup sizes. Apparently DD is the same as E, DDD is an F, and I’ve even seen a DDDD, which would be a G. Depending on cuts, brands, and styles, her size can go from a DD to an I.

    Not to mention these things are like $100 for a “cheap” one. The amount of engineering it has to take to design that shit is probably a few years of grad school.

    • nexas_XIII@lemm.ee
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      2 hours ago

      I would assume they’re not but that’s because I notice that depending on who makes what shoe depends on what size I have. I also see this in pants and shorts for men as well. I just assume nothing is actually standardized due to QA never really catching things.

      • SupraMario@lemmy.world
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        6 hours ago

        Never been underwear shopping with the wife? I usually take my wife once a year. Think of it this way. A good bra is like a good pair of work boots. You get a shit pair and you’re in pain every time you wear them. Bras are the same thing.

        • P1nkman@lemmy.world
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          6 hours ago

          Yes and no. Sexy underwear, sure, but never a big talk around the vast differences. I told her about this comment, and I got a 10 minute talk about it 😂 no regrets!

  • tiredofsametab@fedia.io
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    6 hours ago

    They’re definitely defined differently between some countries. Japanese cup sizes are different to US ones

    • Sonor@lemmy.world
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      15 hours ago

      This. I mostly buy size S t-shirts, sometimes M, occassionally XS. I dont even care anymore.

      • Tolookah@discuss.tchncs.de
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        15 hours ago

        If the shirt isn’t xl, I can’t raise my hands without showing my belly.

        Also if the shirt is bigger than L, I’m swimming in it.

        • SkyezOpen@lemmy.world
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          6 hours ago

          Some brands do slim sizes. Small shirts don’t cover my belt but mediums can be baggy on me, but medium slim fits perfectly.

        • snooggums@lemmy.world
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          15 hours ago

          I have a long torso and broad shoulders, so I have to get xl tall shirts in some brands because most make their standard xl shirts wider but not taller than med and small.

          Banana Republic is the shortest length. Hurley is the best length.

          • ShepherdPie@midwest.social
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            8 hours ago

            They’re so hard to find. I have to buy all my shirts at Eddie Bauer because 1) I’m a dad and 2) they’re one of the only stores that regularly carry them.

      • phoneymouse@lemmy.world
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        14 hours ago

        I’m between a medium and a large. More often then not though, I need the shoulder width and arm length of a large, but the cut in the torso of a medium. Clothing manufacturers assume Americans scale horizontally as they scale vertically. This maybe true given our obesity crisis.

  • Captain Aggravated@sh.itjust.works
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    12 hours ago

    Men’s clothing sizes are a little dumb sometimes but I can usually take a tape measure to my waist and correctly order pants. Your guess is as good as mine what the difference between “boot cut” and “relaxed fit” are, and I would swear T-shirt sizes have shrunk since I was a teenager. As in, I can compare a Medium I’ve had since the Dubya administration to an XL today. But getting fitted for a suit, they measure me in inches and the clothing is more or less sized in inches.

    Women’s clothing sizes have had two different ice pick lobotomies. Women come in a wider range of sizes and aspect ratios, women’s clothing is pretty much universally designed to fit tighter, but on the rack they’re given one meaningless size number. a 12 is bigger than a 10, who knows by how much, and there’s nothing on the girl you can measure with a tape to get that number, and there is no standard here at all. Why they haven’t revolted I have no idea.

  • LainTrain@lemmy.dbzer0.com
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    15 hours ago

    It’s also the fact that cup size is not necessarily independent from band size, that’s where the trick is. I used to think I’m an A with a high band size as I’m huge with no booba, like a 39A or something but those never fit that well.

    According to ABraThatFits methodology I’m actually 36C, which somehow does fit and super well, though by common and dudebro methodology I’m most certainly more of an “A cup” if that makes sense.

    • Clay_pidgin@sh.itjust.works
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      15 hours ago

      It’s because whatever maniac invented the sizing scheme decided that every letter represents 2 inches more around your body at the weirdest boobage point than just below it. What a bonkers system! A woman with 38B bras is 38 inches around at the band, and 40 inches around at the girls. Nonsense. The way dudes THINK it works makes so much more sense.