swimsuit ordeal

Clisby wrote in
m:

Lands End appears to have some nice ones, too. Sears
sometimes
carries Lands End clothes, so you could check there.

you could, but what you'd find is that the fall/back-to-school
stuff is out & the few bathing suits left are not anyones
size. the website isn't much better.
why yes, i *am* complaining about the abject stupidity of
marketing clothing 3-6 months in advance of the seasons. i do
NOT want to buy snowsuits in July, nor bathing suits in
January. i'm not looking for shorts & t-shirts in March or
back-to-school in June.
i'm not completely omniscent. i don't *know* what size will
fit my child 6 months from now. sure, i could buy size 8
shorts in January, but what if he doesn't hit a growth spurt
until September? i've wasted that money on clothes that never
fit when i need them. (that's hypothetical, BTW, because he
fits perfectly well into the size 5 shorts he's been wearing
for 3 years now. love those button elastic waists)
which is another thing i've noticed. the less expensive
clothes (store brands) all have regular elastic waists or no
elastic, apparently sized to fit the standard American child,
which means they fall off my kid. i bought Sears Toughskin 7
Slim black jeans for Boo to wear to a wedding, & without
extensive remodeling, they are *way* too big in the waist,
while barely reaching his ankles... seriously, i had to put
3/4" darts on both sides of the back waist band & 1/2" on each
side of the front, which looks like crap. i guess their
definintion of "slim" is way bigger than mine. and why are
'slim' clothes almost always 1-2" *shorter* in the inseam?
thin kids are all short?

lee
--
Last night while sitting in my chair
I pinged a host that wasn't there
It wasn't there again today
The host resolved to NSA.

"enigma" wrote in message
. ..
definintion of "slim" is way bigger than mine. and why are
'slim' clothes almost always 1-2" *shorter* in the inseam?
thin kids are all short?

My oldest is very tall and thin (she's 13 though) and I finally found
affordable jeans for her at kmart. I have had a really hard time finding
jeans that fit her AND are long enough but kmart had a very large selection
in their junior section. I've always found that shopping for either thin or
tall is much harder than average sizes. I can't afford $40+ jeans from the
more expensive places, especially when the kids will be outgrowing them
within weeks/months (at one point, I had bought my daughter 2 or 3 pairs of
jeans, they almost touched the floor and in about two weeks they were up to
her ankles!)
Marie

In article , Rosalie B. says...

Banty wrote:

In article f905k.9863$Jx.5178@pd7urf1no, xkatx says...

It's just a little annoying. I never considered my average C cup to be a
huge set of boobs. Then after DD2 was born, fairly close after DD1, I found
that my boobs got a little too big. The fact that she's still nursing,
almost 19 months old now, doesn't seem to help with my upper end going to a
more 'normal' and 'comfortable' size for me and what I think would go with
the rest of my body.
Oh well. Breastfeeding IS nature's own way of breast enhancement!

c.f. Kelly Ripa. When Regis hired her she was pg and had a bosom. Now
- not so much.

I started out as a 34D as a teen. When I was nursing I was something
like 38 FF and basically the only place I could get bras was Sears. I
did have another problem though which was that dd#2 refused to nurse
on the left breast, and 5 years later dd#3 did the same. So I was
quite lopsided for awhile

Yep. I went from a D to a DD. Which made bra shopping harder, for starts.
Since I'm very tall, too, I need a really large back size too. At one point I
thought I hit paydirt seeing the bras sold at the plus-size stores. Tons of
them my nominal size. Tried them on and tried them on - got horrible fits.
Problem is, *those* are made for a more rotund shape and the styles that go with
that, so the straps are set wider, and the parts that go around the back are
actually cut to widen quite a lot from bottom to top to fit the rolls under the
arms, etc. I don't have that, and I have narrow shoulders to start with. So

I'm built like my dad with wide shoulders. Shoulder width has never
been a problem for me, but I also had big hips and a narrow waist
(eighteen inches difference). I've never been able to buy jeans that
fitted in the waist.

I had deep grooves in my shoulders from bra straps. Those pads do
nothing. I can't stand underwires. About 10 years ago, I decided
that I would rather have my boobs sag down to my knees than wear a bra
anymore. So I stopped wearing one except for places like construction
sites where I didn't want to be a distraction. And the groves are
mostly gone now.

Unfortunately, DH watches too much "What Not to Wear" and wants me to
wear a bra. He actually took me to a corsetier in D.C. to be fitted.
So I do wear one sometimes to please him as I know I do look better
(i.e. thinner) when I wear one. But I still would rather have boobs
down to my knees.


I'm not going to let my boobs hang. Unsightly *and* uncomfortable for me.

