Thread: Pharonics cup size?

Hi Y'all, forgive me if this topic has been beat to death, but I am about to buy a Pharonics costume and I want to know what cup-size number to get. I've looked it up online and I am pretty sure I am a number 5. I don't have the luxury of trying it on first, so is there any trick to knowing this? I am a very solid 38D in most street bras (Calvin Klein, VS, Wacoal, etc).

Thanks!

Oh and, also how do they run...like are they slightly different for each style costume, or are they all the same?

Oh and I can wear a 36DD, cause the cup size is the same as a 38D, but the band is a little too tight on the DD. So does that make me a D or DD? Oh how I wish we would change bra sizes to a simple number system like they do in Egypt!

Basically, if you are reading this and you wear a 38D and you own a Pharonics, let me know what cup # you wear. Thanks.

I'm heading to the bellydancestore today.
They have girls who work there who are a variety of sizes- and they also ask customers who are there (when a cup size isn't represented or when there are back size questions). It's a rather funny democratic system of bra sizing...but appropriate as women are all different shapes within the different sizes...and the costumes that come in are ALL very different.
The Pharaonix system is a little different from the American. As a 34B (sometimes a 32C, but never a 36A as the cup is too small and back too big) I have to pad her #3 cups, which are what she calls B. Actually- I guess the #3 fits me "like a regular bra should"...but not quite like a belly dance costume should (with some va-va-voom impact). I can also wear her #2, which is what she calls her A cups. I think her #2s are deeper from most American A cups as I can't wear an American A without spilling over the top in an unflattering way.
That being said- Amira has TWO cups that she calls D cups. The 5 and the 6. I think the 5 is more appropriate for someone with a fairly small ribcage and the 6 is more appropriate for a broader ribcage.
The beading sometimes creates very small size differences, but not enough to cause issues. Scalloping also creates coverage difference- as they start with a plain cup and cut out from it. There is no scalloping on the great loops though so this won't effect you.
Anyway- I hope my info helps!

Originally Posted by SamiraShuruk

I'm heading to the bellydancestore today.
They have girls who work there who are a variety of sizes- and they also ask customers who are there (when a cup size isn't represented or when there are back size questions). It's a rather funny democratic system of bra sizing...but appropriate as women are all different shapes within the different sizes...and the costumes that come in are ALL very different.
The Pharaonix system is a little different from the American. As a 34B (sometimes a 32C, but never a 36A as the cup is too small and back too big) I have to pad her #3 cups, which are what she calls B. Actually- I guess the #3 fits me "like a regular bra should"...but not quite like a belly dance costume should (with some va-va-voom impact). I can also wear her #2, which is what she calls her A cups. I think her #2s are deeper from most American A cups as I can't wear an American A without spilling over the top in an unflattering way.
That being said- Amira has TWO cups that she calls D cups. The 5 and the 6. I think the 5 is more appropriate for someone with a fairly small ribcage and the 6 is more appropriate for a broader ribcage.
The beading sometimes creates very small size differences, but not enough to cause issues. Scalloping also creates coverage difference- as they start with a plain cup and cut out from it. There is no scalloping on the great loops though so this won't effect you.
Anyway- I hope my info helps!

Thanks Samira. I've been talking to Miranda via e-mail about the gold loops. I really want it and I am praying it is in my size. I am 35/36 around my ribs.

Hi, Andalee! Of course everyone's built differently, but for what it's worth here's my two cents:
I'm a 38DD/E and can live with a 6 if I add some coverage at the top and sides. I am much happier in a 7 -- I may have to cover a little of the cleavage depending on how the front is cut and decorated, but I don't feel naked at the sides. You should be able to work with a 5 if that's what they have, but I'd guess that with a 38 band, a 6 is going to be your sweet spot. You shouldn't have to do much, if anything, to make it wearable

If you don't mind, may I ask what e-mail address you're using to reach Miranda? I've been e-mailing for a couple of days and haven't gotten a response yet so am trying to find yet another e-mail. Don't worry -- we're not after the same costume!

Best,
Suz

Sent you e-mail!

When I was a 36D, I liked the #3. I found #5s were overwhelming, almost like an ultra-full-coverage bra. I wonder how the #4 would work for a 38D?

