You remember Gossard, don’t you readers? They’re the brand that after coming under fire for appallingly incomplete and misleading fit advice performed a hopelessly flawed and uncontrolled ‘test’ on fitting methods and concluded their one was the best.

Well, who am I to argue with that kind of science? If they’re sure their fitting advice is scientifically *cough cough* proven to be better than one based on no calculators and actual good fit practices, then I’ll default to their superior knowledge. After all, they make these bras. They must know how they fit.

So before ordering a Gossard EgoBoost (bastion of female empowerment The Sun’s push-up bra of the year, don’t you know…) I grabbed a tape measure and quickly ran my vital statistics through Gossard’s bra calculator to make sure I was going to get the best fit.

Now while this seemed fishy to me at first, Gossard’s small print says this is most accurate between sizes ‘A-DD’. Only women above a DD should check with an in store fitter. I’m in range, so I added to my Figleaves basket and waited for my ego to be boosted. I like to call my stubborn disregard for logic here “Gossard PR Style”.

What can I say? One week later and I can confirm that Gossard’s EgoBoost is possibly the worst bra I have ever reviewed. The heavily padded cups are small and, it almosts seems, entirely in the wrong position. At the side, the wire tracks in to the side of my breast and causes spillage so wide I couldn’t button my shirt couldn’t fit properly. In the middle it’s a similar story, with the wires resting on my breast tissue and smooshing them down. Try as I might to jiggle everything in I couldn’t fix this, and as I moved very quickly my back band was riding up and I could feel my boobs being pressed down against the ribs below.

But whatever, right? This is EgoBoost, not ComfortBoost. Maybe she’s not about the support – maybe she’s one of those bras that never leaves the bedroom. Except (and here I was genuinely surprised) the cleavage was lame. I tightened the straps fully to try and get the right lift, but nothing. So much of my breast was being squished out sidewards and downwards that there was nothing to go up. When I tried tucking everything towards the middle I got something approaching the advertised cleavage, but it didn’t take long for gravity to undo it all.

This bra is so bad, it’s almost as if I’m wearing it in completely the wrong size. But looking through Gossard’s website, it’s clear this is how the EgoBoost is supposed to look. Gossard’s bras aren’t supposed to sit flat against your chest or effortlessly lift your bust skywards. They are designed to smoosh your boobs in to an approximation of a Sun newspaper worthy spread, and then it’s up to you to stay completely still and use carefully applied bronzer and PhotoShopping to get the advertised result. Baffling. EgoBoost? I’m not sure how low my self-esteem would have to be to need a pick-me-up from this.

For a truly decent push up bra from a company who does give a crap how it fits, check out Freya’s Deco collection.

“Ultimate” is a word often bandied around about push-up lingerie, but if there’s one bra that truly embodies the word it’s the gravity defying wonder of engineering that is Wonderbra’s Ultimate Strapless bra. I’ve reviewed her before a few years ago, back when my more-often-than-not size of 30G was still not available. Even in a imperfect 32F – which did feel a little slippy around the sides – she gave me a level of comfort and support I (all big boobs and bony ribs) had never been able achieve before. And this was no easy ‘jump up and down in the changing room’ test either – my imperfectly sized Ultimate Strapless passed the sixteen hour bridesmaid test. Oh yes, she rocks.

But could she get any better? I’m not sure why it’s taken me so long to order a 30G since they expanded their size range (in the black lace – she’s pretty too) but I wont waste time on regrets. I have her now, and I will never let her go.

I don’t have a wedding to test this out in, so I made do with a normal day (weirdly a similar amount of dancing is involved, but the music is better). As before, she’s extremely comfortable. The cleavage is perfect – it’s uplifted, definitely – but in a sexy sweetheart shape way rather than a two-footballs-glued-under-your-chin kind of way. The back is firm but not crushing and the cup size is pretty spot-on (possibly a little generous in the cup if you’re fuller on the bottom, but I didn’t have any visible seams when I put clothes over it). And the best thing? For a big bra, her low back and extremely plunging center means she’s extremely versatile for whatever you’re wearing.

