Think you
know your breasts
better than anyone else? Don't be too sure. It only takes
a professional bra fitter a quick once-over with practiced
eyes and a flick of her measuring tape to size up your bra
needs.
A professional bra fitter? Think about it. Bra sizing wasn't
taught in sex
ed, and the mother, sister or friend who showed you
the ropes was probably wearing an ill-fitting brassiere
herself.
It's probably not a career choice you considered in high
school, but major makers of intimate apparel such as Bali,
Olga and Playtex train women as personal bra specialists
and send them to department stores to help shoppers find
a better fit. Meier & Frank offers this service, buttressed
by the expertise of its venerable, in-house foundations
specialist, Pat Michaud. Nordstrom schools its own lingerie
sales associates in undergarment engineering, and the staff
at Jane's Obsession and Jane's Vanity provide less scientific
fittings. I turned my breasts
over to expert hands at these establishments; here's an
assessment of their woman-handling.
MEIER & FRANK
You might think a fitting for foundations at Meier &
Frank would be an experience about as gloomy as the downtown
store's building. It was actually pretty
cool.
I cajoled a friend into accompanying me for moral support.
Measurements revealed that one of us is between a 34-D and
36-C, the other a solid 34-A. I'm not telling who is who.
Judy O'Leary, from Bali/Wonderbra, instantly put us at ease.
Trip after trip, she returned to the fitting room with armfuls
of bras (fitters trained by bra makers only offer ones made
by the parent company) and helped us try them on.
She gave us try-on hints--once the bra is secured, lean
over to let your breasts fall into the cup correctly (useful
to the busty gal, meaningless to the 34-A)--and reminded
us that lined (not padded) cups alleviate the noticeable-nipple
quandary raised by thin summer fabrics. She assured us that
new nylon blends, which at first appear wrinkly, become
smooth once warmed by body heat. We also learned that Wonderbra
makes a whole slew of bras that don't push up and
create cleavage; many are without padding.
Company representatives make store visits only a couple
of times each year, but Pat Michaud is there year-round.
For seven years, Michaud has been helping women into bras
at Meier & Frank. Her formula for a good fit is equal
parts tact, knowledge and keen vision--the ability to judge
a woman's size just by looking at her. Michaud fits women
who have had mastectomies or reconstructive surgery and
deals with other delicate issues: "You have to be tactful
when little girls come in and go straight for the demi-cups,
but they're a size triple-A. I just tell them to come back
and see me in a few years."
Merchandise specialists visit Meier & Frank once
every spring and fall; Bali comes three times a year. Pat
Michaud is available by appointment at all of Meier &
Frank's Portland locations, 241-5138.
JANE'S VANITY AND JANE'S OBSESSION
The clerks at
Jane's fit bras the way some gourmets cook, eschewing steadfast
methodology for trial and error. Therefore it's best to
visit Jane's once you're sure of your size. You will need
to rely on the staff, though, for help in translating European
sizes--virtually everything here is imported. Though the
sales people don't offer much hands-on assistance, they
do know their inventory and are able to wax intelligent
about garments with names you can't even pronounce.
These two stores unequivocally stock the most exquisite
and expensive boudoir vestments in town. The gorgeous lingerie
is easy to imagine on the body of Brigitte Bardot. Determining
if it will fit yours is another matter.
Jane's Vanity, 521 SW Broadway, 241-3860; Jane's Obsession,
728 NW 23rd Ave., 221-1490. Alterations available.
NORDSTROM
I dragged my sister to this one, and thank
god! For 10 years she's been wearing size 36-B bras, but
it turns out she's actually a 34-C. Amazingly, many women
don't know their true bra size. Patty Hutchinson, lingerie
manager of the downtown Nordstrom, remarked that eight out
of 10 women are wearing the wrong bra size.
Measuring just below where the curve begins, our salesperson,
Andrea Potts, added three to five inches to the number on
the tape measure to ascertain the correct band size. Cup
size is eyeballed and often fluctuates with the brand and
style of bra.
At Nordstrom, the entire lingerie staff is given a thorough
education in bra mechanics. Nordstrom's Northwest region
fit coordinator Stacey Ellis visits the Portland area about
once a month and whenever a new salesperson needs to be
trained. Ellis uses models with various body types to demonstrate
fitting and spends a full day with green associates, walking
through customer sessions. Nordstrom's commitment to training
shows: Potts is an adept problem solver. She hunted down
bras with straps that don't slip and bras that are virtually
invisible under close-fitting tops.
The great thing about any skilled personal fitter is her
ability to get you into something you never would have tried
on your own. My sister was leery of padded bras, reasoning
that she already had enough up there, but with Potts' help,
she found a lined bra that provides superior structure without
screaming va-va-vavoom. Besides, as Andrea puts it, "Sometimes
you just want something between you and the world, a little
barrier."
Bra fittings are offered at all Nordstrom locations;
no appointment necessary.
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Willamette Week | originally
published May 26, 1999
|
