A question for the ladies

[WendyMichelle]

But if you do, please don't comment cuz this is embarrassing enough!

 

I received a bit of good and a bit of bad news yesterday.

 

I went for registration at my school and was informed that I have been placed in all the company level classes. Last year it was company class and in with them were the next highest level. I always just danced with the lower level. So that was the good news. But since I am going into their company program I now must adhere to their dress code (which I did anyways with a few exceptions......which were allowed because I'm, uh, old). One of those rules is "no undies."

 

Now, the bad news is that right after this I went bra shopping and to my shock and disbelief have progressed to a "D" cup. Previously I have worn the dance bras, which frankly give very little support, and I have worn sports bras, which the teachers didn't really like but never said anything to me because they showed on my back (they also limited the types of leos I could wear).

 

I spent several hours last night canvasing Discount Dance Supply's website and browsing through every single leotard on there and read all the feed back on each of them. The following were listed as being good and supportive for larger busts. I would like to know if any of you have worn any of these styles and what your opinions are on them. Do they support you enough by themselves? Or am I still going to need some type of support underneath?

 

1 - http://www.discountdance.com/view_catalog....p=Style&TopCat=

 

2 - http://www.discountdance.com/view_catalog....p=Style&TopCat=

 

3 - http://www.discountdance.com/view_catalog....p=Style&TopCat=

 

4 - http://www.discountdance.com/view_catalog....p=Style&TopCat=

 

5 - http://www.discountdance.com/view_catalog....p=Style&TopCat=

 

6 - http://www.discountdance.com/view_catalog....p=Style&TopCat=

 

7 - http://www.discountdance.com/view_catalog....p=Style&TopCat=

 

8 - http://www.discountdance.com/view_catalog....p=Style&TopCat=

 

9 - http://www.discountdance.com/view_catalog....p=Style&TopCat=

 

10 - http://www.discountdance.com/view_catalog....p=Style&TopCat=

 

 

Thanks for any input you can give!

WM

[ashatNYU]

Hi Wendy

 

I don't have any of the leos that you listed, but I do have to say that I do not own any Natalie or Mirella leos because the majority of them do NOT have shelf bras. They have shelf linings, but not bras. I have found that Bloch leos with shelf bras and Gaynor leos with shelf bras are supportive enough for my C chest without any additional support needed. The coolmax bras in leos are also very suportive, but I do not remember who makes them.

 

If you need to know which have shelf bras as opposed to shelf linings, I would call Discount Dance and ask so you don't need to pay the shipping back and forth if you need to return them.

 

Ashley

[WendyMichelle]

Thanks Ashley, I will check out Gaynor and Bloch's lines. I also have that Mirella leo with the underwire in it and contrary to popular belief it isn't very supportive at all. Way too much bouncing going on there.

[dance1soccer1]

Knock, knock - a mom here. DD's better endowed friend tried all the leos mentioned, but none gave her quite the bounce free she was looking for. She finally got a nude color sports bra, and wears it under the leotards. You should not be shy about approaching the teacher and asking if this would be appropriate for you. They do get this question, more than you would imagine. If not, there is always the dreaded ace bandage around the chest, which has been done by more than a few girls. If you are at all handy with a needle, the bra cups and supports found in a fabric store can be sewn into a leotard and provide some help.

[WendyMichelle]

Hey Mom,

 

Does the sports bra limit her with the types of leos she wears? For instance..........does she wear the cami leos with low backs? I, personally, wouldn't want that bra line showing even if it is nude colored. Just wondering!

[Guest kacy]

WendyMichelle.....I am also a D cup and there is NO WAY I would EVER take class without a bra. I have tried the dance bras, I have tried the Mirella leo with the underwire and none of these were supportive enough, IMO. I wear a Wacoal minimizer bra and yes, it severely limits my leotard choices, but there you have it. It is the only bra that I have found that provides the support I want and there is absolutely NO bounce going on!!! I cannot imagine that the fact that you are an adult does not give you some dispensation to wear the type of support necessary. I don't think that there is a cami or strappy-type leo alive that will give enough support without a bra for me.

