When to Use An Extender: Tips and Tricks

Extenders, while very accessible in terms of bra accessories, seem to be a bit misunderstood.  I'm part of the group of women who are always struggling to find bra bands small enough, so for a long time I never thought I needed one.  When it's hard enough to come by a 28 band, I didn't see why I would want a contraption to make any band longer, even if it only costs a couple of bucks.

However, I changed my mind when I came across a couple of 28D and 28DD bras that were painfully tight in the band.  This was my first experience with a band that was truly too tight, so I began to consider the possibility that this thing could be useful.  I threw a 3 pack of a rather generic extender in my Amazon basket in a later order and a few days later, they arrived.

Now, ladies who truly need 24 or 26 bands may not ever find a need for extenders, but the rest of us, I assure you, can certainly utilize them!

In a perfect world, of course, we would all be able to buy bras that fit perfectly in the band.  If possible, the general advice is to size up in the band if the band feels too tight or shows visible strain, such as overstretched elastic or straining on the hooks and eyes.  However, it's not always possible to size up in every scenario, and sometimes sizing up results in a band that's too large.  Since the proportions of bras usually change with sister sizes (unless the manufacturer is very lazy), the below advice assumes that the proportion of your bra cups is appropriate for your body and sizing up would alter the fit of the cups.

With that in mind, here are a couple of examples of when extenders can truly be handy:

Extending bra life:

• As bra bands have some variance in manufacturing, it's possible to get a band that runs smaller than expected.  Handmade items like Ewa or Comexim bras are often like this, and sometimes it's just too much of a pain to return or exchange an item from another country.  Instead of not being able to wear a bra that came in with an unexpectedly small band, an extender can save the bra.
• Natural fluctuations in weight can also create a need for a slightly larger band, and sometimes this doesn't always come with a change in cup size.  Extenders usually add anywhere between half a band size and a full band size to accommodate changing underbust measurements.  This is also a good tip for early pregnancy or post-pregnancy if your ribcage has expanded but your cup size doesn't change, or if you are already wearing a bra with flexible cups.
• Breaking in a new bra that is just a bit too tight can be done more comfortably with an extender for the first couple of wears.  For these purposes, add only one or two rows with the extender.  If you need to add more, do not expect the band to relax to the point where you will be able to wear it without the extender.

Improving fit:

• Odd underbust measurements may have trouble finding the ideal band size as rounding up may not be snug enough, but rounding down may be a little too tight.  In this case, it's better to round down and go with the smaller band size, and add an extender.  Once the band stretches out further, you may be able to remove the extender entirely for the rest of the life of the bra.
• Bras with very flexible wires can experience distortion if the band is stretched a little too far.  Adding just one or two more rows of hooks can reduce tension on the wires and prevent distortion issues, which can cause fit problems and painful digging wires.
• As touched on above, sometimes the proportions of a smaller band size are more suitable for certain body shapes as sister sizes get slightly wider in the cup with band size increases.  People who need the narrower proportions but find the smaller band too snug to wear comfortably may get a better fit by sticking to the smaller band size and adding an extender.

Checking fit:

• A bra that is the correct band size but too small in the cup may be too small to hook.  Adding an extender is a quick way to check the fit of the cups, as the method of hooking the band backwards to check the band fit doesn't allow you to check the cup fit.
• A band may not feel obviously too tight, but can cause the cups to be pulled too tightly against the body, giving the cups a flattened appearance.  If bra cups are giving an unnaturally flattened and minimized appearance, add a little room to the band via an extender.  If the cups relax to a more natural shape, you may need to size up in the band.  If the extender makes no difference in cup shape, the cup is cut too shallow for your shape.

It's possible to buy many different types of extenders these days, and as this is an inexpensive bra component, you can buy them from just about any random seller on Amazon and receive extenders of comparable quality.  Extenders come in multiple hook counts and can contain different numbers of rows depending on your needs.  If you are between sizes or using the extender for diagnostic purposes, a 3 hook extender of standard length will be just fine.  If you need the extender to add at least a full band size to your bra, look for an extender with 4 hooks or ones that are a little longer than normal.

It's important to select extenders properly by measuring according to the instructions listed by the manufacturer.  Usually you will want to measure the distance between the hooks on your bra and match them up with the measurements given.  There is a little bit of flexibility, and it's possible to hook a bra onto an extender that's a little bit too narrow.  You can also hook your bra slightly unevenly to help with other issues, and it's possible to do this with an extender to!

In terms of care, I would advise removing the extender from the bra and washing separately, or making sure it's hooked very securely closed.  If you machine wash, make sure that your bras are in a wash bag or they may get lost or snag on other clothing.

That's it for my extender tips and tricks!  I'll cover the reverse problem in a future post--how to hand-alter your bra bands and accessories to create a custom band fit without sewing.