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Review content:
It started out simply enough. When I was asked to put together an itinerary for a girls' weekend in the Big Apple, I knew I was going to take our party to one of two lingerie boutiques renowned for their selection and expertise. I scheduled a stop at La Petite Coquette - a cute little lingerie store in the West Village - to coincide with a girly lunch at Sweetie Pie around the corner.
I completely realize that writing about a bra-and-panty shopping experience is a touch personal, given that women tend to hold these experiences close to their chest (pun intended!). I am one of these women, after all. But women deserve to know the truth. And if any woman is going to truly purchase comfortable, well-fitting, and subsequently, well, sexy lingerie, she is going to have to resign herself to the same cold hard truth that I faced while standing in the perfectly-pink dressing room of the boutique.
I had no idea how a bra was supposed to fit.
I can't beat myself up too much about it. Between mass media and society, bra size has been boiled down to a seemingly simple formula - petite women with small breasts wear an A cup, and women who are shaped like Joan Holloway of Mad Men wear DD's. Everyone else probably wears a B or C (good luck deciding between the two).
Thank goodness, we happened to fall under the good graces of owner Rebecca Aspan shortly after walking into the boutique. As we stood around watching my friend peruse the racks, secretly hoping that she would once and for all steer clear of the bride-to-be bedazzled Hankie Pankies, Rebecca approached our group and told us that she was bored and wanted to do some fittings. Having done my research, I knew that Rebecca is considered the expert. Though I was not worried about her working her magic, I was curious as to how she might figure out our fit.
Well, she took one look at some of our petite party members and declared their sizes with little more than a glance. As for the rest of us, she felt the sides of our torso underneath our arms, felt us up, and gave us a good onceover before assigning us new bra sizes. Though the size that she told me made sense, I just could not fathom that I, yes I, am the kind of woman who did not understand how a bra is supposed to fit!
Lo and behold, I found the pieces that I selected from my new-sized drawer to be beautiful, well-fitted - and way more comfortable than any of the other bras I own. Granted, purchasing a Chantelle bra set me back almost as much as a new pair of boots, but it was incredibly worth the splurge.
On my very-recent trip to New Orleans, I furthered my collection.
So to every woman out there who has never been properly fitted, I have one word of advice: Run, do not walk, to the nearest local lingerie boutique (other than Victoria's Secret!) and allow someone to fit you. And if you are lucky enough to find yourself around the corner from La Petite Coquette, you would be incredibly remiss to not stop in and have a fitting with Rebecca.
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