What do you think of when someone says DD boobs? Do you think of Pamela Anderson sized- breasts squeezed into that iconic red swimsuit? Do you think of playboy bunnies and models with huge boobs that can hardly be contained in their bras? …..Yes? Well unfortunately, and you couldn't be blamed for this notion, but you’re totally wrong. You’ve been conditioned to believe that DD is the biggest size ever and can only be referring to someone with melon sized breasts but in reality this just isn’t the case. 

The steps in trying to undo this learning are two fold. The first step is understanding bra sizes and realising that DD isn’t a definitive size as it has to be teamed with a band size to know the exact cup volume (see our other blog post on bra sizes and how they work here). The second step is that actually in the grand scheme of things, DD cups sizes (there’s lots of them - please see the first point) aren’t that big and are only seen that way due to women continually wearing the incorrect size and being told over and over that DD is HUGE.

So what does a DD cup size look like? 

Well like people, boobs are all different so there are going to be discrepancies but mostly, a correctly fitted DD cup breast shouldn’t be alarmingly big and in fact is mostly mistaken for a much smaller size. 

The image* below shows a woman wearing a 8D (30D UK size - not quite a DD but very close) Curvy Kate moulded cup bra. Yes, really that is what a D cup looks like! And before anyone jumps in saying how do we know? Well Curvy Kate only stock bras in a D+ so this has got to be a D cup at the very least, plus the blogger in question is most definitely in the correct size. 

Now what’s really important to remember is that cup volume increases along with the body size they’re attached to so bra sizes are relative to the band size number they’re teamed with. See the diagram below:

As you can see, a DD breast on a woman with an 8 band size is smaller than a DD breast on a woman who wears a 16 band size. It makes sure that ‘DD’ always looks relatively the same size across different body sizes but also makes knowing ‘what a DD looks like’ very hard. 

We know from dealing with bras and bra fitting for many years that women often think, ‘I have huge boobs so I must be a DD’ and therefore select this cup size and try and find the back size that gives them the best fit in terms of cup. However this is completely the wrong way round as you should find the correct band size first and then move up and down the cup scale until you find the best fit for you. 

So, hopefully this might make some women question their bra size. Are you really DD or are you a much smaller back size and larger cup size to match? The stats say you could be wrong so make sure you check.

If you’re struggling with bra fitting or would like any help or advice on bra, boobs or brands then please do not hesitate to contact our team of specialists on customercare@curvy.com.au. 

Thanks x

*Image courtesy of Big Cup, Little Cup blog.