[AmyKL]

Discount Dance carries the Gilda Marx bras with the clear insert for the back. A girl in one of my classes wears one, which wasn't very noticable. I'm not sure about the comfort or support.

 

Could you wear a liner leo, body tights, or look for the kind of sports bras that have different shaped backs? I have some that have a racer back that works under certain leos. There are body tights that have a very low cut back and clear straps so they wouldn't be as noticable. There are also those camisole type bras that are low in the back and have straps that you can wear in halter, criss-cross or regular positions.

 

Are you sure they're including bras when they say no undies? Maybe they just don't want people coming in with panty lines or the bottoms of their knickers coming out the bottom of their leos. You should ask your teachers what they recommend. You can't be the only woman who isn't totally flat chested there.

[WendyMichelle]

None of the other girls wear bras. None of them really need to. There is one girl who is rather large chested but she never wears anything other than her leo. I've often wondered how she stays put. She wears very low backed leos and camisoles as well.

 

I have tried the underwire bra with the clear straps and it wasn't very good. I also tried the clear backed one. The clear straps are very uncomfortable and seem to dig into you once you get good and sweaty.

 

I found some regular bra like sports bras that I was wearing at the end of last year. Unfortunately, the only leo they worked under was the Bloch pinch front tank, which came up really high in the back. I guess that will be my only option and if something is said I'll be like, "okay.......I can wear a bra and keep things under control, or ya'll can have some visuals you'd probably rather not see during port de bra and petite allegro." =)

 

And Amy........I am the only "woman" there. The rest are teens, a few in their early twenties........but none, except the one other girl, as well endowed as I. =(

 

Kacy.......where can I find the Wacoal bra you are speaking of?

 

Thanks gals!

WM

[koshka]

If you haven't checked the Title 9 Sports catalog, you might want to at least see what they have.

 

Have you tried body tights (with regular straps)?

 

Body Wrappers "Premiere Collection" leotards have a "power net" (or something) bra. Maybe somebody has tried them or you can find a shop that carries them.

 

Also, Baltogs (I think) makes a powernet bra that is designed to go under leotards and costumes. Discount Dance (among others) carries it.

 

I can't vouch for any of these items as I don't need all that much support, but they are ideas, anyway.

[spingirl]

I have the same problem. When I started last year, I had to buy an XL-Tall Capezio leo. The shelf bra was too small, so I cut it out and bought a full-body under-leo with clear straps, also made by Capezio. I couldn't even get the nude bras on--at least the pull-over styles I tried. The body liner worked very well for me. It's cut low enough in the back that it doesn't show under my leos, and the straps are convertible, so you can adjust them to hide under your leo straps. The Discount Dance catalog doesn't show the one I bought, but the Natalie style #N8210 on page 115 is pretty close.

 

I've lost more than 20 pounds, so now I can get into some of the regular shelf bras. I'm finding that the cotton blends work best because they support better. Those Meryl/Nylon blends feel great, but they are so stretchy. Body Wrappers Premiere Collection is the one with the Power Mesh bra, which is nice because it has a continuous strap that goes around the body under the leo. But the fabric in the one I have is not cotton, and it's too stretchy. It's a cami, and the straps can't support the weight, even though the bra part holds everything in. I'm always yanking at it.

 

I found a Bloch tank leo yesterday that fit perfectly. It's style #L5405, and it's shown on page 58 of the latest Discount Dance catalog. Unfortunately, they only sell that style in child sizes, but right next to that photo is another Bloch tank with a gathered bodice, style #L5415. I think it would work as well as the other, and I wonder if the gathering in the bodice could be removed to raise the neckline and prevent cleavage problems.