Just as before with the 32F, she gives amazing support all day long… but better. The fit is even more secure; and because she’s my actual size, her proportions are better under my clothes – meaning I’ll wear her more often, and love her all the more. Ultimate support, ultimate comfort, ultimately recommended.

Wonderbra’s Ultimate Strapless is widely available in sizes 30-38 A-G.

Can your favourite strapless beat mine? Let me know below!

I seriously think I have an allergy to Victoria’s Secret: almost everything I see of theirs riles me. They are the opposite of everything I would hope for a lingerie company to be, and yet are relentless in their domination of lingerie retail and news.

It’s not as if their latest “Decoding Love” Valentine’s video is aggressively offensive – I know that the marketing department meant this as ‘a bit of fun’ – but it really, really annoys me. I find it overwhelmingly bleak. *Tee hee* Silly men, they never get it right; *tee hee* that is so like a woman, never saying what she means.

These caricatures do nothing but make losers of us all. But then, at least we can find salvation/solace in three piece set of awkwardly fitting lingerie. How did relationships survive before Victoria’s Secret? Le sigh.

I’d rather get my smalls from a company who respects my intelligence, knows sexuality is more than fake tan and pouting, gives a damn about my comfort, and doesn’t play in to the whole ‘ball and chain’ routine that makes idiots of us all. A company rather like my boyfriend, I suppose. (Beard optional.)

Happy Valentine’s Day!

For more on the matter, check out Why I Hate Victoria’s Secret.

So I’ve never needed an excuse to look at swimwear (it’s an addiction), but in a week I’ve had three SOS messages from women struggling to find nice swimwear in G+ sizes. All three said previously swimwear shopping had reduced them to tears, and I can’t help but sympathise (me too) and also swear vengeance (never again).

So here are twelve of my favourite swimwear picks to look out for in 2013 so far (like I said, addiction)… according to the middle of the alphabet. Full marks to Curvy Kate for bringing colour and prints to the Ks, to Freya for once again blowing my mind like eight times, and to Panache for Tallulah’s a-m-a-z-i-n-g high waisted knickers. It’s not even summer yet! *hyperventilates*

G:

Miss Mandalay: Gingham bikini: 30-38 D-G

Panache: Stella Bandeau bikini: 30-38 D-G

GG:

Midnight Grace by Figleaves: Flower Garden bikini: 30-38 D-GG

Freya: Hello Sailor tankini: 32-38 D-GG

H:

Freya: Sunset Boulevard bikini: 28-36 D-H, 38 D-G

Fantasie: Kyoto Lotus Blossom bikini: 30-40 D-H

Freya: Manhattan bikini: 28-36 D-H , 38 C-G

J:

Panache: Tallulah balconnet bikini: 30-38 D-J

JJ:

Freya: Iris Pier Bikini: 30-38 H-JJ

K:

Curvy Kate: Horizon Red Stripe bikini: 28-40 D-K

Curvy Kate: Flirt Black/Flower bikini: 28-40 D-K

Panache: Veronica bikini: 30-38 D-K

Evollove is a relatively young brand by the Australian Bendon Lingerie group (parents of Elle Macherson Intimates), designed to be a young, vibrant offering for D-G girls. I’d not heard anything about them until I was waist deep in a Figleaves shopping spree and spotted Sweet Blush in this gorgeous Festival Fuchsia colour. It looks like a hybrid between Panache’s Cleo brand and Freya’s Gem. I had to try it.

Evollove is of course ‘love’ backwards and forwards, but to be honest a better name might be Svehwwhevs. Not as catchy perhaps, but certainly more in tune with how I feel about this bra.

I don’t often give bad reviews (I don’t often have to) and I don’t like busting a young brand’s chops, but Sweet Blush is a huge fail for me. I had to check the label to make sure what I was trying to strap on was actually a 30G – because the cups are so small I think I’d need to size up two sizes to get close to fitting. At least. I can’t even gauge how the band might fit, because it couldn’t get close to fitting close to my body with my poor smooshed boobs in the way. My best guess is that I’d need to start somewhere around a H cup to be in with a hope of even getting it on, which of course sizes this G-cup right out of the brand. Nice work there, Svehwwhevs…

The bra itself looks pretty, the lightly padded fabric feels nice, the construction looks fine. But really – what’s the point? D-G cup bras aren’t exactly rare these days. There are scores of brands doing this size ranges, and doing them well. Even ignoring the sizing fail that makes this D-G range more like a B-F range, why bother bringing a bra to market that can’t compete with what’s out there? D-J might be interesting. Cups that vaguely resemble a generally accepted size might be interesting. But there doesn’t seem to be anything of real substance here. D+ girls deserve (and need!) better than this. Must try harder.

