That Britney Spears has launched a lingerie line perhaps isn’t that surprising, though I’m sure that – pre click – the Internetz was looking forward to a good old LOL about a trashy lingerie line inspired by her Vegas residency.

Well haters, sorry: Britney Spears’ lingerie collection is actually pretty good… and it goes up to a (UK) GG cup. Woah!

So confession: I bloody love Britney. I turned eighteen dancing to a Britney megamix in a sweaty Bournemouth nightclub. I think she’s handled over a decade of public, messy breakups, mental health issues, and not-always-the-most-successful releases with remarkable dignity. And… aw hell, I don’t need to justify myself: it’s Britney, bitch! I think she’s awesome and hope this collection proves to be as good as it looks.

And how does it look? For the most part, it’s clean lines and simple designs. The Anenome Cage bra is definitely an homage to Marlies Dekkers (Britney’s a fan, she’s worn Dekkers on stage before).

I love the simplicity of the Angelika Lace Bra. Minky grey and pink = perfect.

And there are a couple of long line bralettes that I wouldn’t mind pretending I didn’t have G-cups for…

The collection is completed by cute knickers, a couple of basic and strapless options, and even a few chemises too. It’s surprising in its simplicity, and I love Ms Spears all the more for it. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m off to listen to Toxic in the bath.

First image by the mighty perezhilton.com. Lingerie detail shots from barenecessities.com, where you can pre-order the collection here.

So I have been travelling and working a lot, and with my brain super busy with all that it’s made some inexplicable decisions in other aspects of my life. I’ll abandon getting dressed half way through to write one e-mail, only to come round an hour later shivering and powering through my list of things to do. I have made some questionable style choices, not least cutting my own bangs (when will I learn, seriously?). And, when asked to review a bra for Bestform I chose a style not available in my size… from a brand who makes my size.

I have started running again for my sanity, so I am coming back in to the light…

But that still leaves me with a 32FF bra to review. Bestform are a 91 year old lingerie company, and while they definitely do a stalwart line in – let’s say – conservative basics, of late they’ve been pushing their brand forward with brighter colours and prettier patterns. They cater for a range of sizes from a 30 back and up to a J cup.

Which again, doesn’t really explain why, 30G and a fan of bright things, I requested a black 32FF Rome…

Everything about Rome is classic. It’s decent quality, the full balconette offers good coverage and the wires perfectly encased my boobs. The “B” pendant on the centre gore may be a little much if your name isn’t, say, Beckie and you don’t write a blog called Busts 4 Justice, but no one’s named a bra after me yet so I’ll take what I can get.

The only problem is – just as with any bigger banded bra – is simple physics. With big boobs, it really doesn’t matter how well the cup fits if the band doesn’t anchor them to your body strongly enough; if your breasts are heavy their weight will pull the perfectly fitted cups away from your ribcage and you end up a jiggling mess. I – and many other women – need a tight band to keep everything in place. This is why the traditional +4 method fails so many fuller breasted women: heavier breasts simply need a stronger counterweight to keep them up. See, physics.

I won’t labour my struggles with this bra – especially as I’ve reviewed Bestform in my correct size before and found it to be a great fit. Ultimately in cup fit, quality, style – this bra is a decent basic. They just don’t happen to make it in my back size.

I’m not having a great streak in 2014. Need topick up some sizzlers to ride the year out with a bang…

Thanks to the kind people at Bestform for letting me try this bra: I can only apologise for my ordering insanity!

That Victoria’s Secret would plaster “The Perfect Body” over ten very thin women in an advert can come as no surprise to anyone. This is a brand who have previously retouched the very butt cheeks out of their already uniformly thin models. They are not known for their dedication to diversity (even in haircut, let alone size) or promoting body confidence.

But as jaded as I am, Victoria’s Secret is still a $5bn business and an American icon that is now aggressively forcing its way on to European high streets. As much as I loathe it, they are an aspirational brand for millions of women – especially young women. This truth has prompted a petition of nearly 20,000 people calling for Victoria’s Secret to stop promoting mostly unattainable standards of beauty in their marketing. #iamperfect argues that Victoria’s Secret should be more responsible about the welfare of their customers and I am right behind them.

