Simply hearing the brand name “Victoria’s Secret” often causes people to have a reaction. Whether you associate it with the lingerie they wore on their wedding night 15 years ago or it makes you think of the hit song “I Know Victoria’s Secret” that debunks the origin of the company, most women in America have opinions on this controversial brand. When choosing a Victoria’s Secret bra size, are there external factors to consider? While they have been clearly adding to their size range off products as well as diversifying the models they hire does that mean that the bras are really built for curvier bodies?
With all of the baggage that the brand name carries, has it impacted the product line? When it comes to them expanding their size ranges, is it still required that you have to size up a size or two to get a proper fit? This company has been a renowned brand in the lingerie industry for decades, but how does it stack up against the competitors on the current market? For many of us Victoria’s Secret raises more questions than anything at this point. Let’s dive in and break down the brand’s products without focusing on their reputation.
Does Your Right Victoria’s Secret Bra Size Even Exist?
If you’re anything like me, you have very vivid memories of of the hot pink dressing rooms in Victoria’s Secret from 10 years ago. The attendant standing outside the dressing room with a tape measure around her neck, the single white t-shirt that was permanently in the dressing room for you to put on over the bra to see how your breast shape looked under clothes in the bra you were trying on.
Every aspect of these dressing rooms were handpicked to create an experience and make sure that you walked away with the perfect fitting bra. The goal was for women to walk away feeling important and confident. And this was often the experience they were able to achieve.
The idea of spending 2 hours in a lingerie store with a personal bra fitter sounds like a great way to find a bra that fits. Right? The reality is that now most of us shop online, making it important than ever to know what size bra you wear in general, but also for that brand specifically. If you are unsure of your bra size, use our Bra Size Calculator to help you find your current bra size. Like we often talk about here at BraSpace, sizing can be very brand dependant.
There are some companies that run extremely small and require you to size up several sizes, while others do the opposite. While the bra calculator will help you get your true size, it is always important to check the company’s size chart on their website.
On the Victoria’s Secret website, there is an option to “view size chart.” This would normally be where we recommend using that to double check that you are ordering the correct size. With this particular brand, things definitely run small. When a brand runs small, there are a few key points we encourage you to look at.
Band: How Many Sizes Do You Really Need to Go Up?
The first component is the hook and eye closures on the back of the bra. If you are currently wearing a bra that is in your normal size are you on the closest hooks or the farthest hooks? If you are on the farthest or second farthest set of hooks, we suggest sizing up on the band. If you find the band of your bra is cutting in to your ribcage at all, we also would say size up in the band.
If you are on the tightest set of hooks and you find that it is comfortable, then you should be good to order that band size. You may find yourself using the second or third set of hooks on the Victoria’s Secret bra, but it we have found that they still fit. While there is a bit of vanity sizing, if you feel that your current bra fits perfectly or is a little a the larger side, you should find that same bra size fits in Victoria’s Secret bras.
Victoria’s Secret Bra Cup Sizing
With the cups, things can get a little bit tricky. We have found that for women with breast sizes AA-B, there haven’t been any problems with the cups fitting very similarly to other brands. As the breast size increases, the reliability of the sizing of cup decreases. As I’m sure you are well aware, Victoria’s Secret prides themselves on the look of their lingerie. They value the sex appeal of the products over how comfortable they are.
In some cases, this is great. Have a moment where you want to look sexy and don’t plan on wearing the lingerie for a long period of time, this might be perfect. When it comes to breaking down sizing, we really like to think about it from the standpoint of who is wearing the bra and not who is looking at the person wearing the bra.
That being said, the larger cup sizes are designed for boobs to look good for the people looking at them. The comfort, support, and security is not there. The cups are often shaped in a way to enhance the shape of the boobs and not have them sit in a way that is comfortable. Their cup sizing also runs on the small side. If you are spilling over your cup at all we would encourage you to go up a cup size. Even if they aren’t spilling a ton, there is a good chance that the cups on the Victoria’s Secret bra will be smaller and you would be more comfortable in a larger cup size.
How Much Push Up Is Too Much?
One of Victoria’s Secret most memorable product lines is their “add 2 cup sizes” bombshell push up bras. The promise was to go from a B cup to a D cup by simply just putting on a bra. For some, the idea of a high intensity push up bra sounds great. Kind of like a boob job for under $100 and you can take it off whenever you want.
While this is a great idea for some, it is also important to note that for those who aren’t seeking push up or have larger breasts, this line of bra can quickly become uncomfortable. Like with any other company, the level of padding in a bra makes a difference. The aspect that makes Victoria’s Secret a little different is that their push up is purely for looks and doesn’t add much support (if any) for the weight of your breasts.
Are You Being Charged for Quality or the Label?
While the Victoria’s Secret stores are set up to be sultry and make you feel like an angel, do their bras and panties carry out that luxury feel? Unfortunately the high end feel stops at the store locations. The bras that you take home are no better than the average bra out there. The brand as a whole absolutely doesn’t even make our top 10 (if not top 20) of brands we recommend. It’s mediocre quality at best.
There are bras from Target that I enjoy more than the Victoria’s Secret bras. One of the biggest problems we have had with Victoria’s Secret underwire bras is that the wires poke through so quickly and make them unwearable unless you move the wire.
Everything Considered, Is It Worth The Hype?
The bottom line is Victoria’s Secret bras aren’t worth the hype and there are ABSOLUTELY better bras out there (with better price tags). We advise that you skip on Victoria’s Secret and find something more comfortable and durable at a fraction of the cost. While Victoria’s Secret might have the fancy ads and the sleek stores,when it comes to the actual products. We just wish they would put as much care and attention into the quality of the bras as they did to the dressing rooms back in 2012. While they’ve got the glitz and the glamour, the actual bras are often a far cry from the fantasy they sell.