I love Fauve. Fauve is everything I want from my lingerie – it’s grown up, beautiful, elegant… and for some reason the orange Bronte longline coming this spring (below) is one of the most exciting pieces I’ve seen for G-cups in a long time.

Except… I can never make Fauve work. Not because I don’t have a long satin housecoat, or big glossy hair, or immaculately manicured everything (I mean, I don’t have those things either), but because I can never figure out the sizing. However much I love Fauve, I find it really hard to navigate to a size that works.

Take the Coco balcony bra in Mulberry. She is beautiful (although to be honest I could lose the little pearl/diamante caterpillar in the center – this isn’t Victoria’s Secret), she is elegant, and she feels like great quality. But in my usual size of 30G (and the size I usually default to in sister brand Freya), Coco was all wrong. In the back she’s perfect – firm and comfortable and exactly as she should be. But the cup – be it from size or cut or both – was a miss. There was at least a half-cup size’s worth of space left empty, and I couldn’t fix it by adjusting the straps because… the gap was in an empty, eye-poking peak above the nipple.

I could try a 30FF of course, but even then I’m still not sure it would be a solve. The rest of the bra seemed okay, so if the cup compressed anywhere except in that tip I’d be squeezed. Plus, 30 backs are so rare in Amsterdam I’m totally reliant on mail order.  Coco is a lovely looking bra, but I’m not sure I can be bothered to spend time and money shipping another one over to disappoint me.

Fauve would be perfect if they could get a fix on sizing – something perhaps usually consistent sister brand Freya could help her with. I’m crossing everything that the Bronte longline is the very first exception to my Fauve misfortune….

Fauve Coco balcony in Mulberry is available in sizes 30-38 D-GG and 40 D-G.

Between Midnight Grace and Just Peachy, Figleaves.com have quietly been doing a nice little line of cute, budget friendly swimwear and lingerie. This non-padded balconnette comes in 10 colours (I love the grey too!), and reminds me of a budget Freya Jolie – if Jolie was still the everyday basic multi-coloured wonder she used to be.

The band is nice and firm, and like Jolie she gives a classic uplifted but everyday shape. She’s comfortable (I love the soft frill under the wire) and the cornflower blue colour in particular is gorgeous. In terms of sizing she’s much improved from the Daisy I reviewed last year, and my ‘go to’ size of 30G was fairly spot on (which is even more important when internet shopping, let’s face it…) however petite girls (I’m 5’4″) may find the wires come up higher than other brands at the side. As great as this bra is, I think I’d find it chaffing under the arms after a long day.

Just Peachy’s non-padded balconnette is not for me, but this is a great buy for a slightly taller girl on a budget. Available in sizes 30-38 DD-G, only from Figleaves.

Freya’s half-lace cups have always been a firm favourite of mine. Loretta, Trudie, Tabitha, Edith – I love how they blend gorgeous prints and colour with a comfortable, everyday style. I also love how their shape isn’t rounded like most G+ bras – sometimes I want something other than ‘sensible t-shirt’ or ‘eyepopping cleavage’, and this style is one I reach for again and again.

Dionne is another classic to add to the canon. In exactly the same cut as Lorretta et al, she’s comfortable, true to size (my 30G was pretty perfect), and not only does she remind me of the flying power-up on Super Mario World for SNES (aka the best computer game everrrrrr), but check out the sizes she now comes in: hello 28 backs AND K cups: we’ve been waiting for you.

As with the other styles, less full-up-top girls like me will need to tighten the straps to avoid puckering – but assuming the underwire is tracking correctly under the bust and the band is doing all the heavy lifting, this is another cracking bra by Freya for Spring. Love!