The problem is though – and I really hate being this negative – but I just don’t think Victoria’s Secret care. Victoria’s Secret was founded by a man, to make the lingerie shopping process more comfortable for men. This is a company that has got rich promoting a certain kind of thin, mostly white, long shiny haired, lipgloss pouted homogenous kind of sexy. That sentence alone tells you how much they care about women. Talk about unrealistic expectations of beauty: as if it wasn’t godawful enough to ignore the fact that we come in a multitude of shapes and colours, who would rationally believe it was possible to navigate long hair and lipgloss without inadvertently ending up with a beard?

This is not a company that gives a tiny crap about your self-esteem. Or your perfect fit. Or anything. Yes, petition them. Yes, use the hashtag. Yes, tell every woman you know how much they suck. But the only thing Victoria’s Secret will understand is the sound of our purses snapping firmly shut.

[Read more on why I HATE VICTORIA'S SECRET. Two years old. All still true.]

I’ll be honest readers: I’m in a lingerie funk. 2014 has been awesome for a great many reasons, but frankly it’s been a personal low for my undercrackers.

It all started with my new job in March. I L-O-V-E my job. But my job has me living out of a suitcase for weeks at a time, first forcing me to make some hard style-vs-practicality choices, and then getting me stuck in bad habits.

Taking 7 lingerie sets for a week long meeting bonanza away from your husband isn’t a great use of your baggage allowance. So you start compromising: a couple of sets and some vaguely co-ordinated frillies from M&S’s 3 for 2 selection. Then you realise the bras you’ve chosen aren’t optimal for the mix of outfits you’ve packed, so you sub them out for some more basics – forgetting, perhaps, to even vaguely co-ordinate with the bottoms. Before you know it your packed lingerie selection looks as mish-mashed as an end-of-season bargain bucket and… worse… you’ve even stopped caring.

Well, enough. Lingerie has always been my thing- and right now I’m a mess. My lingerie’s all over the place and – probably no coincidence – I feel pretty crap about my body. I need a make-over (make-under?) in the smalls department. And I need it fast.

Desperately seeking: pretty, flexible and practical lingerie sets with non-aggressive cleavages, low center gores, and non-VPL making pants. Santa, I’ve actually been pretty good this year. Help a sister out?

Layla by Miss Mandalay

That green! Lilliana by Tutti Rouge

I know this is boring but that colour makes me feel all Disney inside. Dixie by Bravissimo.

I just want a butt covered in pansies. Pansy by Freya.

What is my list missing? I need you, lingerie elves!

Mega and totally overdue congratulations to my partners-in-bounce Freya for finally taking the first prize for their sports bras in the UK Lingerie Insight awards.

Freya’s underwired sports bras (moulded and non-moulded) are the only ones I trust to keep me supported and cushioned when I run/jump/climb trees. Sadly, a Figleaves shipping cock up means I’ve been making do with Panache’s much hyped but hopelessly incompatible with me sports bra for nearly two months now*. In fact, I write this message fresh from a Nike Training Club session in aforementioned nemesis. As if a drill called “stretch and burn” wasn’t painful enough…

I digress. I love these bras, Freya Active deserve huge recognition and possibly a Nobel prize for physics for getting me and G-Unit in to fitness. I have two replacements on their way, to be paired with these ultra rad Nike flash running leggings to get me back out on the road over Christmas.

Freya Active forever!

*I’m not entirely sure why I am so incompatible with Panache’s sports bras. After extensive evaluation (and some tears) I think it’s too big for my torso. Even when I play with sizes, it comes up extremely high and cuts in to my under-arm muscles. Evil creation.

So readers may remember me mentioning last year that I’d gotten in to a bit of a lingerie funk and I needed to get out of it. Well, I’m totally getting round to that. Except… well, I got distracted by a bikini first. As I write, heavy winds are blowing rain inside through the walls but goddam it I can hug a radiator and pretend I’m in Mexico.

