Recently I've been thinking about trying Kayla in my current size of 28E since many of the older Cleo styles are no longer easily found in my size. However, I was digging through my drawer when I discovered this Kayla in Butterfly Print that I had completely forgotten about. It had been sitting in a pile of bras that didn't work for me, so I guess out of sight, out of mind. I pulled this back out to check and see if it might fit me better now that I measure 28E instead of 28DD, and realized that I had never written a review!

At 28DD, this definitely didn't fit me. The band is too big, to the point of riding up slightly. The cups compared to my 30D Marcie are half a size deeper and wider. The wires were a good size and shape for me, but I could only fill out the bottom of the cup and the lace top was pretty empty. At 28E, the lace at the top is still baggy, though I obviously fill out the cups better. I found that inserts worked best at the top of the cup, so this style is meant for projected FOT shapes and has the ability to accommodate tall roots thanks to the stretch cups. Other shapes will find it difficult to fill out the top of the cup, and lack of upper fullness will either show totally baggy wrinkly lace or lace that doesn't quite lay flat when you move.

In hindsight, it's no surprise that this didn't work for me regardless of size, because this is the same cut as Hettie, which gives me the exact same fit problems. Both styles seem to run large in both band and cup, and are suitable for projected FOT shapes.

Kayla also bears a strong resemblance to Minnie upon first glance, since both cups are made from silky printed fabric and have a lace upper cup. However, Minnie has a closed off top and the cup runs smaller, and would work best for short roots and even fullness with more projection than Marcie. Kayla's cups are also thinner and softer, since the fabric is single layer (like Fantasie bras made from the same silky fabric), and the upper cup is made from very soft stretch lace and cut wider than most Cleo styles. The print extends through the cradle, but the band is the same firm powermesh used on most Cleo bras. I don't love that the straps are plain elastic with no texture, as I don't think it really goes with the style, and because smooth straps slip more easily. The only other adornments on this bra are a center gore bow and a bit of contrast picot trim at the bottom of the band.

I'm glad that I tried this bra on again, and thanks to my new Commando Takeouts, it was easy to diagnose that this wouldn't fit me even if I had the correct size! I'll be passing on the 28E and any other related Hettie cuts unless I magically develop a huge boost in upper fullness.

Butterfly Print colorway

Updated on Apr 11, 2020 Flag this

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