Freya Dionne is available in sizes 28 D-J, 30-36 D-K, 38 D-J.

This post is hugely overdue thanks to my recent adventures in amazing Texas (howdy y’all), but two weeks late this not-so-new news is still worth shouting about.

It’s no secret I love Bravissimo. Non-UK readers: whenever you ask for the reason why the UK is so much better equipped for our fuller busts than other countries, Bravissimo is it. Founded by a frustrated big busted woman in 1995, Bravissimo went from mail-order secret to high street game changer – re-educating (and empowering!) women about their bodies one bra size at a time. They reshaped the lingerie industry for those of us beyond a C cup (now most serious department stores and lingerie brands carry G cup bras almost as standard) and they continue to champion the importance of good (and regular) fittings and properly sized lingerie.

Boob School is proof of their continuing dedication to that cause. For those of you who have never been “Bravissimo-d”, there are no tape measures in their changing rooms. The fitters assess bras not on numbers and letters, but on how they fit. They show you how any bra does or doesn’t work for you, and explain how to tell when you’ve got it right. For me, this is the key to getting all women in to well fitted bras. An online bra calculator is never going to do it – we have to help every woman to recognise the signs and find her perfect fit for herself, even if it contradicts what a ‘professional’ fitter is telling her.

To be honest, I already classify Bravissimo as a company with great fit advice and a dedication to educating their customers, but Boob School aims to do this on a much bigger scale and to a wider audience. It re-imagines the information that has been hitherto tucked away in the bottom links of their webpage and in the brains of their fitters, and puts it front and center with these easy to understand cue cards on their website and Facebook. So many women wear bras in sizes that squish, squeeze, bulge or otherwise bother their breasts, when the truth is a good fitting bra can stop you from noticing them from one end of the day to the next (unless you want to…) Bravissimo were the ones who introduced me to 30G (from 34E), and in doing so freed me from hating my body… and freed me to discover running, swimming, shirts that button properly, non-nipple exposing swimwear, and liking my boobs. And if you’re one of the many women still struggling with awkward lingerie, I hope one day they will do the same for you too.

Check out Bravissimo’s seven bra faux pas below and see if you need to work on your bra-rithmetic….

The U.S. Supreme Court is debating Marriage Equality right now, so I just wanted to show my support for what by 2013 should be a given: equality for all. 

Here’s to a future where sexual orientation is as relevant to determining our rights and opportunities as our hair color is.

Love, B4J x

I had no idea I would ever be writing about weddings two posts in a row, but last weekend on the back of  a boat on the Thames and to my total surprise Mr B4J asked me to marry him. I said yes.

I’ve never dreamed of being a bride – I won’t be in a wedding dress on the day for sure – but I can’t wait to be married to my best friend. And so we have set ourself a challenge: four months, no procrastination, and one awesome party for our friends and family.

We both know what we want to wear (hell, I’ll buy a dress this afternoon if it’s in stock and suits G-Unit), we know what we want to eat and drink, we know the sort of place we want to have it, we know who we want to come and we know the sort of party we want to have. There’s only one totally blank void in the plan:

I have no idea what lingerie to wear.

This is an amazing opportunity to splash out on some extremely special and decadent undercrackers…. but what do I want to wear? Fit must be perfect, of course – and the structure of the bra will need to work with that of the dress. But beyond that I have total freedom  to choose anything to hold me up on our wedding day. I don’t need to restrict myself to bridal lingerie as I won’t be in white (or cream, or anything bride-y) – so on one hand I have total carte blanche. But on the other as regular readers will know white underwear – a genre wholly unrepresented in my swelling lingerie collection – is Mr B4J’s favourite: it might be nice to – for once – indulge him.

White lace wedding present for my new husband, or something bright and beautiful for myself? Or – the dream – is there a white bra out there that can look special enough to me at a G cup to be something for the both of us?

Four months until L&B4J day. This is going to be fun…

So regular readers will know I recently raved about Bravissimo’s continued dedication to good fitting advice, and fellow bloggers may have seen my (very sincerely meant) quote on the Boob School press release. It wasn’t necessary, but Bravissimo’s team sent me some lingerie as a thank you: their classic style Alana.

