Overthestars

After having the S cut I tried not work out, I decided to give CHP a try. 85GG is the closest to my size that the CHP is available in without going for custom orders or anything like that, so I decided to give it a go.

The cups are still too tall - without the inserts, I wouldn't be able to wear the bra. But with them in, the extra height is pretty minimal and with a t-shirt on is basically unnoticeable. A keeper!

I like the deep red color - it's much less pink and more red than it appears in pictures on EM's site. I'd've prefered ... a bright pink, but red works too. The detailing is simple - deep navy on the seams and underwire channels, deep navy lace at the top of the cup, and bright pink bows on the straps and gore. It's not quite sexy, but is cute at the same time.

The fit is pretty good, other than the cup height. Wires are actually slightly wider than I had expected, but not too wide for me. The band is stretchy and like the last 85-band EM I tried, likely actually somewhere between a 36 and 38 in length. Which is fine for me, as my snug underbust is usually around 36.5. The pocket for the pads is kind of annoyingly-placed and getting them in can be tricky, but not a huge issue. I did find that the end of the wire channels, under my arms, feels...weird? Like, it's not poking my arm pit, but I don't think it's 100% flat? I'm not sure. It looks okay, but it's rubbing my arm a bit. Though likely that won't be an issue with an actual shirt on.

It's comfy to wear, and as I said, the extra height is hidden with a shirt on. It also made my breasts look *much* larger. Like we're talking a cup or two more, thanks to both the padding and the inserts. I really don't need the extra oomph that much - I wear a 36HH already - but it's pretty damn impressive.

It ain't perfect, but it's definitely good enough, and I think CHP is my EM cut. Now I'm just wondering if going down to an 85G will get the cup height low enough without sacrificing the rest of the fit.
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This bra is not owned any more

Updated on Apr 03, 2015 Flag this

Real quick review on this one!

I ordered it blindly, as I could find very little fit info on it (the few reviews of it I've seen were conflicting and none mentioned shape). But I needed a swim top, I can't afford to spend $70+ on one, and I already had a really cute pair of black high-waisted briefs so I wanted an actual bikini instead of a tankini. This colorway was $35 on amazon in my size.

It. Fits.

The wires are wide, but I expected that to be the case. I had a bit of extra room at the top, but adjusting the straps fixed that. I don't ... really get any wrinkling at the bottom, and so far everything is staying in place - I don't find it to be particularly shallow. The band is stretchy, but comfortably so. The biggest issue I have with it is the clasp is really difficult - I cannot get it fully clasped behind my back by myself, and I can't put on bras backwards and twist them around. I do like the shape it gives me - it's more natural and not super-uplifted, but it's still very rounded at the same time.

My shape is even to full on bottom fullness, with very short and narrow roots, and very pendulous and projected. I'm going to say this top is a good option for anyone who's more FoB or has shorter roots, and it's definitely worth a try since last year's colorway is so cheap right now!

Also, in case I haven't mentioned it, the pattern is really cute. I love the bright flowers and dotted pattern on black mixed with the stripes on the edging and straps.

The real test will be how it holds up when I go swimming (which probably won't be for a few days) but, so far - I'd say it's a winner.
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Floral Print colorway

Updated on Jun 15, 2016 Flag this

This bra wasn't listed on Bratabase yet! This is a new experience for me.

This is technically the least best fit of my recent purchases, but despite that, this is probably my favorite of my new bras. I love Elomi bras, and I know Goddess bras tend to fit very similarly, but I've never tried one before; I guess the US sizing always intimidated me.

First and foremost, this bra is *gorgeous*. It's mostly black, with a gold ring pattern over the black fabric. The top of the cup is a more sheer warm tan color, with black and gold lace. It's so pretty, and I was really surprised at ... how beautiful it looks in person.

Fit-wise, the band is pretty much perfect for me and very comfortable. The cups are a little too wide and could use a bit more space at the bottom of the cup, but I don't find it a problem. The biggest fit issue it has is that the gore doesn't tack, however it's completely due to the softness of the wires (the wires are much softer than Elomi wires). It's not enough for it to compromise support or for me to consider it not fitting.

I'm really happy with this bra. It's just so nice and comfortable.
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Black colorway

Updated on Sep 13, 2019 Flag this

I've had CK Bardot recommended as possibly working for me, and I found it on sale on amazon, so I decided to give it a try.

For the record, I have projected, full-on-bottom breasts with narrow and very short roots.

From what I could gather, the band on this bra is supposed to run stretchy, so I decided to sister-size down from my usual UK size, to 34J instead of 36HH. The band is not remotely as loose as I expected, and so I needed an extender to even be able to try it on - it runs about halfway between a 34 and 36. So if you're ... in-between band sizes, it might work for you there!

The cups just fit me...really weirdly. They're clearly too large, and the measurements I took make it seem that it simply runs large in the cup. Despite this, the gore doesn't quite tack right, and I know for a fact that it's not a case of the band being too loose for it to tack. The wires are a bit wide, but not hugely so.

I do have a lot of wrinkling at the bottom of the cup, and no matter how much I scooped and swooped and tried to readjust the cups it would wrinkle at the bottom. As far as the top of the cup goes, it's most obvious near the gore that the cups aren't right; there's a lot of loose fabric there. Overall I feel the bra really accentuates my shortness and just makes me look really pointy, which is at least somewhat because the cups are the wrong size.

