I enjoy reading news online, and usually check what’s new before I read my emails in the morning. One morning there was a video saying what NOT to buy your girlfriend for Valentine’s Day. That got my attention, and I figured it was going to be something to do with lingerie.

And it did have to do with lingerie. Basically, men were being told not to buy bras for their girlfriends because bras were hard to fit. I had no problem with that – that is very true. However, it was the next part that really surprised me and stayed with me.

After telling men not to buy bras for their girlfriends, the video went on to offer help in bra sizing. Here’s their help: The Fruit Rule. If she’s the size of a couple of lemons, then she’s an A cup; the size of a couple of oranges, she’s a B cup; two grapefruits? she’s a C cup. And to finish it off nicely, if she’s the size of two cantaloupes she’s a D cup. Isn’t that nice and neat? I can’t speak for all women, but I don’t fit into that fruit salad.

Enough about fruit comparisons, I’m going to share a little more of my progress with my ‘adjusted’ Shelley pattern.

I’ve been mulling over my Shelley without seam allowances for a while now. I did add seam allowances and then got thinking about whether that was what I needed or not.

I made a tester bra to see how it fit with seem allowances and it just wasn’t giving me the fit I wanted. My dh says I’m trying to get a perfect fit, and I say,  ‘Yes, I do want a perfect fit.’

Without the seam allowances added, it fit perfectly into the cradle size I need. Without seam allowances the lower cup fit like a dream – something I’m struggling to achieve. However, without seam allowances, the upper cup was too small. I need more depth to get the bridge to sit against the chest wall, and a little more coverage up top too. I was torn between adding seam allowances and/or redrafting the upper cup somehow.

I decided to add a seam where there isn’t one – I added the amount of a seam allowance to the top of the upper cup, and also changed the pattern so I had the depth I need to bring the bridge back. It all worked. This one got a bow even, or as another blogger put it – it was bow-worthy.

Here’s my latest Shelley from the front. I used the black forms I’d made and shown a few posts ago. They don’t fill the cups out completely, but I think they fit better than the foam cups did.

I love the lace and duoplex combination on this. The lace was from Merckwaerdigh’s store on eBay. The duoplex and findings are from Bra Makers Supply.

To help the upper cups fit a little better, I didn’t line them this time. On my first Shelley I did line the upper cups. Since I need a little more give there, no lining this time around. And that helped too.

I have to say, I LOVE how neatly the cups are fitting into the cradle. I am so very pleased with how this has turned out. I didn’t like the look of the ‘easing’. I had to do so much easing along the lower cup, it looked more like gathering to me. And it gave the cups a balloon-like shape. This is much better.

And a basic back. Looking at it, the straps seem a bit far apart, but I didn’t notice that when I put it on. Something to think about tweaking for my next time.

I got my ‘real’ Shelley pattern in the mail today. Tomorrow I’ll have some time to pull it out and compare all the pieces to what I’ve made from the Pin-Up Girls Classic pattern and CD Designer Bras by YOU! I have to say, I loved learning how to make this, but it will be a treat to have the pattern too.

My next project may be to help out a friend. She recently went to a specialty store and was fitted only to find out they don’t carry anything in her size – too small around the rib cage. After dealing with the fitting challenges of the Omega shape, a small band almost sounds simple. I’ll post what we do, and how it turns out.

Happy creating!