Alana is sort of a legend, because she is the only L-cup bra available on the high street. But I’d never actually tried her until this new, lime green beauty arrived on my doormat. I am super in to neon at the moment, and this looked like just the refresher my lingerie closet needed.

Sadly, it was not meant to be. Alana is a classic style, similar to a Freya Gem or Freya Jolie in shape -however, she has an extremely high center gore compared to those other styles, which (as I’ve written about often) doesn’t suit my body at all. I’m relatively petite with flared ribs and a prominent sternum, and a high center gore really cuts in and becomes uncomfortably very quickly. (FYI, a bigger band size doesn’t help this: in fact, with less anchorage my band will tip backwards and exacerbate the problem). A pity, as I really do love the colour. It looks like sorbet, which screams sunshine even if the weather refuses to…

In terms of fitting, because Alana reportedly runs small in the cup, I was sent a 30GG. But while the back was firm (though not tight) and the underwire tracked perfectly, the top of the cups were slightly baggy on me – enough to show under my top but not enough to really justify sizing down. Or saving exclusively for those two wonderful days a month where G-Unit becomes GRRRRAAAAA-Unit. Either way, it’s awkward.

I wondered if this is actually something to do with the height of the center gore – perhaps Alana is better suited to taller/longer bodied women than I am – because the top of the bra starts that much further up the chest? Or perhaps it’s just better suited to women who are fuller in the top? Either way, I put Alana back in to her box – pretty as she is, she’s never going to be the girl for me.

The upside of this disappointment is this though: I know this bra is wrong because of the lessons Bravissimo have taught me over the years. And I know – despite the unsuccessful review – that they’d be proud that I have the knowledge and confidence to know when something’s just not right for me. That’s what fit education is about after all: giving women the tools they need to know their perfect fit every single time.

Alana in lime is available from Bravissimo, in sizes 28 FF-HH, 30 E-KK, 32-40 DD-L.

First things first: I think everyone should read Bad Pharma by Ben Goldacre. A healthy skepticism about ‘scientific’ studies is good for you, and would make the world a much more rational place. But if there’s one thing I’ve learned in three years of boob blogging, it’s that when it comes to the media your study doesn’t have to be watertight to be Big News.

So Big News indeed it seems to be: French Researcher Prof. Jean-Denis Rouillon (with the caveat that ”the women involved were not a representative sample of the population” – so please, have that pinch of salt at the ready) suggests that not wearing a bra improves firmness, perkiness and other very scientific words, up to a difference of 7mm lift for each year a bra wasn’t worn – validating his hypothesis that bras are a ‘false need’, and cause more sagging than they prevent.

Interesting choice of phrase there. Personally, I actually do believe that wearing bras is a choice rather than a need. Let’s be real,  it’s not a totally free choice – but it’s definitely not one made purely on the grounds of fighting sag. Certainly in Western society there is a degree of expectation, and not wearing a bra can be an obstacle to general eye contact and respect in the workplace. Liberated nipples can chafe (ow). And for those of us with more than a handful, a (properly fitted) bra is nothing short of life-changing: it’s the difference between a sedentary life filled with self-consciousness and discomfort and an active one filled with trampolines (and other activities.) As G-Cup, sagging is way low down my ‘reasons to wear a bra’ list. Apart from the fact that – shocker – I love lingerie and the way it looks, in truth I’m just thankful I can make it out of my house without knocking myself out.

That said, on the bra vs no bra sag vs no sag debate, I’m a believer in the (well fitted) bra. I’ve had boobs for half of my life now, and they’ve been this size for well over a decade. Over time my laughter lines have deepened and my metabolism has slowed to a much more unforgiving-of-Cheetos level, but my boobs are about as perky as they’ve ever been. I’m not sure I’d be in the same state if I’d continued with slack banded E-cups squishing my boobs down and back in to my body. Or if I’d spent the same two years I have in a city of bicycles and staircases without any support at all. But who knows?

