Nursing Bra - Oakland,CA

I recommend Baby World in Oakland, on Telegraph near 41st St. I had a very similar situation when I had my son (16 mos ago) and had always had much difficulty finding the correct size bra (even pre-pregnancy). Their saleswoman is super-helpful and extremely knowledgeable.

C.

I am much larger chested than you are and had trouble finding one. I bought mine at Kaiser in the New Mom Clinic. If you have Kaiser great if not find someone that does and ask them to take you.

Hi C. - Congratulations on your baby girl. My daughter is now four months and once my milk came in I was a 34 I.I couldn't believe it! I suggest you try Cotton Company on College Ave in Berkeley.They will do a fitting and they have a good selection. However, they only have cotton so the styles are somewhat limited. Also Nuture Center in Lafayette and DayOne in Walnut Creek.
I also bought online. I think the stores were Figleaf and HerRoom. I was happy with both. I bought several online (more than I needed) so I could try them on. I sent some back with no problem.
The bras are not cheap at any of these places but the cost is well worth it.
Good luck!

While nursing the second time around, I went to Motherhood Maternity. Before my milk fully came in, I was a 38C/D but them bumped up to a 40 E or F, I think. I was fitted by a sales woman & able to find some supportive yet reasonably-priced bras. They had a pretty good-sized selection & range of sizes. I think I paid about $20 or so & they held up well thru washing & wearing, even w/putting them inthe dryer...I was too lazy to make sure they didn't get put in the dryer! First time around I was told no underwires & either pulled them outa the bras or bought them w/o wires. Second time around, things were hangin a bit too low already :( so there was no way I would ever feel supported w/o underwires! I had no problems wearing the underwire bras. Keep in mind, tho, that you may start off wearing a really big bra but as the nursing goes on, your boobs adjust to the flow/demand of nursing & may shrink down but still have the same suppy of milk. So, you may need to buy another round of nursing bras. HTH & good luck!

Try the Nurture Center in Lafayette. They do fittings, and can order larger sizes.

DayOne Center. Check out dayOneCenter.com for which of the 3 locations is close to you... They have at least 3 brands in that size. Palo Alto has the largest selection.

There is a store in the Rockridge part of Oakland called Cotton & Company. Theowner and her staff are trained in fitting women for nursing bras and have a very large selection in lots of sizes.

They do tend to be expensive but it seems that nursing bras are expensive everywhere. You might consider just buying one bra that you really like and then seeing if you can get another of the same brand online for less.

Bravados are great for sleeping and being at home, but not super supportive or flattering. I like Bras for Body & Soul:

2500 Mowry Blvd. Suite 130
in Washington West
Fremont, CA 94538
###-###-####
____@____.com
10-5 Tues-Fri., by appointment.

Make an appointment, bring someone to tend to the baby while you get fitted. It takes about 90 minutes and the bras are an investment, but totally worth it and mine have really held up well. I'm pretty large-busted (40 E-F) and thanks to them, I finally have good-fiting, very supportive, quite flattering bras (and NONE of them are underwire if you can believe that! The difference is that they are properly constructed) I'm pregnant again and have worn some of my nursing bras even after I stopped nursing, so I've had the bras almost 3 years. They hold up very well. The fitters move at a slow pace, but it is a non-profit. I believe all the money goes for breast cancer treatment, research, care. They're the best and they have a great selection. You won't have to call to find out if they have your size, they'll help you figure out what size your really need!

I breastfed 3 kids and got lots of great nursing items from motherwear.com....huge selection of sizes, fair prices and really nice quality and style. They have everything you can think of!
Congrats on your baby girl!!!

I HIGHLY recommed Fashion After Passion in Alameda (great name, huh?!). The owner's name is Jay and she lives down the street from me. She has a HUGE selection of bras and is very experienced at fitting all shapes and sizes. She moved to a new location on Lincoln Street last year.

Yes! You simply must go to "fashion after passion" on Lincoln Avenue in Alameda. The woman, I believe her name is Jay, is fabulous. She will size you perfectly after "interviewing" you about your breast size now, before pregnancy, types of bras you like, last time you nursed, which breast your baby nursed on, etc. Sorry I didn't see this one before. Hope this doesn't reach you too late. I bought two bras there after having a baby, and it was the BEST thing I did. Good luck!

Check out 'Fashion After Passion' in Alameda. She has TONS of nursing bras - biggest selection in the Bay Area.

I have the very same problem - 34G. I went to Natural Resources on Valencia Street between 24th & 25th in SF. They really helped me size correctly, and even special ordered certain bras for me. I've also bought bras from CityKids on Clement Street and Newborn Connections (part of CPMC but open to the public) The brands that fit the best were the Medela underwire. For sleep I use the double plus bravado bras. If you have any other questions, feel free to ask.

Hi C.,

I too had a hard time finding good nursing bras that fit (I went from a 38C to a 42DD)! Bravado was a good one, though I felt that it didn't give me enough support so my boobs didn't look droopy! It was comfortable though, and I still wear it to bed, though I've recently stopped nursing. I bought mine at Baby World after only finding 1 bra at Cotton & Co. that fit me (& it was an underwire). I would suggest calling Cotton & Co. to make an appt. beforehand with the owner & telling her your size, so she can get some ready. I did find one really great bra there, which was very expensive (like $60?).

I bought a few from Motherhood.com that were fine, not great, but were not expensive.

I was always incredibly shocked when I went to high end dept. stores like Nordstrom & did not find nursing bras. However, when I was last in Victoria's secret on Bay Street I saw that they were carrying maternity bras & maybe even nursing bras? I'd call to check before going down there. Good luck!

I have heard good things (as the other ladies have mentioned) about Fashion After Passion, but didn't know where they'd relocated so I haven't been there.

The bras that I did best with I purchased online from motherwear.com. I really liked having a place online I could use and returns were easy so the overall experience has been very positive.

Hi C.~

I work in the Lingerie Department at Nordstrom and we do carry nurshing bras, but not a huge selection. I would suggest that you call the closest store to you first, and ask them if they carry nursing bras, and if so, do they have size 36G. It is best to go in for a "bra fit" so they can determine your exact band and cup size. It may not actually be what you think.

Good Luck!

C.

Check out a new place called Day One in Walnut Creek (or check online, they may have other stores in the area). They are a retail place that sells great nursing bras and tons of other stuff and they do classes/playgroups, etc. The gals who work there are very helpful and I'm sure could look into ordering a bra for you in the correct size if they don't have it. Good luck.

Hi C.,
I'm not quite as big, but my normal size is 32D, and when I was nursing, I went up to an E bordering on F (no recollection on band size, but I had a band extender from CPMC's Newborn Connections (SF on California Street near almost near the avenues) that was super useful. I believe I purchased most of my nursing bras there, too. They had several styles and colors in each style from which I could choose. Newborn connections also has a nice selection of items for baby. Parking can be difficult in that neighborhood, however. You'll also be close to Citikids in SF's Richmond district, which is a wonderful store for baby gear, toys, clothes, etc.