Just because my hooters are bigger than 34B, there is no need to assume that I am matronly or staid.  I have no interest in bras in any shade of ecru, because that color starts out looking faded and old and will pick up sweat stains and look gross in no time flat; nor a bra that is built with more fabric than my wedding gown to keep The Girls demurely restrained come hell or high water.  Women who have Boobs with a capital B are still sexy and playful.  Those traits do not disappear when one's cup size increases by an inch.  We, too, want bras that reflect how we feel about our bodies.  It's awfully hard to feel sexy when you take your shirt off to expose ta-tas strapped into something with more coverage than a parka in a color akin to overcooked brown rice.  When you're stuck behind a desk in work clothes all day, it's hard not to begin to feel like you really are the boring office drone you play; knowing you have a chartreuse and fuchia plaid bra underneath it all helps you keep focus on the things that are important in life.

When I go bra shopping, I see rack after rack of bras that are sexy or playful and cute.  I finger tags hoping that maybe, just this once, I may find one that approaches my size (which is not that amazingly huge - I'm only a 38DD.)  I know my size will not be represented on any of those racks, but I can't help myself.  They're so cute, so flirty.  With a sinking heart, I work my way to the place where bras my size are not displayed but are warehoused.  They are not hung on display racks high enough that you can browse styles at a glance, but crowded onto industrial racks at the very back of the department.  For some reason these racks are only waist high and I invariably have to kneel on the floor to dig through poorly organized, tightly jammed bras that were designed by someone who thinks they know what old ladies want (though I think that both of my grandmothers would have worn cute brown bras with pink polkadots if they'd had the chance.)

I understand there are some difficulties in play here.  Many of the sexy bras are sexy because of their brevity.  Even my relatively unimpressive 38DDs would spill out of a demi bra in a way that would render it's sexiness moot.  The weight of a large rack will stress the elastic of narrow bands and shoulder straps, causing the bra to become shapeless and nonsupportive after relatively few wears.  The former issue, I concede.  The latter, however, I am willing to work with.  I don't need to wear sexy bras around the house every day.  If it's only going to last 20 wearings, I'll wear it once every couple of weeks on dates.  Further, there are other ways you can accomplish sexiness.  I've seen some lovely things done with smaller bras involving lace or creative styling that would be entirely appropriate in larger sizes.  But for some reason the only thing applied to larger bras is a lace panel between the cups - and that only very rarely.

Sexiness is not the only thing missing from larger sized bras.  Simple, cute or playful bras for everyday wear would also be appreciated.  There seems to be no shortage of them in smaller sizes - comfortable, supportive every-day bras that happen to have cute prints or a pretty lace edge on the cups or some clever styling for the connecting piece between cups, or are simply an unusual color.  There is no reason in the world why the same styling could not be applied to larger sizes.  No reason, that is, except that the manufacturers have either underestimated our tastes or deemed us unworthy of such style.

I know that if I search hard enough, I could find what I'm looking for somewhere.  In my experience, though, bras at "plus size" shops are itchy and poorly made, and grossly expensive.  Bras in mall bra boutiques are the same.  Bras in serious bra boutiques are astronomically expensive and really designed for the very, very large chested woman (i.e. the 38Ms of the world.)  I'm glad those boutiques are there for the women who need them, but I can't afford to pay $150 per bra for a level of engineering that I do not need.  And why should I be content to drive all over creation to find a single bra at a king's ransom when women with one pound less boobage can walk into any store and find dozens of appealing options - many of them on sales racks?