The bra reminds me of my 36HH - Panache » Jasmine (6951) a lot, but the top isn't stretch lace. The bra itself is a very sheer material and I like the red accents on it - it's simple and subtle. I'd like to try it again in another size (maybe 36H would work better?) but amazon appears to be out of stock on it. Oh well.
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Black/Cranberry colorway

This bra is not owned any more

Updated on Jan 07, 2016 Flag this

Cleo's supposed to have fairly wide wires and Lucy good for FOB shapes, so I decided to give it a go. I think I'm pretty happy with it.

I did not expect the fabric to be as thin as it is, though. Maybe it's just because it's white, but it's VERY thin. I can see my nipples pretty clearly through the material, and they are not much darker than the rest of my skin. It doesn't bother me much, but still, that was slightly unexpected.

Aside from that - the band fastened without any issues; it's a bit snug but it's also brand new so that's not too ... surprising. It's not uncomfortable by any means. No real wrinkling on the cups other than a bit on my smaller breast but I've come to expect that anyway. Wires sit wide enough that they don't seem to be on any breast tissue - they're comfortable. Both the gore and the sides don't come up high enough to be annoying; still higher than I want but I guess I need to just cave and buy some plunges for low-enough gores.

The shape is...wow. It's very high and very rounded. Like, it gives me serious "cakes on a plate" boobs. I knew that Cleo is known for high rounded shapes but I kinda didn't think my breasts were possible of the shape they're in while wearing this. Looking at the pics I took, it almost makes the front of my breasts look slightly flat, but I didn't really notice it like that while I was wearing it.

I wish it had a three-hook enclosure instead of a two-hook, but oh well. I'll live, I suppose.

Overall, I'm thinking this one will be a keeper. It's cute, it's comfy, and I need more than one bra that fits me properly.
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White colorway

This bra is not owned any more

Updated on Nov 07, 2014 Flag this

So, this isn't a perfect bra for me by any means. The cups are a bit too small, and there's some minor quadding at the top. The band, while measuring as stretchy enough, is difficult enough to fasten that I stuck an extender in it. I'm not too keen on the grey color.

But I found it at a Nordstrom Rack for $25, so whatever. It's definitely "good enough".

It definitely serves my purposes for what I need it for - low to medium intensity workouts. I'm not sure how good it'd be for more high-intensity stuff, it being wireless, but it keeps me strapped down pretty well that ... it'd probably be supportive enough.

The one thing that bugs me about it is that the bottom of the bra tends to twist itself around inside of the fabric, which can be annoying. But I can live with that, as once it's on it's fine. I do like the look it gives; a bit compressed but pretty roundy. I like round.

So, perfect bra? No. Pretty damn good bra and a fantastic find? Absolutely.
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Grey/Coral colorway

This bra is not owned any more

Updated on Feb 16, 2016 Flag this

This is the first bra I bought after measuring myself and getting an idea of what size I should be wearing. The ABTF calculator put me at a 36HH/38H; after some research I decided to try a 36H first. I chose this bra to start off...primarily because it was the cheapest bra on amazon that had been recommended for my shape that was in my size.

It's great. I have a small bit of wrinkling on the top of the cup on my smaller breast, but it's not enough to need to size down. The sides are very high, but not enough to poke into my armpits or be ... uncomfortable. The wires are VERY wide, but they seem to be just right.

The only downside to the bra is how much coverage it has - the gore is very tall and it covers basically the entirety of my breasts, so it won't work with low-cut shirts without something underneath. However, it fits me great, it's very comfortable, the wires don't poke at me, and the straps stay in place. Very pleased with it.
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Updated on Oct 17, 2014 Flag this

I've tried 85G and 85GG in CHP, and neither were quite 100% correct. The 85GG had enough depth but the cups were too tall (luckily a shirt hides this), 85G was short enough to fit my breasts but didn't have enough depth so it didn't tack. 80GG seems to hit the sweet spot right between the two sizes - the cups are short enough for my super-short boobs, and it has enough depth to hold them in place.

A few things to note - the straps are not fully adjustable, and they feel really stretchy. The wires feel narrower than my other CHPs, and are probably as narrow ... as I'd want to go. And, pictures do not do this bra justice - the colors on it are beautiful. The purple is this lovely dark dusky lavender, and the pink lace is a similar, dusky shade. I love bright colors, but I also hold a special love for soft, muted tones, and purple is my favorite color.

I bought this one used only half-expecting it to work, so I was quite pleased and surprised to find that it actually does quite nicely.
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Updated on Jun 27, 2015 Flag this

So there's basically no info on this bra, but it was pretty. Reviews on BN's site say that it runs small in the cup, so I ordered a 38J.

It didn't fit well, but it wasn't bad? Like, it was wearable. It's wide and shallow at the bottom, but I filled out the rest of the cups okay. It's just not very flattering. It doesn't give much lift, and the bra itself doesn't look very nice while on. Gore is very wide and didn't tack, and the band is waaaay stretchy.

I really do love the Spice colorway, though. It's a really lovely dark brown-purple-red. Almost like a muted burgundy I guess? It's really nice. Not nice enough to keep, though.

Spice colorway

This bra is not owned any more

Updated on Jul 10, 2019 Flag this

I've worn the wireless Panache Sport before, so I thought I knew all about how large and tall the cups would be.

This bra has some of the wildest and worst scaling I have ever seen. The cups could be easily two inches shorter without issue. It's just so ridiculously tall.

Band stretches more than long enough for a 38 band but is a very stiff elastic so I need an extender to fasten it, same as before. It does keep everything pretty well in place, and I do like the colors. The cups are just ludicrously tall. Panache, get your act together and figure out your scaling towards the top of your band/cup range.

Coral/Multi colorway

Updated on Sep 16, 2019 Flag this