I’ve always had a bit of a Minnie Mouse fixation, and so this Monroe halter bikini from Figleaves’ own Midnight Grace had me at first sight… even before I’d clocked the amazing high-waisted matching bottoms. This was my bikini! This was my year!

Well, almost. Underwired, padded and very structured the Monroe should – on paper – be a great and supportive bikini. But something has gone very wrong. The cups are a very strange shape: virtually flattened on the side – and so there’s just no room for your boobs. Speaking of Minnie Mouse, my boobs were pressed in to giant Disney mouse ears, balancing precariously over a misshapen and unsteady cup. My chest looked mangled. My face looked extremely disappointed.

It’s a great style and the bottoms are amazing, but the fit is all over the shop. Actually, the photo itself should have given me a clue: look closely at the top picture and at just how much retouching has gone in to make that cleavage look ‘normal’ when the centre gore is sitting away from the body and to one side!

My 30G felt more like a 30F, maybe even 30E – so consider sizing up (way up) if you want to try it out. We’re heading in to a whole new season for swimwear though… much better to wait for something more special to come along.

Midnight Grace’s Monroe Underwired Padded Halter Bikini is available from Figleaves in sizes 30-38 D-GG.

Images borrowed from Figleaves.

A team in Australia have been busy creating a tech solution to an extremely common problem: having boobs while exercising. In the future, instead of risking pain and long term damage to breast tissue, your “Bionic Bra” would use smart technological to adapt to movement in real time to deliver the support you need. Clever concept.

Although, here’s the thing. There are already sports bras on the market that can deliver the support you need – even for intensive exercise – and even for large breasts. Trust me, I’m a G-Cup. I used to exercise in two bras and a support top to try and keep things in place – and still something with repetitive bouncing like running would be impossible for me. Then I found Freya’s Underwired Active bra (still my favourite, although there are multiple options on the high-street now) and my life changed.

The trick? The technology? The science? The right bra in the right size. It’s that simple.

I (along with many, many others) have long written that the standard fitting methods employed by many bra fitters (especially in high street stores) are inadequate for women with a certain volume of breast. Standard fitting finds your back size by adding 4/5 inches to your ‘true’ back measurement. And this method serves a lot of women just fine. But as you approach a DD cup, the weight of your breasts increases. It is just physics that you need a stronger counter-weight to hold that weight up. 80% of that strength comes from the band of your bra. If it’s not firmly strapped to your back, how can it hold up the weight of your breasts? If it’s not properly anchored, how is it going to be able to support you during vigorous exercise?

Try this quick test: take off your shirt and look at how your bra is fitting after at least 30 minutes of wear. Are the shoulders digging in? Is the back riding up? If so, you probably need a stronger anchor – so you need a smaller back size*.

I’m all for engineers experimenting with wearable tech – enhancing our lives and experiences with clever hacks that make things work better. But on this count – instead of holding our breaths for a bionic miracle – wouldn’t it just be easier if we all had access to better bra fitting?

* Note – if you’re sizing down in the back, you need to remember to size up in the front to get equivalent volume. Click here for more info about sister sizing.

Source: Lingerie Insight 

A perfect fit is much more nuanced than a letter and a number. Being full up top or full up bottom, having wide set breasts or ones that sit close together – these are all perfectly normal variations that will mean your perfect fit is different from someone else with the same bra size. For me, it’s the shape of my rib cage. It’s bony and it flares at the bottom.

This is not something you would notice, or not something that remotely bothers me. It just is. And specifically, it is the reason that many balconette bras don’t work for me. It’s a bummer because I love balconette styles, but anything with too tall a centre gore won’t sit properly on my sternum and after a few short minutes of wear I’m tearing it from my body.

Which is why Curvy Kate’s Firecracker leaped off the screen and in to my basket. It’s a deep, deep plunge bra – but with a lace detail and shape that makes it for everyday that for show-stopping cleavage moments.