I'm stuck with a couple of the most expensive brands and nabbing my size when I
see it (Wacoal for some reason doesn't have my size online) and treating my bras
very gently so they last. Specialty stores are few and far between, and often
don't have my size either. Arrrgh.

You might try sports bras - my favorite is one that was listed as an
absolutely no-bounce bra for dressage riders - they were reviewed in
Mike Plumb's Journal, and I bought one. It is my favorite.

Sports bras are an even worse problem as the there are fewer of them and the
size selection is even smaller. Plus some of the mush everything into a uniboob
- OK for sports, very unattractive under clothes. Frankly, my only *sports bra*
option is older regular bras. That's the end-of-life use for my everyday bras.

Banty

In article , enigma says...

i guess their
definintion of "slim" is way bigger than mine. and why are
'slim' clothes almost always 1-2" *shorter* in the inseam?
thin kids are all short?

Tell me about it. Likewise, until I could fit into specialty sizes of adult
clothes, I was having problems with the notion that anyone who needed clothing
*longer* had to be also bigger 'round. Which is part of your complaint. The
other problem I had growing up is that my mom wanted to spend all the clothing
dollar on Sunday clothes in the tall specialty stores, and I was to make do with
pushing up sleeves, rolling up slacks to make 'capris', or adding flounces for
everyday clothes. I took to the sewing machine. But there's a time limitation
w.r.t. getting a whole wardrobe sewn. I even sewed jeans to get ones to fit a
woman's body. Honestly.

People think tall women can wear styles better, and reflect the idea that some
men have that bustier must be more attractive.

But clothing is *designed* for tall very very slim women, then *manufactured*
for average height slim to medium and small-to-average breasted women. Plus
sizes have picked up some of the remainder. But not all.

Banty

enigma wrote:
Clisby wrote in
m:

Lands End appears to have some nice ones, too. Sears
sometimes
carries Lands End clothes, so you could check there.

you could, but what you'd find is that the fall/back-to-school
stuff is out & the few bathing suits left are not anyones
size. the website isn't much better.
why yes, i *am* complaining about the abject stupidity of
marketing clothing 3-6 months in advance of the seasons. i do
NOT want to buy snowsuits in July, nor bathing suits in
January. i'm not looking for shorts & t-shirts in March or
back-to-school in June.

That's why we ended up with Speedos. I bought them at a sporting goods
store that also carries athletic wear of various types. They have
Speedos (and similar-type suits) year-round, and I'd rather just pay the
money and save my time.

Clisby


i'm not completely omniscent. i don't *know* what size will
fit my child 6 months from now. sure, i could buy size 8
shorts in January, but what if he doesn't hit a growth spurt
until September? i've wasted that money on clothes that never
fit when i need them. (that's hypothetical, BTW, because he
fits perfectly well into the size 5 shorts he's been wearing
for 3 years now. love those button elastic waists)
which is another thing i've noticed. the less expensive
clothes (store brands) all have regular elastic waists or no
elastic, apparently sized to fit the standard American child,
which means they fall off my kid. i bought Sears Toughskin 7
Slim black jeans for Boo to wear to a wedding, & without
extensive remodeling, they are *way* too big in the waist,
while barely reaching his ankles... seriously, i had to put
3/4" darts on both sides of the back waist band & 1/2" on each
side of the front, which looks like crap. i guess their
definintion of "slim" is way bigger than mine. and why are
'slim' clothes almost always 1-2" *shorter* in the inseam?
thin kids are all short?

lee

In article , Clisby says...

enigma wrote:
Clisby wrote in
m:

Lands End appears to have some nice ones, too. Sears
sometimes
carries Lands End clothes, so you could check there.

you could, but what you'd find is that the fall/back-to-school
stuff is out & the few bathing suits left are not anyones
size. the website isn't much better.
why yes, i *am* complaining about the abject stupidity of
marketing clothing 3-6 months in advance of the seasons. i do
NOT want to buy snowsuits in July, nor bathing suits in
January. i'm not looking for shorts & t-shirts in March or
back-to-school in June.

That's why we ended up with Speedos. I bought them at a sporting goods
store that also carries athletic wear of various types. They have
Speedos (and similar-type suits) year-round, and I'd rather just pay the
money and save my time.

Yep, and classic style and it lasts a long time. Good investment.

BTW,the long lead time for seasonal clothes may be a bit crazy, but it does
allow stuff to be picked up on sale while the weather still suits the wearing of
them.

I can sometimes wait for the particular catalogs which do carry tall or more
well-cut clothes to post their clearance items to pick up some stuff to wear
right away. Sometimes I pick up the clearance stuff that's out of season. Some
things that are real basics or really in style (like white jeans in my tall
size) I had better pick up at full price or they'll be GONE. The Eddie Bauer
sale stuff got posted - yep, no tall white jeans in my size anymore, all
snatched up already. Glad I anticipated that it would be a big item this year
and having snapped it up already, but I hate that. Same thing with size 10
shoes - if they're not 8 inch heels or out of style, I'd better buy them at full
price or they'll be GONE. Hate that.