In my extremely unscientific study of one, I can’t help thinking that my ‘perkiness’ is more likely to be a product of never having breastfed, or ever experienced any significant weight fluctuations. And perhaps even, wearing a properly fitted bra from a young age too (I’m not sure if fit was a factor in his study – but I suspect it wasn’t…). Every busty girl who has found her way to a perfect fit knows that the back and posture problems he references are only usually side effects of terribly fitted bras – and can be banished easily with some sizing adjustments.

Ultimately, I wouldn’t worry about the study or your sagging and just do what makes you feel happy and comfortable. Wearing a bra should be a choice, and it’s one I’ve been happy to make. That our bodies will change with age is inevitable, and even a more robust study proving a connection between sagging and lingerie would be an irrelevance to me: I know there is no point of vanity alone that would persuade me out of my G-cups. I couldn’t trade this freedom my lingerie gives me for anything.

__________

What do you think: would you go braless? Could you?

Source: Jezebel & Counsel Heal

So readers may know that I recently got engaged, and because I didn’t want to be talked in to the traditional wedding dress I’ve never wanted I didn’t wait long to make a cup of tea, fire up Net-a-Porter, and order something special from the Amazing Dresses I Could Never Usually Look Directly At Let Alone Afford category. It’s here, hidden away, waiting for the big day. I love it.

I’m keeping the dress under wraps for now of course, but suffice to say for now that it is not bridal, it is not white, and I do not have a clue how to dress G-Unit underneath it. As if bridal lingerie shopping wasn’t a minefield to start with, I’ve chosen a narrow but extremely low plunging neckline for my dress. I almost never show off cleavage so it’s going to take some daring, and to boot I’ve basically rules out every G+ bra shape known to man in doing so.

Trying it on with a variety of bras from my arsenal I can deduce that:

Freya Deco (28GG) is the perfect shape – but for this I think will be to overtly boob-tastic for me to be comfortable in that neckline.

Panache Tango plunge (30G) gives the perfect cleavage – with a low and separated look that balances the appropriateness of the low neckline – but makes me look flattened under the dress.

My old Wonderbra (no longer made, but a lot like this unpadded style – 30G) does a great job of being invisible and creating a less extreme cleavage – but I can only wear it for short periods of time before the wires grind in to my ribs and I want to take it off. (Why do I still own this!?)

So the brief: basically, I need a Freya Deco on valium, or a Panache Tango Plunge on tequila. I need a deep plunge but a modest cleavage, a modest cleavage but not a flattened cleavage. I need comfort. Lacy and beautiful would be a bonus – especially if she paired with a fantastic pair of undercrackers – but perhaps I’ll settle for ‘not visible in photographs’ and ’100% nipple secure when dancing’.

It’s a toughie… Any suggestions?

From the sneak peeks at Moda, to the tantalising Instagram snaps of gorgeous colours and fun frills, to the very first reviews in my RSS feed, it feels like I’ve been waiting to be Tutti Rouge for ever (and ever, and ever).

Until now. Now available at Bravissimo (who generously sent me my first taste of the Rouge), Tutti Rouge’s Lilliana landed on my desk this week and brought spring to my lingerie collection.

It’s pink – very pink – but a brilliant, bright bubblegum that I love and have sorely missed since the death of my favourite Freya Jolie. There’s nothing like a shocking pink bra to work as armour against a cloudy day. With simple ribbon and bow details, Lilliana is fun but not fussy – for me the perfect level of frill for every day.

The band of my (go to starter size) 30G was firm, with two back hooks and the skinniest straps I’ve ever had on a G cup bra – makes a change from the standard issue F+ strap width and perfect for vest tops (unless you live in North Holland like me, and vest tops are a distant memory of summer holidays long past…).

Fit wise, Lilliana was pretty great. At first glance the cleavage she gives is deceptively basic, because with a deep plunge in the lower cup on closer inspection (shirt off) she’s pretty spectacular. The sizing was perfect but my cups were definitely at capacity – on a ‘bigger’ day I’d be veering in to quadraboob territory. But who cares about those days – an infectiously vibrant treat of a bra deserves a holiday one in a while…

Inexpensive, fun, and kicking off with a bold and wide range of sizes Tutti Rouge has definitely won a new fan in B4J. Can’t wait for Betty (and the rest!) to roll out later this year.