In my usual 30G I found it fractionally big in the cup which made the lace baggy, but after adjusting the straps it wasn’t really noticeable. The 3-hook back was nice and firm. My only gripe was the feel of it. CK describe the cup as being “laminated for firm support”, which it certainly does give – but it feels a little plasticky with it. I also struggle with the matching undercracker options – I love a frill as much as the next girl, but I also need knickers that don’t give me VPL at 20 paces.

On balance, though it’s not for me Firecracker really is a really good bra – it gives a flattering, subtle cleavage with a great, comfortable support. It’s also dirt cheap over on Brastop right now, if you’re looking for a bargain…

More of this shape in future, Curvy Kate!

Photo borrowed from Brastop.com

Last week, Wacoal Eveden fans received a quiet farewell from Freya and Fantasie’s sister brand Fauve. Fauve is no more, and fans are asked to turn to Fantasie or Wacoal for their luxe lingerie needs.

I’m a little sad about this passing. If Fauve were a sister, she was more sophisticated and more glamorous than the other brands could hope to be. Sumptuous designs and fabrics, beautiful styles; Fauve had a grown-up elegance I am definitely yet to achieve.

She wasn’t perfect though. Although she looked stunning (I maintain that Fauve’s Bronte – above – is one of the most beautiful creations ever committed to G-Cup), her sizing could be inconsistent and she never braved it past a G Cup. If Fauve’s dissolution means Fauve style luxury up to a K cup (as promised by the e-mail) then that is one fantastic silver lining.

We can hope. I’ve not yet tried Wacoal (it is very high on my list to explore) but I’m very curious about how this will steer the previously inconsistent Fantasie. It’s veered from frumpy to fantastic and back again, often murderously high on my (yes, this again) bony sternum. And stranger for a brand hoping to pick up where another luxe one left off, the latest of theirs I’ve tried (Melissa in Black, review coming this week) is… well, it feels a bit cheap and scratchy.

We can but wait and see. In the meantime, I’m crossing everything. And pausing for a moment to reflect on Bronte: the most perfect bra I never owned. If Wacoal or Fantasie could successfully re-animate her, they’d have me for life.

Finding the perfect bra size can be life changing, but what happens if you can’t afford your new bra size?

Help me Busts 4 Justice!

Hello, I found this blog while searching for bra sizing charts. The whole ordeal is dizzying. For most of my boob life I’ve worn ill fitting uncomfortable bras. That changed when I gave my cousin a farewell hug and she asked if I was wearing a bra…. I went to the department store to get sized, the lady said I was a 36 B, even though the bras I tried were just obviously not right. My boobs got blamed. After many countless hours of research on the internet I found a more accurate size but they don’t carry it in department stores AT ALL. Now I’m struggling to find decently priced bras in my size that are comfortable and supportive. The only place I can go is online and with international shipping and conversion fees on my credit card I’m starting to feel desperate. Most  brands that carry my size, UK 30 F, US 30 G  are between 60-120 dollars. I’m really frustrated.

N

Hi N,

I’m so glad that you’ve managed to find a better bra size, and I certainly feel your pain on cost. I find it staggering that the US is so far behind Europe in servicing fuller cups. But there are a couple of tricks you can try to make your money go further:

1: Nordstrom Rack – bargains to be had and they do carry European DD+ brands. I always check it out when I’m in the States.

2: E-bay – you’re not alone: there are loads of women in America struggling with the same thing. Often it’s cheaper to sell things on e-bay that don’t fit rather than shipping them back

3: Check out sites that do deliver for free internationally. Large Cup Lingerie is a great example, and I think Figleaves.com should too (they always have free shipping and 20% discount offers, so worth following). There are also really amazing bargains to be had in the sales at the moment.

What I would also say is that with bigger breasts it is worth paying a little extra for quality, but you can dramatically increase the life of your bras by caring for them kindly. Your bras should never see the inside of a washing machine or dryer. I am pretty lazy, so I wash mine when I’m in the shower with some gentle shampoo. Always let them air dry, keep them off radiators. All these tricks keep the elastic from deteriorating and so extend the life of the bra dramatically – meaning your investment goes a lot further.

