Measure your bra size without making a boob?

As Trinny and Susannah have often pointed - and prodded - out, the right bra makes a huge difference to your appearance and self-esteem.

Last week, a London hospital claimed that many women considering breast reduction surgery would be better off buying a properly fitted bra.

So, why are millions of us wearing the wrong bra size? Is it really that difficult to find a bra that fits?

Over the years, my breast size has fluctuated greatly, depending on weight gain, weight loss, my exercise routine and use of the contraceptive pill. I have a drawer full of pretty but now useless bras, in every size from 32C to 36D.

Today, I am a 32E, making my breasts exactly the same size as the voluptuous Kelly Brook - although sadly, I don't have the rest of her body to go with them.

Am I wearing the right size? I spent a day visiting bra shops to find out.



RIGBY & PELLER

I begin at Rigby & Peller, where the Queen is said to buy her bras. If it's good enough for Her Majesty, it's certainly good enough for me.

I like the 'we're all women here in all shapes and sizes' approach, which makes me feel comfortable and normal.

Buying a bra here is about support, not sex. The assistants aren't afraid to hoist your breasts into place. They show you the correct way to put on a bra - cups first - and how to position it accurately.

The friendly, but efficient assistant asks me to remove my top and measures me by sight. 'You're a 32E,' she says. 'Although, in some bras you might be a 34DD - they vary according to the elasticity and the shape of the cups.'

She brings me a selection, some of which fit better than others. We settle on a pretty caramel lacy bra which gives me a Fifties sweater girl shape and plenty of support.

It costs £53.50, but it's well worth it. As it fits so well, I decide I can use it as a benchmark for the rest of my fittings.



MYLA

The luxury lingerie shop sells itself as a 'lifestyle concept store' - you can buy sex toys and scented candles with your smalls.

Kate Moss has bought underwear there, which should probably give me a clue that I'm not their target customer.

As I'm the only person in the shop, I get the full attention of the friendly - but intimidatingly slim and beautiful - shop assistant. She says they don't do fittings, but she can help me find a bra that fits. Then she asks me what size I usually wear.

'I'm sorry, but we don't do E cups', she says, making me feel outsize. 'But we do have a few DDs.'

She brings me a 32DD, which is so small that even a contortionist couldn't fasten it.

Then she brings me a 36DD, which is so big at the back I can fit both hands in. Flustered, she fetches a 34 in the only other style made in bigger sizes. It's lacy, white and costs £79. She says it's too tight.

'You definitely need a 36,' she concludes. 'But we don't have one in stock. I can let you know when we get one in. And you always need a full cup bra at your size.'

I know this isn't true - if anything, plunge and balconette styles suit my shape better.

BRAVISSIMO

After feeling outsize all day, it's a welcome relief to visit the bra shop for 'big boobed women'. Unfortunately, they've made a bit of a boob: there's no record of my appointment, but they fit me in.

'We don't use tape measures,' says the assistant, who looks about 16. She asks me to take off my top, then to raise my arms as high as I can.

You're between a 32 and a 34,' she concludes, and points out what's wrong with the bra I'm wearing. 'And you're an E or F cup.'

When I say I want an everyday bra, she brings a selection of nude and white bras in both sizes, which are functional, not pretty. She stays while I put on each one, asking me to raise my arms, examining the fit and altering the straps.

The one which fits best is a 32F white mesh and lace number, which costs £28. It's supportive and gives me a great shape. Sold.

AGENT PROVOCATEUR

The emphasis is on sensuality - many bras come with matching suspender belts.

Again, there's no fitting. I'm asked what size I take and am handed a pile of 32Es in every shape and colour.

None fits. When I tell the assistant, she returns with a pile of 34Es.

I have better luck with these, finding a beautiful navy blue and pale pink lace number that gives me a cleavage to die for.

It's £75 (the matching knickers are £50), and provides no support whatsoever but, to be fair, I don't think Agent Provocateur bras are designed to stay on that long.

'It's perfect for everyday and for, er, dressing up,' says the assistant.

JOHN LEWIS

The hassled shop assistant - she's measuring two customers at the same time - passes a tape measure around my back and tells me I'm a 34FF.

Unsurprisingly, the bras she brings me are big enough to fit my shopping in. She comes back with 34Es, which don't fit either.

John Lewis must have a 'no touch' policy, as she insists she can't manipulate my breasts to fit the cups, showing me on herself instead.

Eventually, she finds me a slightly padded nude plunge bra (£26) in size 34DD which she declares fits me perfectly. Then she disappears and doesn't come back.

I don't buy it - already own this particular bra, but in size 32E!

LA PERLA

This is to bras what Armani is to suits: the haute couture option. It's so posh there are security people on the door. It's certainly exclusive: I'm the only customer.

'We don't do many bras in E cups,' says the petite Italian assistant. She gives me a pile of 32E bras and waits outside the changing room.

When I tell her they're too small, she comes back with a pile of 34Es, ranging in price from £75 to £150. One just about fits, but it's an impractical maroon and is £139.

'We can send bras to our studio to have the straps or the back altered,' the assistant informs me. 'We do a made-to-measure service.'

MARKS & SPENCER

After measuring my back and bust, the matronly bra fitting assistant tells me I'm a 36DD. Noticing my surprised expression, she measures me again and says I'm a 34DD or 34E.

She comes back with a selection of bras, all of which are far too big in the back, making the cups gape.

Not only won't she touch me while I'm trying on the bras, but she orders me to stand with my back to her at all times so she can't see my naked breasts. I feel like a freak.

When the bras she's brought don't fit, she gives up. 'Get dressed, go out on the shop floor and choose some bras in a 34E,' she says. 'You'll find one that's right for you.' Then she abandons me.

I can't find a single bra in the whole store which fits. It's by far the worst experience of the day.