Lilliana by Tutti Rouge is available in sizes 28-38 DD-J.

So after a few weeks of being pinched and poked by my normal bras I finally gave in and did some shopping.  Like any other hot topic, there are many different ideas of the best way to dive into these new found glory times of heaving bosoms; but like with many challenges, trial and error is the quickest way to learn what’s best for you.  And it never hurts to get an expert’s opinion first.  I contacted Pudding Lingerie and had an over the phone fitting with one of their service reps which was great.  She talked me through band size, cup size, what’s increased so far, what logical steps I could take to get a bra that would last me through more than a few weeks and most importantly, what I wanted out of a bra.  It was an educating conversation that left me feeling more confident on trying new styles and sizes.

Based on this conversation, my reading and logical deduction, it seemed
smartest to go with a nursing bra.  While I’m not nursing now I will be soon enough, so why not buy something that will be functional for more than just a trimester?  I had visions of something white, something lacy, something demure but sexy, dare I say ’hot mom’-ish…?  On paper the HOTMilk Luminous for all intents fit the bill: it’s pretty in pictures, it has lace detail, it’s a nursing bra and, something new for me, there is no underwire which I figured would be my biggest challenge.

Do you remember that time, when you walked in on your grandmother/aging aunt/family friend at a pool party and caught them in just their skivvies getting changed?  And you were embarrassed and awed at the same time… but most of all just OVERWHELMED by the sheer size of their underwear?  In this bra I feel like the one wearing the big pants.  Surprisingly to me the lack of underwire was not an issue at all, the bra fits comfortably around my frame and supports well. But for someone with my chest size (36F), there is no definition in the cups – causing the breasts to be pushed together to make one long bump with a sweaty crease in the middle.  And the middle!  There is a pretty little bauble which, because of the lack of definition in the cups, sticks out further than anything else and makes a funny little bump in the front of my chest, even in a loose fitting top. I’ve worn the bra a few times to give it a chance and while I’ll put it aside for when nursing has become a reality, it’s not one I will choose to wear regularly.   I think for a smaller chested person this might be a great bra to work with, it’s just not for those with more than a handful.

What I want – what I need – is the same thing I expect from my husband; to feel supported, to feel pretty, to feel sexy during this alien invasion of my body.  He’s done a great job of it, this bra, while supportive, has missed the mark on other counts.

The hunt continues.

Thanks to Pudding Lingerie for helping Kaela out with the fitting, and the HOTMilk Luminous to review.

I don’t upload pictures of my boobs/bras to my blog, but I have huge respect for the bloggers who do [big up Georgina Horne and Cheryl Warner, amongst others]. In showing their diverse figures and how various styles and shapes work on their bodies, they not only provide a useful resource for women but promote body confidence and help present a more balanced spectrum of shapes and sizes.

When it comes to bra fitting, there is no better technique than getting in to a changing room and taking your top off with a professional fitter. But when that fitter/amateur blogger is on the Internet, separated by countries or even continents, how they give advice that is genuinely meaningful when they can’t see exactly what’s going on? And if you’re not one of the Georgina Horne’s of this world, how do you give a remote stranger a visual on your boobs in a world where a Tweet can last a lifetime?

Brayola think they’ve cracked it. With their new Fit or Not app, women can upload anonymous (if they want to be) photos of themselves in their bras and Brayola’s fit experts will give their professional verdict. And if that verdict isn’t good, they’ll give constructive and clear instructions to help you find a better match.

And that’s not all. Before you see the expert verdict, you’re invited to rate the picture “fit or not”. The expert’s reveal helps educate a wider audience, and spread that good fit further.

It’s not perfect by any means – a heavily airbrushed and extremely dodgy photo pulled from Figleaves (or similar) scores a good fit despite being 2D’d out of recognition – but the advice on the ‘real’ pictures seemed solid and I have truly applaud Brayola for trying something totally innovative and totally different in the minefield that is online fitting advice. Plus, it’s weirdly addictive. I keep looking for familiar chests from the boob blogger sorority….

Play Fit or Not at Brayola.com.