Thanks for your e-mail, and I really hope this helps. Good luck!

Love from B4J x

What say you readers? What are your top tips for bigger bra shopping on a budget? Let us know below and help N replace her lingerie wardrobe with her perfect fit.

So as promised, hot on the heels of the announcement that Fauve fans could now only find their fix of beautiful luxe lingerie from sister brands Fantasie and Wacoal, I have my first Fantasie set of 2015 in my paws. How does Melissa compare next to the satiny comfort of its soon to be departed sister?

Welllll… On the model, Melissa is a perfect example of classic, elegant, grown up lingerie. So far, so very Fauve. Subtle sheer fabric, ornate lacing, tasteful non-VPL-inducing knickers. It’s no Bronte, sure (what set ever will be?) but it’s beautiful and simple and right up my alley.

Fit wise she’s great too. My normal 30G worked just fine, and she gave a lovely cleavage – subtle, not pushed up or too east-west. Technically, I should be excited.

Except, however lovely she looks and fits, Melissa feels… cheap. And she’s not. At £41/$75 she’s at the upper end of the high-street lingerie scale, but the meshing felt rough – not at all what I would expect from the heir to Fauve’s throne. I can forgive that on actual economy lingerie – such as Figleaves’ own brands – but for that price point I want something soft and special.

To be fair, Fauve just vanished so perhaps this is isn’t quite a fair fight. But I know I and others will be watching Fantasie with interest over the coming months. Can it live up to the legacy of her older sister?

Fantasie’s Melissa is available in sizes 30-32 D-GG, 34-38 C-GG, and 40 D-G.

Happy to announce that Busts 4 Justice’s recent hiatus has been Major Life Decision induced. I’m relocating to London from Amsterdam this weekend for some new adventures… and B4J is BACK.

I’m going to miss Amsterdam and the wonderful people we’ve met here. But for selfish, boob related purposes I can’t wait to get back to a city with a thriving lingerie scene, 30 back bras all over the place, and the motherships of some of my favourite brands.

Hurrah!

Oh it’s nice to be back in London. I loved Amsterdam, but London by the river in the sunshine is home. And it’s nice to know I’m surrounded by hundreds of lingerie shops that stock my back size. I say it’s nice to know, but haven’t actually made it inside any of them. Between working and moving and catching up with people, I haven’t made it near a changing room.

This wouldn’t be a problem were I not mid-international move and, as before in 2011, seriously limited on my usual lingerie stash. With most of my bras in Amsterdam I’m heavily rotating a few classics – meaning I’m missing variety and (let’s face it) accelerating the death of some of my favourite bras through over wear.

To the rescue came Affinitas Intimates – who sent me Parfait’s Casey plunge in a 30G. I haven’t been feeling particularly generous to the Blues this week, but Casey’s near-lilacy hues are much more my cup of tea than right wing politics *winds neck in*.

Casey is a soft moulded plunge bra, similar to Freya’s Deco, with a lace sling for detail on the cups making it a little bit more special than a basic t-shirt bra. My usual 30G fit nicely, although the narrow centre gore couldn’t quite stay fixed to my rib cage on the loosest back hook. This is consistent with how I find Freya’s Deco sizing too though, so I think fans can wear their usual size.

Unlike the Deco it has nearly a centimetre of cushioned trim underneath the cups which I quite liked, and on F+ cups it also has three hooks at the back instead of Deco’s if you prefer that extra security. So far so good.

The cup is similar with two notable exceptions. One, the straps (skinny and satin – rare in a G cup) are fractionally further apart than the Deco making this an excellent alternative for broader shoulders. And two, the cup at the center gore is cuts away fractionally lower. Aesthetically this looked great – gives a lovely rounded cleavage – but it did mean my slightly bigger right boob half wriggled free when I cleaned the floor.

