We Tried These New Bras That Are Popping Up On Instagram And WOW

    ThirdLove promises comfortable bras designed to fit perfectly by giving the user a 60-second online quiz that reveals the best bra for them. But does it actually work?

    by Farrah Penn, Lara Parker, Nina Mohan, Macey J Foronda

    Hi, we are Lara, Nina, and Farrah, and we've worn many, many styles of bras throughout our lifetimes as people with boobs. However, some bras are The Worst: the cups gap, the straps dig into our flesh, the wire pokes, the shape doesn't hold. But when we saw ThirdLove advertised on our Instagram ads as the best bra you'll ever wear, we knew we had to try it.

    Macey J. Foronda / BuzzFeed

    Basically, ThirdLove invented a 60-second quiz called the Fit Finder. So while you may not need to go into a store for measurements, you do need to have some idea of your sizing before you take the quiz. It also accounts for your boobs shape and what type of bra brand you normally wear.

    Thirdlove.com

    But because we wanted to learn a little more about the ~magic~ of this bra quiz, we talked to Ra'el Cohen, the Chief Creative Officer of ThirdLove, who told us that one of the founders was actually working for Google at the time she thought of this idea.

    "David and Heidi Zak started this project back in 2012. Heidi was actually working at Google at the time and needed a bra for an event. She couldn’t find anything that fit her very well and after thinking about it, she decided to pair up with David to see if they could use technology to solve the fit issue. The formulated questions and algorithm recreates the accuracy of an in-store fitting. They have 74 sizes, including half cups. So, the Fit Finder is recreating what people would be doing and an in-store fitting experience. The goal with ThirdLove is to service ALL body shapes and sizes."

    OK, but what happens if the Fit Finder DOESN'T nail it on the first try? We asked Ra'el what ThirdLove's next steps were.

    ABC

    "The true work is in the moments where we don’t get it right the first time. We do everything we can to get people into the right fit, but we take back any products that don’t fit. You have a 60-day fit guarantee, which you can return for a full refund. From there, we have fit stylists online who will talk to you and help guide you into a better size. Right now, more than 11 million women have taken the Fit Finder quiz. For every time a woman takes it, the algorithm gets smarter."

    So, how accurate was the Fit Finder for each of us?

    Farrah

    Macey J Foronda / BuzzFeed

    Thoughts on the old bra: I typically LOVE this bra brand that I'm wearing — so much so that I ordered a push-up bra from them online in the size I normally wear. But oh boy was I disappointed. The straps were too tight, and there was MAJOR gapping in the cups. (It's hard to tell in the picture, but trust me. It was bad.) Like, there was plenty of room for more boob that I don't have!

    Thoughts on ThirdLove's bra: I had high expectations for this bra. Once I took the quiz and saw this as a result, I thought, "oh, that's pretty cute!" As for the fit? It was comfortable. The straps were adjustable so they didn't slip, and there wasn't any gapping in these cups. I wore it for the entire day without any discomfort, so I call that a win.

    Lara

    Macey J Foronda / BuzzFeed

    Thoughts on the old bra: I looooved this bra when I first got it — the fit, the style, the fabric. However, after wearing it multiple times I couldn't shake the feeling that it left my boobs looking pointy as hell. I felt like it was drawing so much attention to my boobs and saying, "HELLO, LOOK AT ME, I'M POINTY!" I stopped wearing it because of this even though it was otherwise very comfortable.

    Thoughts on ThirdLove's bra: I was actually pretty impressed with my bra. The fit was perfect and it gave me nice support. I normally don't like wearing bras with any kind of underwire or padding, but I would absolutely wear this under a t-shirt in the future. It didn't dig into my shoulders or leave me feeling suffocated — it just felt like I had extra support, which was nice. And the bra definitely didn't leave me looking pointy.

    Nina

    Macey J Foronda / BuzzFeed

    Thoughts on the old bra: So, what I find hard about the process is that you have to be someone knowledgable in your bra size for them to send you a recommendation. I haven’t regularly worn a standard bra in quite some time, so I feel like the info I was going off of was a little old.

    Thoughts on ThirdLove's bra: To me, the band felt a SMIDGE too tight. Even though I wore it on the last clasp, I could not escape the ever-dreaded back rolls. BUT I did love the straps! They didn’t dig into my shoulders and they were cute. I’d definitely consider wearing this with something off-the-shoulder. I think the cup coverage was decent too. I would’ve liked a little more lift from them, but they kept my boobs off the floor, which is no small feat. All in all, I’d probably suggest that you try this. Then you can blame someone else if the fit is messed up, LOL.

    Can an online quiz give you a really accurate fit in a bra? APPARENTLY SO! However, you do have to have some knowledge of your sizing information before you take it. As far as comfortability goes? 5/5 stars.