Where to shop for bigger bra sizes

According to a survey conducted in 1997 by bra maker, Triumph, us busty babes in the UK have the biggest breasts in Europe. The poll revealed that more than half of us Brits – 57% to be precise – need a D cup or larger.

So which are the best brands and stores to give us the extra va-va-voom that we need?

Far and away the best source (in our opinion) for larger ladies, Bravissimo is an amazing store for women with large breasts. Specialising in lingerie, swimwear and nightwear in D-L cups, they’re also consistently good with their in-store measuring and fitting service. Bravissimo is an online mecca for bra enthusiasts, as well as having an excellent number of stores situated around the UK. They stock many different brands (some of which are covered below), but their own signature line is terrific. If that weren’t already enough, they also do a clothing line called Pepperberry that takes into account larger chest sizes. What’s not to love?

Freya is a funky, fashion-forward brand that makes bras up to a K cup and swimwear up to a JJ cup. Their lingerie is strikingly fresh and colourful; shrugging off any need for well-endowed ladies to think their underwear should be frumpy. They also offer solutions to tricky necklines, such as the Deco Shape strapless longline bra and its various accompaniments. Their website features a rather fabulous ‘Ask the bra doctor’ section in which customers can request specific help relating to their individual sizing and fit.

Fantasie is a long established brand that focuses on elegant, timeless lingerie for larger cup sizes, and in fact they currently produce six brands, including Freya and offshoot Freya Active. Each bra style is given a woman’s name (Rebecca, Rachel, Melissa and so on), with matching thong/briefs/shorts options and, in selected styles, suspender belts. Fantasie’s top size is a K cup and pricing is reasonable, especially considering the quality of the fabric used.

Panache cover D to K cups, in a range of styles including balconnette bras, full cup bras, moulded T-shirt bras and plunge bras. If you think that their standard range is a little staid, check out Cleo by Panache, which is aimed at younger women with fashionable tastes. Equally Cleo’s grown-up sister, Masquerade Lingerie, goes for all-out glamour for those special occasions in a D to H cup, and Sculptresse proudly caters for women with a full figure as well as larger breasts.

Curvy Kate is a fun, trendy brand also covering a D to K cup. Here at Let’s Talk Breasts we love their website because they use ‘real’ women to model their products, rather than superhuman models with unrealistic figures. This helps us imagine far better what the underwear will look like on our bodies, rather than an airbrushed vision of perfection! Lingerie and swimwear is flattering, functional and fun and can be found at this handy list of stores and websites across the UK.

Alexis Smith is a unique brand that is particularly popular with younger women who have had a boob job, as it caters for those with particularly small frames (think 30” to 34” back size) and much larger busts (DD-G cups). If we tell you that The Only Way Is Essex’s Amy Childs is the brand ambassador, you’ll get the idea of the kind of figure covered by this lingerie. Bra sets are fairly expensive, starting at £50, but the styles are gorgeous and very sexy.

Budget brands

Traditionally larger breasted ladies shop at department stores like John Lewis and Marks & Spencers, although the Let’s Talk Breasts jury is out on that as we have personally experienced problems with their measuring services and two bras of the same size having a completely different fit. With M&S, we have been previously unhappy that larger bras sometimes cost more than smaller bras, as this doesn’t seem fair – would you pay extra for bigger shoes?

Splashing out

For women without budget restrictions, the world famous luxury brand Agent Provocateur goes up to size F in selected styles. With prices starting around £75 and most products around £100, this might be seen as Very Special Occasion wear only!