Ah well. Who wears deep deep push up bras to clean the floor anyway? A lovely little option, available now from, well, all over the place – also in black, beige, fuchsia rose and a black and rose print in sizes 30-40 D-G.

[Also from Affinitas: Charlotte and Odette reviewed.]

“I like to think there’s so much more to me than just the way I look – Marquita Pring.

There is a lot of nonsense in marketing. I should know: it’s my job. And as I’ve often written (i.e here), I am frequently infuriated by heartstring-tugging commercials espousing “empowering” “real beauty” messages whilst simultaneously hawking products (underarm beautifying deodorant anyone?) that perpetuate our feelings of inadequacy.

I’m pretty cynical about this kind of advertising, but this month Panache Lingerie have punched through my skepticism with the very amazing “Modelled by Role Models” campaign. This new campaign doesn’t just celebrate a diverse range of beauty (age, ethnicity, disability), but it showcases the women inside the pants. And what women they are:

Amy Hughes: sports therapist and world record breaking marathon runner

Martyna Kaczmarek: 19 year old campaigner for blood, marrow and organ donations

Mica Paris: soul legend and prolific charity ambassador and equality campaigner

Rachel Elliott: A&E nurse who volunteered in the Sierra Leone ebola outbreak

Hannah Cockroft MBE: world record breaking paralympian

Marquita Pring: model, body confidence mentor

The campaign is as much about celebrating these (and your personal) role models as it is the (lovely) lingerie on them. I doubt Panache has either the gimmicks or the media budget to make this the same sort of ubiquitous, award winning success other brands playing in this (*ahem*) real beauty space will – but it’s a brilliant campaign with real integrity. And that’s not something you see every day.

I love a good Kickstarter at the best of times, but Impish Lee doesn’t sound so much like an exciting new business venture as it does something plucked out of my wildest dreams and made real.

Impish Lee want to create the world’s first completely customisable lingerie range. From size to style to fabric to colour to trim: you decide what you want and this Brooklyn-based sister dream team will ensure it’s made for you (ethically, in America). You see? I am expecting to see a unicorn any day now.

They call this impossible sounding feat “mass customisation” – the logic being that the current mass production process is expensive and generates an awful lot of waste that can be cut out with a smart but bespoke service. You can read their post about it here.

Oh, and they also plan to use resale of returns to raise money for poverty fighting charity the “Robin Hood Foundation“.

Unfortunately for me they’re launching with cup sizes only up to US DD but the lovely Noelle assured me that they “absolutely will be expanding our bra sizes (eventually to include nearly all!!) and should most likely have those cup sizes (but their US equivalent) by the end of this year, if not sooner! Depending on how well we do in our first month open, we will move right into larger sizes.” Seriously. This is like the bra equivalent of the moon on a stick made of strawberry laces.

The good news? It’s already been funded. The better news? You’ve still got a few hours to nip in and be a backer anyway – meaning you’ll be amongst the first to receive frillies from Impish Lee. They have a bold, daring and incredibly challenging task ahead of them – and I cannot wait to see what these girls do now.

Photo by Impish Lee (thank you!!).

There are many perks to being back in the UK. Friends, family and this great new trend for small batch gin for starters. But also, actually being in the right country for press-previews: sneaky peaks in to the upcoming lingerie and swimwear seasons is pretty high on the list.

Wacoal Eveden – home to Freya, Fantasie, Elomi, Huit, B.tempt’d and Wacoal and Goddess – were kind enough to throw me a welcome home party invite me to their preview in London earlier this month. So in the interests of paying the joy forward, here are a few glimpses for you to whet your whistle until the next season. Please keep in mind I haven’t really so much as looked at a physical rail of bras in over a year. It was dark. I was excited. These are not the finest photographs committed to iPhone. They do show, however, a solid new season – with quite a wide mix of styles and colours to play with. Oh, and one mind-blowing innovation….

Let’s start at the start.. Freya busting out a couple of cheeky classics with Starlet and Minx.

