Small bust, big heart

Is M&S turning its back on style-conscious AA-cup women?

Earlier this year, I was lucky enough to bag a few moments of Soozie Jenkinson’s time. The M&S Head Lingerie Designer spilled the beans on the high street giant’s AA-cup lingerie range, which at the time included a healthy smattering of colourful, flirty bras in the Limited Collection line.

I asked whether further expansion might be in the wings — perhaps providing AA-cup bras in even sexier, more daring and fashion-forward styles.  Soozie answered:

There is now a wide range of AA-cup bras in our popular Limited Collection.  That said, we wouldn’t rule out the possibility of offering other ranges in smaller cup sizes in the future.  We constantly gather information from customer feedback sessions and continually review our womenswear and lingerie ranges to reflect demand.

So imagine my glee when I saw some showstopping lingerie hit my local M&S store, in none other than the Limited Collection. As my eager paws caressed the silky fabrics and my hungry eyes devoured the saucy trims, I felt like whooping for joy. At last, something gorgeously grown-up and naughtily provocative in AA-cup sizes — and on virtually every high street in Britain.

Except for this.  When I turned over the bra I was clutching to see the range of sizes on the label, I found that it started in an A-cup.  I flicked through other bras in the Limited Collection display to find the same thing.  Back at my desk, I looked on the Marks and Spencer website to find only this bra in the Limited Collection available in AA-cup.

What is going on M&S?  I’ve tried to get an answer from the press office.  And customer services.  When I hear back, I shall let you know what they say.  I do hope yet another high street retailer hasn’t decided to limit small-busted women’s lingerie choice to plain, unflattering, unfashionable and teen bras.

That’s not fair, actually, M&S does have something else for small-chested women: the two sizes bigger push-up bra.  Because, as we are slightly-endowed, we must naturally want to be bigger.  Right?

Tags: AA-cup bra, AA-cup lingerie, small cup size

Amanda Sage's blog declares that "Small is Sexy" and we have to agree

Having sung the praises of Amanda Sage’s small-cup expertise (what she doesn’t know about dressing an AA-cup body, you could write on a postage stamp), I’m thrilled that she’s written a guest blog post for SBBH.

Written in characteristic ballsy style, Sage gives very slim, small-busted women a question to mull: would you put on weight if the side-effect was bigger breasts?

Of course, not all small-busted women are skinny. But if you are I’d love to hear your thoughts: do you think there’s something to be said for this surgery-free route to increasing cup size? Let’s call it The Doughnut Plan.

Anyway, without further ado, here is Amanda’s post.

Let’s face facts, ladies: breast tissue is mostly fat. If you are very thin and small-busted, the safest and healthiest way to add a cup size to your bust may be to gain some weight.

In the United States, as reported by the New York Times, the most commonly purchased size from bra manufacturer Wacoal America in 2009 was a 36DD — up two cup sizes from a 36C in 2006.

I have to assume that this is due in part to more women getting breast augmentation surgery (implants), but it is probably no coincidence that obesity rates have reached epidemic proportions in this nation where I was born and raised.

I’ve worn a size 32AA bra ever since I first grew a pair at age 11. I was actually one of the first girls in my class to get boobs, but soon enough, everyone else caught up — and then some. By the time I was a freshman in high school (aged 14), I was considered flat-chested.

Fast-forward four years: I’m 18, in college and on medication that causes weight gain. Suddenly I’m busting out of my tiny bras, and to my utter shock I need  to buy new ones… in a size 32B.

I was never overweight; even in my 32B days, I weighed 118 pounds at just short of 5 feet 4 inches tall — hardly obese, and only about 12 pounds higher than my current weight. Yet here I am, back in my old 32AA bras.

I’m one of those few women who have a hard time keeping weight on, but if I was better about exercising and eating right I’d probably have more of an appetite. Then maybe I’d be able to fill out an A-cup bra, at least.

Note that my band size, 32, stayed the same even when I was at my curviest. Women tend to gain weight in their fattiest areas first: breasts, butt, hips, thighs, and tummy.

If you’re a skinny minnie like me, could you afford to put on a few pounds? If so, then as far as your bust size it might mean the difference between “slim” and “none.”

Tags: 32AA, A-cup, breast augmentation, flat chest, increasing cup size, small cup size