Banty

Banty wrote:

I'm not going to let my boobs hang. Unsightly *and* uncomfortable for me.

Since I'm not doing anything very fast, it isn't uncomfortable for me.
I wore bras 24/7 when I was having children and nursing them - a
period that lasted from 1960 to 1974. The only real problem I have
is that I tend to walk stooped over because my core muscles aren't
strong enough to hold me upright. My sister took me to a Pilates guru
in Princeton to have him analyze me, and he said that I was freezing
my shoulders by walking with my hands behind my back, so I should
stick my bosom out as if I had a big diamond pendant there that I
wanted everyone to see (as if!!!)/

I'm stuck with a couple of the most expensive brands and nabbing my size when I
see it (Wacoal for some reason doesn't have my size online) and treating my bras
very gently so they last. Specialty stores are few and far between, and often
don't have my size either. Arrrgh.

You might try sports bras - my favorite is one that was listed as an
absolutely no-bounce bra for dressage riders - they were reviewed in
Mike Plumb's Journal, and I bought one. It is my favorite.

Sports bras are an even worse problem as the there are fewer of them and the
size selection is even smaller. Plus some of the mush everything into a uniboob
- OK for sports, very unattractive under clothes. Frankly, my only *sports bra*
option is older regular bras. That's the end-of-life use for my everyday bras.

Since my dad was absolutely adamant that no cleavage show - not even a
shadow between the breasts, I grew up having a uniboob. (And my mom
and I had to severely modify bathing suits or any of the strapless
evening gowns to pass his inspection. We ended up making a lot of the
formal gowns.)

ATM, I am one of those round people that you mention that the plus
sizes are for. I wear a 42 F or 44 DDD bra, and I have to have one
that hooks in front, or I can't put it on. I don't know how I used to
do it.

"Banty" wrote in message
...
In article , Rosalie B.
says...

Banty wrote:

In article f905k.9863$Jx.5178@pd7urf1no, xkatx says...

It's just a little annoying. I never considered my average C cup to be
a
huge set of boobs. Then after DD2 was born, fairly close after DD1, I
found
that my boobs got a little too big. The fact that she's still nursing,
almost 19 months old now, doesn't seem to help with my upper end going
to a
more 'normal' and 'comfortable' size for me and what I think would go
with
the rest of my body.
Oh well. Breastfeeding IS nature's own way of breast enhancement!

c.f. Kelly Ripa. When Regis hired her she was pg and had a bosom. Now
- not so much.

I started out as a 34D as a teen. When I was nursing I was something
like 38 FF and basically the only place I could get bras was Sears. I
did have another problem though which was that dd#2 refused to nurse
on the left breast, and 5 years later dd#3 did the same. So I was
quite lopsided for awhile

Yep. I went from a D to a DD. Which made bra shopping harder, for
starts.
Since I'm very tall, too, I need a really large back size too. At one
point I
thought I hit paydirt seeing the bras sold at the plus-size stores.
Tons of
them my nominal size. Tried them on and tried them on - got horrible
fits.
Problem is, *those* are made for a more rotund shape and the styles that
go with
that, so the straps are set wider, and the parts that go around the back
are
actually cut to widen quite a lot from bottom to top to fit the rolls
under the
arms, etc. I don't have that, and I have narrow shoulders to start with.
So

I'm built like my dad with wide shoulders. Shoulder width has never
been a problem for me, but I also had big hips and a narrow waist
(eighteen inches difference). I've never been able to buy jeans that
fitted in the waist.

I had deep grooves in my shoulders from bra straps. Those pads do
nothing. I can't stand underwires. About 10 years ago, I decided
that I would rather have my boobs sag down to my knees than wear a bra
anymore. So I stopped wearing one except for places like construction
sites where I didn't want to be a distraction. And the groves are
mostly gone now.

Unfortunately, DH watches too much "What Not to Wear" and wants me to
wear a bra. He actually took me to a corsetier in D.C. to be fitted.
So I do wear one sometimes to please him as I know I do look better
(i.e. thinner) when I wear one. But I still would rather have boobs
down to my knees.


I'm not going to let my boobs hang. Unsightly *and* uncomfortable for me.

I'm stuck with a couple of the most expensive brands and nabbing my size
when I
see it (Wacoal for some reason doesn't have my size online) and treating
my bras
very gently so they last. Specialty stores are few and far between, and
often
don't have my size either. Arrrgh.

You might try sports bras - my favorite is one that was listed as an
absolutely no-bounce bra for dressage riders - they were reviewed in
Mike Plumb's Journal, and I bought one. It is my favorite.