*****EDIT

After a couple of more plays, I spotted some off advice on non-stock imagery to. I’ve sent the below to Fiona at Brayola: looking forward to hearing back.

Hey Fiona, hope you are well.

Loving the concept of Fit or Not – quite inspired solution to online fitting advice.

I was wondering though – it falls down on a couple of dodgy expert calls. Like on Playtex Secrets 48B, the advice is to try a different brand – when clearly the advice should be try a much smaller band and a much bigger cup. And on Victoria’s Secret 36DD, it says the band looks great but actually you can clearly see from the right breast that the underwire isn’t tracking properly and the breast is resting on chest tissue rather than the bra.

I think it’s nearly there but would just benefit from some revisiting. I also wonder if ‘how it should fit’ link under each expert opinion that visually explains how a bra should look (Bravissimo do this excellently if you need pointers) would make it a more useful and much more important tool for women online.

 I look forward to hearing from you on the above. Please let me know if there’s anything else I can do to help. 

Beckie

http://www.busts4justice.com

www.facebook.com/busts4justice

Not long after writing this review of Curvy Kate’s Princess bra did team CK reach out to me to let me know that the fitting nuances I’d noted in my review – namely that it ran slightly small – would be resolved in the new season Princess style. Quite a promise from a brand who does typically run slightly large: but is it true?

Interestingly enough, it is. Although the band could be a little bit firmer, the wide three-hooked support gives good support while the cup fits much ‘truer’ to size than previously. The underwire tracks perfectly, and though pastel purple isn’t usually my cup of tea I have to say this is my favourite Curvy Kate bra to date.

It’s not just the fit. The style is slightly different too: the cups seem closer together in the center – much more comfortable for a close set girl like me – and it doesn’t have the same outwards east-west pointing as it did before.

In many ways, Princess seems to have been engineered precisely to my tastes. It suits my figure better, it’s infinitely more comfortable on my ribs, and gives my favourite rounded everyday shape. Good news for me – although I wonder what old die hard fans of the style will make of it. Have any of my Curvy Kate loving readers tried it yet?

Curvy Kate’s new orchid purple Princess is available in an extended range of sizes from 28-40 D-K, 42-44 D-G.

I don’t know whether it was the scalloped red frill or the primary colour palette, but something about Melissa by Panache’s younger brand Cleo called to me in this soggy dog of a Spring. There’s something infectiously cheerful about this bra. There is something incurably damp and sorry about my commute. I needed her.

With her bright blue fabric, bright red frill, and cute berry print, in my usual 30G Melissa is the very epitome of perky. She’s extremely firm in the back and gives an almost artificially round and firm uplifted shape at the front. The cups are true to size (although perhaps shallower at the bottom, which creates that amazing apple-shaped cleavage), and the skinny straps help make it feel daintier than a standard boulder holder.

Sadly, she’s not for me. Although I love shape and the brightness, Melissa is taller in the centre than I find comfortable on my short and bony ribs. And it could be the rainy day blues talking, but something about the way the popsicle cute print looks on my body that makes me feel ancient….

There’s no question she’s a cracking little bra – but sadly, Melissa is not for me.

Melissa is widely available in sizes 28D-38J.

When I saw Freya‘s new Babes in the Wood bra, I knew I would love it. Their unpadded half-lace style is one of my favourites ever – I always know what fit I’m getting, it always suits me, and the prints always add a touch of flair to my everyday days. Freya’s Dionne is one of my current favourites and I fully expected Babes in the Wood to be the same.

Except… she’s not. Yet. Though Freya are usually great at cookie cutter bra styles, Babes in the Wood runs much bigger than Dionne. I was so startled by the excess of fabric that I actually double checked the label; and I even put my Dionne on to double check my boobs hadn’t suddenly deflated. But no, it is definitely a bigger cup – I’d need to size down to at least a 30FF to get a proper fit.

In every other respect, she’s brilliant. Firm back, soft fabric, and a beautiful and delicate tree print I love. Babes in the Wood has got everyday classic written all over it… just not in my everyday classic Freya size.

Babes in the Wood is widely available in sizes 28 D-J, 30-36 D-K, 38 D-J.