 

I looked at your links, and the first one--the Capezio with the back detail--was my second choice at the store yesterday. It fit well, and seemed to have good support, but I liked the Bloch tank better because I didn't have the issue of the skinny straps cutting into my shoulders. I'd steer clear of some of the other camis and halters shown. They look great on those models, but I've run into too many overflow problems with those styles. And sometimes it's the side-squish problem. That's why that first Capezio shown works well--it's cut higher in the neckline, and the fabric goes around to the back under the arm, so you don't have the side-squish thing going on.

 

Body Wrappers has come out with a top that feels to me like it's made of the exact same fabric as a pair of tights. I think they took the old "cut the feet off and the crotch out of an old pair of tights and use it as a top" concept and turned it into a nicely made one-size-fits-all top. That's style #8218, and it's shown on pages 91 and 96 of the fall DD catalog. They show it both under and over a leo. I've seen them in the shop in different colors, including tie-dyes, and in a cami style too. I think I might spring for one to wear under some of my support-challenged leos.

 

I agree with an earlier post--I would suspect that panties are the issue, not bosom support. I'm still suprised at the number of students, both adult and teen, that I see wearing panties under their tights and leos. Weird, in my opinion. But I can't see your school having an issue of proper breast support, any more than they would have an issue of proper "male" support. I mean, who wants to see one of THOSE bouncing around???

 

Hope some of this helps. Those little B-cup girls who gripe about being too flat don't know what a challenge it is to be bosomy!!

 

Lisa

[les_sylphides_]

knock knock, I'm only 17 but I'm also a D cup and I've tried the gilda marx with the clear back strap and I can tell you that it will not fit a D cup :-/ a lot of times I wear double leotards, like I wear one thinner slightly larger one over one tighter one . . .that really helps me.

[dance1soccer1]

Mom here - yes, she wears lower back leos with the sports bra and the bra shows, but since it has more of a "tank" look than a bra look, it's less surprising (and although some of us over the age of 18 think a bra showing is "icky", anyone younger than that thinks a visible bra is "cute" or "trendy"), but often she wears a Victoria's Secret bra, with the straps you can move about, with the lower back ones or halter leos. Try to match the nude shade to your skin tone, and it will be less visible. Also, dancers and teachers are used to the idea of nude undergarments under costumes, so something similar under a leo is not a problem. Comfort for you is more important than the seamless look.

[Guest kacy]

WM....here's a link to the Wacoal minimizer bra that I swear by! Wacoal Minimizer Bra

 

I suggest you google wacoal minimizer 85154 and comparison shop, but I usually buy mine at Nordstrom and they are not cheap...but they are soooo worth it....

 

I would give anything if those nude bras with clear straps would work for me...they just don't...I've tried them and given up. Yes, it's the Bloch pinch front tank for me

 

I wish someone could make a bra that works for us under the cute leos.........

[Treefrog]

As a fellow D cup, I just want to add that fitting a bra is as personal as fitting a pointe shoe. What works for one may not fit another. However, just as there are pointe shoe fitters, there are also bra fitters. I know, it sounds icky, but last time I was bra shopping (at a large department store) I had a wonderfully professional and discreet lady who made me feel terrifically comfortable about the whole deal. And it was true -- I didn't "know my size", even though we all think we do. She also knew the stock well, and was able to steer me to appropriate choices. (I now swear by a Bali minimizer.)

 

That said -- my similarly endowed DD wears nude-colored bras from Victoria's Secret that close in the front and have a racer back. The back does show clearly under many leotards, but as dance1soccer1 said, this generation doesn't find that so shocking. She chooses the front closure because apparently having the hooks showing WOULD be icky.

[onyx]

I don't have a size d problem, but I have a problem with my nipples really pking thru in most leotards. One that holds them in well is the Mirella one made of lycra/spandex- it is the irridescent material - it comes in garnet, blue steel green and maybe one other color. It is a camisole with a square neck and a black line under the bust for trim. The lining on the bust is very heavy and the the lycra might help pull you in.

Also, I could swear that I read somewhere (I think in the ads in Dance Magazine ) of a company that made bras especially for ballet dancers. I will try to find an old copy and check it out....