Sports bras are an even worse problem as the there are fewer of them and
the
size selection is even smaller. Plus some of the mush everything into a
uniboob
- OK for sports, very unattractive under clothes. Frankly, my only
*sports bra*
option is older regular bras. That's the end-of-life use for my everyday
bras.

Banty

I've found one sports bra that I can wear and wear properly that gives me
excellent support. I went to the maternity/nursing clothing store here and
found an excellent sports bra for nursing moms. It wasn't so much that I
needed the nursing part of the bra (DD2 still nurses, but not all the time
and doesn't rely on nursing as her only, or main, source of food). I needed
a proper fit after buying about 5 different sports bras that I thought fit
fine when I tried them on in the store, but when I got down to actually
putting them to use I had everything from popping out of the bra to the
uniboob issue. When I found the nursing bra, it worked a LOT better. I
don't have either problem, nor do I have major bounce. I also only use it
for running and jogging, which I do 3, sometimes 4 days a week with my
strollercise class. Plus I jog nightly with the girls if the weather's
alright and I'm feeling up to it.
When I'm not doing anything active, I wear my regular bras. I just can't
feel comfortable without a bra, except while sleeping or even just bumming
around the house. And I do wear nursing bras just for the support and
the proper fit. I've had issues while nursing with finding a properly
fitting bra that offers support.

"Rosalie B." wrote in message
...
Banty wrote:

I'm not going to let my boobs hang. Unsightly *and* uncomfortable for me.

Since I'm not doing anything very fast, it isn't uncomfortable for me.
I wore bras 24/7 when I was having children and nursing them - a
period that lasted from 1960 to 1974. The only real problem I have
is that I tend to walk stooped over because my core muscles aren't
strong enough to hold me upright. My sister took me to a Pilates guru
in Princeton to have him analyze me, and he said that I was freezing
my shoulders by walking with my hands behind my back, so I should
stick my bosom out as if I had a big diamond pendant there that I
wanted everyone to see (as if!!!)/

Have you considered a breast reduction?


Since my dad was absolutely adamant that no cleavage show - not even a
shadow between the breasts, I grew up having a uniboob. (And my mom
and I had to severely modify bathing suits or any of the strapless
evening gowns to pass his inspection. We ended up making a lot of the
formal gowns.)

What? Why? That is so weird, having your father inspect yours and your moms
breasts.


ATM, I am one of those round people that you mention that the plus
sizes are for. I wear a 42 F or 44 DDD bra, and I have to have one
that hooks in front, or I can't put it on. I don't know how I used to
do it.

Hook it backwards and twist it into place! Again, you sound like a candidate
for a breast reduction. I'm going to visit this lady when I have the time:
http://www.thebra-lady.com/

"dejablues" wrote:


"Rosalie B." wrote in message
.. .
Banty wrote:

I'm not going to let my boobs hang. Unsightly *and* uncomfortable for me.

Since I'm not doing anything very fast, it isn't uncomfortable for me.
I wore bras 24/7 when I was having children and nursing them - a
period that lasted from 1960 to 1974. The only real problem I have
is that I tend to walk stooped over because my core muscles aren't
strong enough to hold me upright. My sister took me to a Pilates guru
in Princeton to have him analyze me, and he said that I was freezing
my shoulders by walking with my hands behind my back, so I should
stick my bosom out as if I had a big diamond pendant there that I
wanted everyone to see (as if!!!)/

Have you considered a breast reduction?

Yes, I've thought about it, but I want no more operations. Had too
many already.


Since my dad was absolutely adamant that no cleavage show - not even a
shadow between the breasts, I grew up having a uniboob. (And my mom
and I had to severely modify bathing suits or any of the strapless
evening gowns to pass his inspection. We ended up making a lot of the
formal gowns.)

What? Why? That is so weird, having your father inspect yours and your moms
breasts.

He didn't actually inspect our breasts, just our appearance in
general. Mostly when I would be dressed up to go out he would be
there. He never said anything to me - I just got from my mom that he
would be upset if there was cleavage.

ATM, I am one of those round people that you mention that the plus
sizes are for. I wear a 42 F or 44 DDD bra, and I have to have one
that hooks in front, or I can't put it on. I don't know how I used to
do it.

Hook it backwards and twist it into place! Again, you sound like a candidate
for a breast reduction. I'm going to visit this lady when I have the time:
http://www.thebra-lady.com/

I don't think I ever put a bra on that way and I doubt it would be any
easier because of the difficulty in getting my arms into the straps. I
was taught to lean over and get the breasts into the cups first. I
don't have the flexibility that I once had due to having broken 4 ribs
on one side in an auto accident.

And of course that wouldn't work for a long line bra like a merry
widow.