Fantasie have definitely upped their game with softer fabrics and wider variety of shapes. Plus there’s a fantastic Fauve-esque long-line option coming (not shown):

Elomi rocking some cracking floral pants. Look at these beauts!

Enough tropical swimwear to populate six Wham videos:

Wacoal gave me serious small boob envy:

So did Huit:

Oh, that mind-blowing innovation? Just a Freya Deco swim coming late this summer. No biggie. *hyperventilates*

Here’s to the autumn…

“They say people think about sex every six seconds. We can help you think about sex more”

Super-luxe adult retailer Coco de Mer made ripples last week with this extremely provocative and (goes without saying) NSFW film by Rankin.

I’ve watched it three times now and I’m still not sure 100% what I think of it. It’s beautiful and hypnotic: part-dream part-nightmare. The images veer from sex cliche to murderously dark, from silly to deadly serious, from stridently empowered to jarringly subjugated. It’s a hot mess of contradictions and not all comfortable viewing. But actually, I guess that’s the whole point. Your fantasy should be whatever you want it to be. For a business dedicated to helping you explore and express your own sexuality, that seems perfect. Curious to hear what you think…

Take a closer look at Coco de Mer here.

Tomorrow evening, lingerie pioneers Bravissimo will host their first event for transgender and non-binary people.

The brand, who’s philosophy has always been that “women should have a really uplifting and confidence boosting experience whenever and wherever they shop with us”, are seeking to open up that promise to more people; starting with the creation of a welcoming, safe space for transgender or non-binary people to get fitted.

Head to 28 Margaret Street, London at 7.30pm for your fitting tomorrow (15th June).

More inclusive steps like this please, universe.

Does my bum look big in this? Actually, I’m writing this in a pair of “relaxed tailored” sweatpants so don’t answer that. I mean rather, that Victoria’s Secret have been at it again: wielding their retouching software with all the subtlety of a drunk and distracted Cecilia Giménez.

These knickers are called “The Cheeky’ – so cheeky in fact, that there wasn’t room in the photo for all of them. This mono-cheeked photo appeared (and indeed, still appears) on Victoria’s Secret’s Facebook page a few weeks ago. It has been bugging me ever since.

This isn’t even the first time they have erased the very body part their product is designed to serve from their marketing. I’ve written about this before: not content with erasing any nuance of shape, age, race or culture from their bland and two dimensional version of sexuality, they appear steadfastly committed to erasing actual body parts too.

I’m not sure what Victoria’s Secret’s end game is with this war against women’s three dimensional existence, but one thing is clear: women deserve better than businesses who treat women’s bodies like a Potato Jesus. Spend your money with companies who feel comfortable with buttocked bodies.

Related: Man, I hate Victoria’s Secret.

Victoria’s Secret’s war of propaganda against the female body has

Via Jezebel. Photo from Victoria’s Secret’s apparently self-parodying Facebook page.

Chances are, if you’ve landed on this page you’re clicking through from an old link about this weird social media activism from half a lifetime ago. In which case, being greeted by a seven year old rant about Victoria’s Secret (although still awful) and the Potato Jesus (still funny), may not make total sense.

We can’t bring ourselves to archive the whole damn thing, so ICYMI…

Busts 4 Justice was founded on Facebook in 2008, in protest against Marks & Spencer (suddenly) charging us more for DD+ bras than for our smaller cupped friends.

After kicking up a year long international media furore, assembling over 18,000 group members, and eventually becoming a shareholder in a bid to get the board to finally listen, the group eventually won their fight. In 2009, M&S backtracked and adopted a one-price-fits-all policy – as well as ordering an overhaul of its woefully inconsistent fitting service. It was one of the first successful consumer campaigns run on social media.

In the years that followed, B4J kept on campaigning for better standards for women in the lingerie industry, and blogging about everything from feminism to frilly knickers. This website serves as an archive of that time.

We’ve since hung up our campaigning hats to pursue other passions, but that weird year in 2008-2009 will always be a proud memory. Thanks to all who came along for the ride.

Love, B4J x

Press, student or other enquiries to busts4justice@gmail.com