www.LovefromMe.co.uk
the essential women's guide to bras: all you've ever wanted to know about your bra!

So, you want to buy a bra for yourself.

But what about all those different types - padded, balconette, push-up, moulded ... what are they all? Our essential women's guide to bras answers all your questions ...

• underwired - bras which, literally, have pieces of curved wire underneath, to support your breasts
• non-underwired - often called 'soft' - bras without underwiring; much more comfortable, but only suitable if you have good-sized, non-droopy boobs
• padded - bras which contain integral or separate pads; a good choice for the A or B cup woman; the pads can be lightly-padded fabric or can be:
  • gel pads - contain silicone gel, which moulds to your breasts; very effective, but provides quite a lot of extra weight to the bra, which can be tiring for everyday wear
  • air pads - the best ones can be blown up with a special little pump; a bit uncomfortable when fully-pumped, but produce a dramatic increase in size (one of the LovefromMe team attests to their effectiveness: "I'm a small A-cup but when I wear air pads, I'm often amazed by chance comments, when I'm out clubbing, like:'nice pair!'")
• push-up - actually 'push together and up', as pioneered by Wonderbra; produce a really good cleavage; if you have small breasts, padding helps the effect considerably
• balconette - sexy, low-cut cups (often called 'demi-cup' or 'half-cup'), which sit underneath your boobs (like a balcony, you see); pushes up, rather than together; OK for small breasts, as long as it is padded, to enhance the effect
• demi-balconette - like a balconette, in that it pushes up ... but not like a balconette, in that it doesn't have particularly low-cut cups (I know ... blame Figleaves for this strange hybrid style)
• multiway - bras with detachable straps which you can put on as normal shoulder-straps, halter-neck, just a back strap, cross-over straps, etc - according to what the straps on your top or dress are like
• strapless - normally moulded (see below); not actually strapless, in that they have just a back strap, so you can wear them underneath strapless dresses
• stick on - an unusual, new type of strapless bra, comprising a pair of self-adhesive silicone cups (normally padded) with a strap joining them together, which you stick on to your boobs; virtually invisible under most tops
• smooth - often called 't-shirt bras'; completely smooth cups, with no lace, bows or seams; can be worn under tight-fitting tops, for a sort of 'no bra' effect
• moulded - bras with cups made out of a stiffened fabric; again, useful under tight tops, because you don't see the shape of the bra
• triangular - literally a triangle of fabric (as used in a lot of bikinis); if you're a small cup size, these will make you look flatter than normal; if you're a bit bigger, they'll produce an interestinga sexy 'bouncing' effect
• clear straps - clear rubber straps which don't show so much under backless or strapless tops

... and many combinations of these: eg a padded, underwired, multi-way push-up bra with clear straps!