Zev Explains How to Measure Yourself
Hello, dear readers. We’ve gotten a lot of questions lately and always that basically say, “This is my bra size, what size binder should I get?”
Guys, we can’t do everything for you. Even if we were willing to tell all 251 of you exactly what size binder to get (which we aren’t), your bra size is actually not enough information.
We are here to give you the information that you need to answer these questions yourself. We can’t tell you what binder to get, but we can give you the plusses and minuses of different models so that you’re informed enough to decide yourself.
And because that is what we do, I am going to explain, very clearly, how to find and use the size charts at underworks, t-kingdom, lesloveboat, esha, and peecockproducts.
1. Underworks: Their instructions for measuring are on this page: http://ftm.underworks.com/ but I’ll explain it for you anyway.
get one of those cloth measuring tapes. If you only have a yardstick or a crunchy carpentry measuring tape, get a long piece of string to wrap around yourself and then measure the string.
measure the top of your ribcage, under your “bust.” Measure carefully, keeping the tape straight and flat against you, right in the spot where the band of a bra would go. Keep the tape snug but it shouldn’t be super-tight. You want an accurate measurement.
measure the widest part of your chest. This part is different places on different people. Do your best. Be as careful as you were in step 2.
Take the average of the two measurements. That means add them together and divide by two. If your first measurement is 30 and your second measurement is 40, the average is 35.
Go, on the underworks site, to the specific binder that you want. You’ll see something that looks like this: “ Size - fits Chest: x-small 29-31 / Small 32-34 / Medium 35-39 / Large 40-44 / X-large 45-48 / 2X 48-52 / 3X 53-56”
Your average measurement should be within the range of your size. When I measure like this, I get a 37. That means I’m a medium.
Remember that, as it says on the underworks site, “Each item has a different scale based on the elasticity of the fabric used and the cut of the garment, so please pay attention to the sizing scale for each style.“
The Underworks site uses INCHES!
2. Lesloveboat: here are lesloveboat’s instructions for measuring: http://www.lesloveboat.com/shop/sizechart.php?osCsid=1e08af4f24c5c470d3c86d2fd9f2e702 But of course I’ll explain it for you, too, because I’m nice.
get one of those cloth measuring tapes. If you only have a yardstick or a crunchy carpentry measuring tape, get a long piece of string to wrap around yourself and then measure the string.
Measure the widest part of your chest, snugly and carefully. The widest part is on different places for different people.
Go to the specific binder on the lesloveboat site that you want. There’s a drop-down menu for size, pick the size that contains your measurement.
If you don’t feel comfortable measuring yourself, the lesloveboat site gives an alternative way of finding your measurement using your bra size. Scroll down on the sizing page that I linked to the section called “measuring from your bra size.” There’s a table of band sizes and a table of cup sizes. Simply add the number of centimeters given for your band size to the number of centimeters given for your cup size, and that’s your measurement. I don’t recommend this method. I don’t recommend it because bra sizing is inconsistent, because many people wear the wrong bra size, and because a tape measure never lies.
for god’s sake, remember that the lesloveboat site uses CENTIMETERS.
3. t-kingdom Here’s your link to the size chart: http://www.t-kingdom.com/shopping/english/size.htm And this one is actually so convoluted that I don’t mind explaining it to you.
get one of those cloth measuring tapes. If you only have a yardstick or a crunchy carpentry measuring tape, get a long piece of string to wrap around yourself and then measure the string.
Measure the widest part of your chest, following the rules of carefulness as specified above. The t-kingdom site says to measure “over your nipples” but I think that they’re assuming perkiness, which isn’t fair to the fact that there are many kinds of bodies.
Scroll down on the size chart page.
Find a row on the column that is true to your height, weight, and chest size.
But here’s the thing: your height and weight don’t actually matter- all the mediums are for chests 31-33 inches, all the larges are for 34-36. So just find a row on the column that’s true to the width of your chest.
T-kingdom is super nice and uses centimeters AND inches. So just know which one you’re using. Don’t measure in centimeters and then try to use the size chart in inches. That’d be dumb.
4. Esha So, on the esha site, if you click on “size chart” in the left sidebar, it brings you here: http://www.esha-taipei.net/en/?artlist-137.html This is a list of the binders available at esha. Once you’ve perused the site to pick the model you want, click on that model and follow the sizing on that site.
Now, there are no instructions on this site for measuring, just a table with a list of “chest width,” along with height and weight. I’m going to assume that this means you should measure the widest part of your chest. I’m assuming this because it matches up with weight better (obviously that’s a big assumption) and because the standard measuring systems for lesloveboat and t-kingdom seem to stick to a single measurement, whereas US-based companies use two measurements.
5. Peecockproducts: The size chart is here: http://www.peecockproducts.com/images/uploads/Binder/sizing_chart_400x600_updnov2010.jpg and quite seriously looks like it was lifted straight off of the t-kingdom site. The sizes vary slightly from those of the t-kingdom site but the self-measuring is so similar that I encourage you, if getting a peecock binder, to scroll up to part three and follow those instructions.
Every binder at this site has a different size chart. Pick the binder you want, then click on the size chart. You’ll find the button to get to the chart down near the bottom of the page, where there are other pictures of the binder for you to click on and enlarge. One of those pictures is the size chart.
Got your size chart? Good. Follow the instructions that I gave you for the lesloveboat site. Match your chest size to your size. If you’re on the cusp of two sizes, go for the underbust size that matches. If you’re still on the cusp, match by weight.
remember: centimeters and kilograms!
I hope that’s enough information for you to find out for yourself. I know that measuring yourself sucks. It can cause dysphoria and it can be confusing, but you need to do it if you want a binder that fits. The suckiness now will pay off in the long run. You’ll be safe, and comfortable and have a great binder.
If there are any other sites you’d like us to include in this how-to guide, let us know and we’ll add them. I hope that we’ll keep this post updated to fit any changes in sizing at various sites so that people can continually link back to it.
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