Local bra boutique has best answer to 'double scoop' sizes

By: Caprice Singletary/Contributing writer

Posted: 10/5/08

A new customer entered the shop, and started to look around the bra boutique. With a hint of excitement in her eyes, Zina Leshiner, owner of Dor-Ne-Corset Shoppe in Silver Spring, Md, took the customer to the back fitting room. Immediately sizing her up with her eyes, Leshiner grabbed a tape measure. Minutes later, Leshiner went and grabbed a bra from her stock room. Being the "pro" that she is, Leshiner gets the customer's fit right with the very first bra that she puts on her.

"Okay…you are a 34 FF," Leshiner said. Her client sat there in total shock, ignorant of the fact they even made bras that big. Leshiner told her to put her t-shirt back on so she can see the difference. The customer liked what she saw. She looked like she had lost five pounds. She had found her perfect fit.

Experts in bra fitting say 95 percent of women wear the wrong bra size. "The right bra size can be essential to your look, and can make you look up to 10 pounds smaller!" said Leshiner.

In business since 1995, Leshiner has a solution to any girl's bra problem. She gives the inside scoop on putting the "double scoops" into a perfect fit. She also gives tips on how to shop for a bra. What separates Leshiner's shop from other bra boutiques is the unique bra sizes that she carries.

"We start at 28A, and go up to 56FF," she said. "We also go up to 52, depending on the bra."

Leshiner said the biggest mistake most women make when shopping for a bra is that "they shop with their eyes. They always go for the real pretty things instead of what's best for their body type."

Wearing the wrong bra size can cause some health hazards such as mastalgia (breast pain), shoulder and back pain. Wearing a properly fitting bra is highly recommended for reduction of breast pain. One can acquire mastalgia from exercise or other activities that causes the breasts to bounce.

Too much shoulder pressure from bra straps can also lead to health issues as well. When the weight of breasts is transferred to shoulder straps, a deep groove can be seen over the shoulder. Allowing too much pressure on the trapezius muscle can result in temporary symptoms such as neck and shoulder pain; numbness and tingling in the arm; and headaches.

Back pain is the most common issue women deal with when wearing the wrong bra size -particularly among large-breasted women. In some cases, extreme back pain can lead to some women seeking breast reduction surgery.

Leshiner's bras range from $35.00 to $125.00. Anyone who is ready to get those "double scoops" in pure perfection will know that this would be considered an investment.

Leshiner's business is based strictly on word of mouth as she said her team makes sure customers leave happy. "When they leave happy, then they come back with a friend," she said. "Then their friends come back with a friend."

Shannon McCrae from Silver Spring doesn't go anywhere else to buy her bras. "This was definitely a life changing experience for me," she said. "I had no idea that something as little as a bra could change the way I look, that it could change my life!"

McCraie, 26, said before discovering her "double scoop" fit, she used to have back problems. "I used to pull my bra up all day, and it just got to the point where I was so frustrated with even wearing a bra at all. But then a friend of mine told me that she saw a special on Oprah, about getting fitted for a bra. I automatically went to go find more information ... and that's how I found this place."

Even more so for men, the bra dilemma is off the radar. Justin Brown, 26, said that he thought a bra just went up to a double D. When shopping for his girlfriend, Justin simply goes for the biggest size he thinks might fit. "And if it looks good, then hey!" he added.

Howard University student Debra Russell just found out that her scoops where overflowing in her cup. She kept pulling her bra straps up every five minutes, but she had never thought she could be wearing the wrong bra size, she said.

PLACES YOU CAN GO FOR A PERFECT BRA FIT
1. DorNe Corsette Shoppe, Silver Spring, Md.
2. TROUSSEAU, Vienna V.A. (near Tyson's Corner)
3. Coup DE Foudre Lingerie, Washington DC