It was a Saturday morning, which began with a text message from an acquaintance - I will call her Grace for the purpose of this article. I met Grace once before at a party and gave her my business details and she was now contacting me for a bra fitting. I responded by saying that we did not offer this service and proceeded to recommend famous brand name no.1, whom I believed would be able to help.

"Oh no..." said Grace, and she then proceeded to tell me why she didn't like this brand, She continued,"I normally go to famous brand name no.2 to get measured, however the lady who normally fits me has left to study so I need someone who can assist me. Can you help?"

Now, "famous brand name no.2" recently had their royal warrant removed so it was immediately apparent to me that Grace knew a thing or two about buying quality lingerie. She furthermore went on to say that she planned to meet her friend Simone that day who also needed a bra fitting. Grace was helping Simone transform her life through a healthy eating and exercise program and noticed Simone's lack of interest in her underwear :-) and wanted to buy her some new lingerie to encourage and motivate her on her journey. Did I hear girlfriends supporting girlfriends?

How could I say no to an opportunity like this and before I could say "but it's my day off...." There I was two hours later with Grace and Simone in Oxford street, London, in the changing rooms of famous brand name no.1, conducting a fitting.

It is recommended that women get their bra size measured every three to six months because of age, hormone changes and fluctuating weight and measuring is not as complicated as you would think, just follow our easy steps below and you cannot go wrong.

HOW TO MEASURE YOUR BRA SIZE:

Now there are many way you can conduct a fitting, but I like to keep it quite simple, which is the following:

1. Determine your band size:
Start by wearing a light padded bra to keep your boobs in place - if needs be, and measure around the bottom of the band, directly under your bust as shown in the image below. If you get an odd number, round up to the next even number.

2. Determine your bust measurement:
Wrap the measuring tape loosely around the fullest part of your chest (at nipple level). Round to the nearest whole number.

3. Calculate your cup size:
Subtract your band size from your bust measurement and refer to chart.
For Example: 37 inches (bust) – 34 inches (band) = 3 inches. That’s a 34C.

4. Please note - Exact sizing and fit may vary from band to band.

Grace also gave me a tip that was recommended by famous brand name no.2 to ensure that your bra fits correctly. Before you try on your new bra, bend over in front of you at 45 degree angle, put your hands in the bra straps, jiggle your boobs into the bra and then flip back into to an upright position, this ensures that your breasts are fully in the cup and fitted accurately. Mmmm.... this was news to me and before I could say..... "That's a load of non...." we were all doing jiggling motions in the changing room. We had so much fun and what was lovely was that Simone had found her bra, her style and she was beaming with a new found confidence. Job done.

Now, even though Simone had found her bra and style, Grace who arranged this whole meeting did not at famous brand name no.1, because none of their bras fitted her body type. So ladies please note that even though you may have calculated your bra size correctly, you may have to shop around to find the right bra for you, and bras may vary from brand to brand so please don't be disheartened as this too is also a process, but once you find the right brand, you are good to go.

Finally, because of this experience we are now offering a bra fitting service to our customers. Unfortunately because our business is online we cannot invite you to our store as we do not have one - yet...., but we do offer a service where we could meet and conduct a personalised bra fitting at the brand of your choice.

Please email us at info@olyinka.com to make an appointment.

How to measure your bra size

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