“Don’t do it,” she said. “Do not buy that dress.”

With one proclamation, I was back to square one in the wedding dress search. I was in Alla Prima on Hayes Street, being advised by Maggie, the owner, and by many accounts, the lingerie queen of San Francisco.

A couple of months ago, the nice and knowledgeable gals at Alla Prima had given me a proper bra fitting. Turns out Victoria’s Secret is wildly misguided and woefully understocked. I’d been wearing a 36D my whole life, and walked out of there as a 34F.

So when my first round of dress shopping produced a backless sheath dress as the winner, I wanted to make sure that everything would look great.  And I knew exactly who to ask.

Apparently, for those of us who are well-endowed, there is no “foundation garment” that will support the girls but allow for a low-backed or backless dress. It just doesn’t exist.

“I have so many brides in here crying their eyes out two weeks before the wedding because the foundation garment is the last thing they think of,” says Maggie. “Sometimes they’ve even had their final fitting – how could someone possibly do a fitting on them without knowing what bra they’ll be wearing under the dress?” She went on to point out that if a bride is a B or A cup, she can certainly get away with the NuBra or some other such contraption. (I know, I know, the grass is always greener.) And I know from my own shopping experience at several Bay Area bridal stores that most bridal dresses are cut for a woman with a B cup.

So consider this post part public service announcement, part call to arms. Shouldn’t there be more options for the many, many women who’ve got their junk in the front? Ideally, there would be a foundation garment specialist working with every wedding dress shop. “There is a huge market out there that has been completely ignored,” Maggie pointed out. “They’re just waiting with baited breath…” Myself included. And please, ladies, no matter your bra size, think about the undergarments before you buy the dress. No bride should be in tears over a bra.