It is only with achieving at least a slight degree of feminization that I have started to have any real interest in cross dressing, but I would now welcome some input from those with real experience. Given that my rib cage beneath the bust is about 41.5" (I have great difficulty in getting consistent measurements even in the same measurement session), about 39" below the arms and about 44.5" at the bust (yes, my rib cage really does taper the wrong way), then my best guess from what I have read here was that I need something like a 42AA, and such things are not exactly thick on the ground. I did manage to get (very cheaply) from Hong Kong what purported to be a 40A and what purported to be a 42A. In both cases the cup size had been punched out of the labels, and the bands at absolutely full stretch were only 42" in length. One was not too bad a fit with the addition of two bra extenders (my avatar is wearing it) but the other, with the extenders has awkwardly shaped cups too close together.

My wife always used to wear 36B (which always seemed to me a lot too small), but recently has moved reluctantly to 36C. She has a tendency to shed them some time during the evening when we are on our own and leaves them all over the place. I woke up in the early hours on the night of the recent eclipse and thought I might as well look out for it - it was of course cloudy but seeing the latest unpadded underwire 36C lying in the middle of the bathroom floor and finding that there was a lot of stretch in the band, I succumbed to temptation and tried it on. It was unfortunately front closure so I couldn't use my extenders, but apart from being too tight in the band it fitted and I filled it remarkably well. This surprised me since although my nipples and areolae are now bigger than my wife's, I reckon that she has much more actual breast volume even if quite a bit of it forms side boob. I'm reckoning that I might as well look for 36Cs or 38Bs rather than any thing more exotic. Any comments?

Well I measure 39 above 42 across and 39 below... BUT really there isnt what Id call "feminine" boobs YET, but there are boobs after only 3 months!!!

When I started I was 41 41 40, always went with a 38 band on the biggest setting but now I tighten all the way usually or the straps want to fall down...

My current favorite is a padded push up 38 B I paid $6.00 for on clearance at Wal-Mart A lot of trial and error for me so far because it seems to me nothing is very consistent with bra and female clothing sizes in general.... But I am getting better at just looking and knowing whether or not its gonna fit

it was of course cloudy but seeing the latest unpadded underwire 36C lying in the middle of the bathroom floor and finding that there was a lot of stretch in the band, I succumbed to temptation and tried it on. It was unfortunately front closure so I couldn't use my extenders, but apart from being too tight in the band it fitted and I filled it remarkably well.

If that size fits well in the cup, but is a bit snug, remember that you can go up a band size -- but go down a cup size to match: 36C -> 38B -> 40A.

Not that some degree of snugness is bad -- you should not be able to pull the band very far away from your back. It shouldn't ride up on you when you lift your arms overhead.

Thank you Eva Marie and MissC.
I tried it again very early this morning; a different 36 C with back closure this time but the results were the same. Our local (well only 30 miles away) Sears had a sale last weekend with some bras on very cheap clearance, but I think they must have been pretty well picked over by the time I got there - only one 38 B left which didn't appeal to me and presumably not to anyone else, and certainly no 40 A, but those seem to be pretty rare birds, as do any clothes suitable for a really tall girl - they seem only to grow very wide ones here. At least I now have a better idea what to look for.

Lane Bryant has an excellent selection of styles and sizes and good prices. You might want to check them out.

I will add a few points Annie from my experiences as I too have a large rib cage.

I actually went for a professional fitting a bit over a year ago, and found that I fit into different sizes than expected.

If I were you, based on your numbers, 41.5-44.5-39, I would try a 40 C or even a 42B for size. Many of the stores will carry a wide choice in these sizes. Look for JMS or Bali to start with, or Playtex is you want more coverage, but the cups do run larger I believe.

Once you find a good fitting bra, you will know it as it is so much more comfortable.

Good luck and keep up updated

Dee B

I will add a few points Annie from my experiences as I too have a large rib cage.

I actually went for a professional fitting a bit over a year ago, and found that I fit into different sizes than expected.

If I were you, based on your numbers, 41.5-44.5-39, I would try a 40 C or even a 42B for size. Many of the stores will carry a wide choice in these sizes. Look for JMS or Bali to start with, or Playtex is you want more coverage, but the cups do run larger I believe.

Once you find a good fitting bra, you will know it as it is so much more comfortable.

Good luck and keep up updated

Dee B

Thank you for the reply. I'm at present staying in the wilds of north western Ontario and will go into things further when I get home. I am at present getting quite a good fit from a 38B plus an extender and a 38C plus an extender and a bit of padding. Unfortunately I am continuing to lose weight slowly which is doing nothing for my development, although it is satisfying to be lighter than I've been for more than thirty years and I might even break the 200lb barrier.

I'm constantly amazed by the changes in my life recently. This thread brings back memories of hanging out with my high school guy friends lifting weights to build up our physiques. I was a miserable failure at it. I had comparatively narrow shoulders, a sunken chest, and could not add muscle bulk as hard as I tried. Today, I look at all those 'deficiencies' as a blessing. One of my T-girl friends pointed to me as one of the 'small girls' who could squeeze into the back of her Suburban on the trip to the Pride Parade last month. I felt so good to be called 'small' if you can call size 12 small...lol. Now, take Sarah, for instance.......

Clara

As a wannabe CD with boobs, I now need to wear a bra for nipple modesty and uplift, but I have had great difficulty in getting my size, which is around 40" band, A or AA cup.

Most lingerie sites don't stock small cup sizes above 38" band. I tried to get fitted at a local store, but was turned away, even though I was already wearing a visible bra under my shirt. This bra was one of my sister's, worn with an extender.

These band extenders don't really work, they set your bra straps too wide and you can't seat them nicely across your shoulders.

My solution has been to buy quarter cup bras (e.g. from pabo.com). These bras are designed to give support to busty women, whilst exposing the nipples. Thus the XL size is about 40" band size, but with A sized cups. Also, the cups are set wide apart.

I find that I slip easily into such bras, and fill the cups nicely, without the nipples popping out. Also they are normally very pretty and lacy bras!

After trying a few different ones, I came to the conclusion that a 42 or 44 A, possibly B was what I need. That is a very tough size.
now after starting pM last month, I can see it being a B in the next few months.

I was shopping a couple weeks ago at Walmart actually for things completely different , and I notice something called a "Genie Bra".
The 1X size covered my size, its smooth,no wires, looks like it holds in on the sides and is a shaper too.
Two of them in the box for 20.00.

I thought ....Why not?
I can tell you ...try it you'll like it. They also have a full line of others on their website. geniebra.com

I think Target sells them too.