I am wondering now, I once custom ordered a DD from Egypt (don't know who made it) and it was absolutely huge on me. It ate me alive and even padding couldn't help...so maybe I am just a plain old D. I don't know if that bra top had a cup #. I just know it was a DD...but felt more like a DDD/E.

When I was a 38D, the #4 looked really skimpy on me. How funny that we're all built so differently!

Never mind what I wrote above, Andalee. I'm beginning to think I'm just an oddball in the boob department.

Someone needs to photograph #2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7 bras with grapefruits or something for reference. And there isn't a #1, right? #2 = A, #3 = B, etc. (approximately, of course)

This is about as skimpy as I like them. Anything else is inappropriate. Some may even say that this is inappropriate, but I feel comfy in it:

Originally Posted by kiyaana

Someone needs to photograph #2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7 bras with grapefruits or something for reference. And there isn't a #1, right? #2 = A, #3 = B, etc. (approximately, of course)

Originally Posted by kiyaana

Someone needs to photograph #2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7 bras with grapefruits or something for reference. And there isn't a #1, right? #2 = A, #3 = B, etc. (approximately, of course)

Those are the equivalents on a 36 band, don't you think?
OK, who's got a fruit basket handy?

Score! Pharaonix inside cup measurements!!!
They are a sort of diagonal teardrop shape. The horizontal and vertical measurements are through the apex approximately mid-line. The diagonal is from teardrop end to teardrop end.
#2 (A)-h 6" v 5.5" d 7"
#3 (B) - h 6.5" v 6" d 7.5"
#4 (C) - h 7" v 6.5" d 8"
#5 (D) - h 7.5" v 7" d 8.5"
#6 (D) - h 8" v 7" d 9"
#7 (DD) - h 8.5" v 7.25" d 9.5"

The band length definitely makes a difference!

Originally Posted by Zana

Those are the equivalents on a 36 band, don't you think?
OK, who's got a fruit basket handy?

I think I hear the Hallelujah chorus playing somewhere. Much better than grapefruit photos!

Originally Posted by SamiraShuruk

Score! Pharaonix inside cup measurements!!!
They are a sort of diagonal teardrop shape. The horizontal and vertical measurements are through the apex approximately mid-line. The diagonal is from teardrop end to teardrop end.
#2 (A)-h 6" v 5.5" d 7"
#3 (B) - h 6.5" v 6" d 7.5"
#4 (C) - h 7" v 6.5" d 8"
#5 (D) - h 7.5" v 7" d 8.5"
#6 (D) - h 8" v 7" d 9"
#7 (DD) - h 8.5" v 7.25" d 9.5"

That is awesome. Thanks!

God I wish I wasn't at work right now so I could measure my bras!

I am a half a medium cantalope...but on a big shouldered frame. However my rib cage is only 33 inches. Some of my boobage flows from under my pits and if the band adjacent to the cups is not "tall" enough it will create side oozage problems no matter how deep the cup. The sisters are no longer self supporting, so a deep cut away to the center of the band will create forward spillage, no matter the depth of the cup. The best style...and the hardest to find...balconies. Big balconies that are paddable at the bottom of the cup to give a firm rising mound effect at the top of the cup. Like if you tilted your head down, you could fall asleep on you own bosoms. So it is the design as well as the cup size and the "independance" of your breasts to take into consideration

PS Love the Bint Beled photo!!!

I love the balcony style. It is super flattering for me and I feel more in a costume, less in a "bra", and I'm not that big. I make my own by finding hard shell bras that are only padded in the bottom, it is called a "bump pad". And I usually "fill in" the plunge a bit.

I would still love fruit photos!

I have found that a 3 fits a little tightly and a 4 is a little big. I am a 34D - DD. Although I have lost 15# and am starting to see a difference in the fitting of my bras.

I also find that the demi cups fit better than the tear drop shaped. But I find this to be true in lingerie bras as well.

I can't wait to get to Egypt and be properly fitted!

{{{HUGS}}}

Originally Posted by Zana

Those are the equivalents on a 36 band, don't you think?
OK, who's got a fruit basket handy?

I haven't tried on a Pharonics recently, but that's always been my problem with them: If they're deep enough/shaped ok for the "payload, they're too wide--too wide set between the boob, too wideacross the bottom of the cup (a 36A and a 32C may have the same volume but they have vastly different shapes!!!), and they always overlap by a ridiculous amount in the back....

I just hate dancing with my boobs pulled apart and the cups extending under my armpits yet still "bubbling" at the top inner edge of the cup.

Originally Posted by aamel_MirahAmmal

I haven't tried on a Pharonics recently, but that's always been my problem with them: If they're deep enough/shaped ok for the "payload, they're too wide--too wide set between the boob, too wideacross the bottom of the cup (a 36A and a 32C may have the same volume but they have vastly different shapes!!!), and they always overlap by a ridiculous amount in the back....

I just hate dancing with my boobs pulled apart and the cups extending under my armpits yet still "bubbling" at the top inner edge of the cup.

Maybe you should try on my gold and silver Great Loop bras sometime, just for fun. :Ahappy: They're both #2 bras, but for some reason, they are shaped noticeably differently, and Laurie had to pad them differently. I am actually not liking how my silver bra is fitting me right now; I feel like even with the padding, my girls aren't pressed securely enough up against the cup. I might have to wire the cups or something...

Guess it goes to show that being able to try something on is really the best way to make sure something will fit! Funny how one 32C loves Pharaonics bras (it's just my silver that's not behaving), but another 32C avoids them.

Bellydance store wrote back and they are suggesting a 6 after giving them my measurements. I'll let you girls know how it turns out!

I just can't pass up a bra sizing thread...

andalee, I think a 6 will be just right for you. I'm a 32F which is close in cup volume to a 38D. I think a 5 would be a bit too bosomy on you, especially since you like a bit more coverage. my older pharaonics 5s have deeper cups; all the newer ones are a lot shallower. a 6 would work for me volume-wise, but the cups are too wide for my narrow ribs. so a 6 should be, as zana said, your sweet spot.

aamel - I've had luck lately with a wide pharaonics by cutting the cups apart and resewing them closer together. it was a design with a beaded applique between the cups so it worked really well.

Originally Posted by elisagamal

aamel - I've had luck lately with a wide pharaonics by cutting the cups apart and resewing them closer together. it was a design with a beaded applique between the cups so it worked really well.

Many of the bras are made of separate components for just this reason- so you can adjust as needed.
In one instance when the center piece was NOT separate and only a small adjustment was needed- I put REALLY STRONG elastic in to pull the cups together a tiny bit. It wasn't enough to create a pucker. This wouldn't work if a big adjustment was needed.

since people where asking about it, let's bump this thread. interesting btw

i'm a 32-34D and she's put me in her #3s. a lot of "vavoom" there, but one bigger didnt work either

Originally Posted by andalee-oriental

This is about as skimpy as I like them. Anything else is inappropriate. Some may even say that this is inappropriate, but I feel comfy in it:

interested to know what cup size this is?
thanks!

I am a 34DD and really don't know what to get... I am tall (5'10), but I don't like a lot af cleavage.
Any suggestions?

I've also been pondering this - I'm a 32A for normal bras, and am thinking of getting a pharaonics coins set. Do pharaonics bras come already padded at all? Due to my lack of general boobage I'd like something that can be padded a bit or is already padded a bit - so am wondering whether to get the 'A' which I guess is a #2 or 'B' (#3?).

Also, does anyone know whether Bellydance Store take size requests? I'd rather get from them than Dahlal as it's a fair bit cheaper, but they only had a B in stock last time I checked

Originally Posted by Roshanna

I've also been pondering this - I'm a 32A for normal bras, and am thinking of getting a pharaonics coins set. Do pharaonics bras come already padded at all? Due to my lack of general boobage I'd like something that can be padded a bit or is already padded a bit - so am wondering whether to get the 'A' which I guess is a #2 or 'B' (#3?).

Also, does anyone know whether Bellydance Store take size requests? I'd rather get from them than Dahlal as it's a fair bit cheaper, but they only had a B in stock last time I checked

I'm a street bra 32/34 C usually. the bellydance store at Rakkash said if I would have called they would have suggested a #2 for me, I tried it on and I think it's not enough coverage for me. I like myself in #3 personally, as I still have cleavage but I am covered on sides.