This has a lot of the same fit issues as the 30E - Panache Swimwear » Britt Padded Bandeau Bikini (SW0823) that I also tried on (of course, they're both Panache), so I'm not going to repeat the whole spiel here.

This is also wide and shallow, but it doesn't seem as bad from the side as the Britt did (trick of the pattern maybe?). The wire is also quite a bit closer to my IMF than the Britt was. A lot of what you're seeing under my breast is band and not actually the wire.
The band is incredibly tight, it was really hard for me to ... fasten by myself, but once it was on it was comfortable. It doesn't feel too tight, just supportive. I assume it'll be looser when it's wet.

I really like the look of this top. Ideally I would like to size up to maybe a 30FF then bend the wires together, but that's not going to happen. I jumped, I bent, I shook, I ran, it doesn't move and neither do I (without straps) so it'll function appropriately at a water park. It's cute, and it was $11, so I think I'm going to keep it.

Update 7/31/15: I wanted to update after I used this and to comment on the bottoms.

The bottoms I got in a US size 6(S)/UK10. They're just as cute as the top and are moderate coverage and a bit more than I usually wear. I'd consider them on the lower end of midrise.
I have the same issue with these as I do most bottoms of any sort. If they fit my backside, they're too loose at the waist. So, I get no cutting, and when dry they look great. When I get in the water, the waist band flutters at my abdomen. I don't think they'd come off, but a tall person could probably see some extra pelvic flesh if they were looking at the right angle.
I'm going to see if I can do something about that since sizing down would probably give me quadbum.

So, the top and swimming. Awesome, the band loosened up in the water like I thought it might. So, despite the difficulty clasping it, 30 is the right choice for me. It's super secure and didn't move despite my throwing my kid around like a ragdoll and getting tossed by my husband in retaliation. After reading the reviews, I was on the watch for some fabric bleeding but I didn't see any. All in all it performed like a decent swimsuit should.

I'm $32 all in on this suit, and I'm pretty happy with it for the remainder of the summer.
Read more
340 more words

Navy Stripe colorway

This bra is not owned any more

Updated on Jul 31, 2015 Flag this

Bought from a Reddit user. No price tag for me to know the official colorway name, but this is the red striped one with a heart clip in the center—an aesthetic that resonated with me so much, I broke my one-bra-only budget when she offered it to me at such a low price. (๑•̀ㅂ•́)و

This bra has confirmed a suspicion plaguing me for a while: that I am small and have no business being here pretending otherwise. I agree with others' assessments that this top is especially wide and shallow. Indeed, that might be the only reason something in 30F fit me. I'm tempted to think this means I'm ... actually shallow rather than projected, but I don't think that's the case since the bra just kind of wraps around my breasts without shaping much. I'm also not sure it's intentional for the cups to cover the entire vertical curve of my breasts. It's a bandeau so I'll say.....yyyes? Either way, it reminds me of that time when a photo studio's faux strapless top made me all skin and no shape like yikes. I didn't know back then, but I'm guessing I'm a victim of the short roots + long torso combo.
Read more
92 more words

Updated on Jan 27, 2020 Flag this

I have wide, even breasts with tallish roots.

I was worried that this bra would cut into my tall roots and look bad, but it surprisingly does not. On close inspection, I guess there is a very minor bulge, but I consider it to be virtually nonexistent.

From other pictures I've seen, it looked like the underwires were sitting way below the IMF fold due to being very shallow in the bottom of the cup. However, this is just excess fabric on the bottom that makes it appear that way.

The band is very firm. I feel very confident in wearing this as a bandeau by taking off the removable straps. I feel it fits similarly to other Cleo 28Es, though I will also be soon receiving a 30E, so I will be able to compare them.

The bra has one vertical seam in each cup, towards the center, on the outside and inside. The outside seam is covered by the overlapping fabric where the chevrons complete.

nautical stripe colorway

This bra is not owned any more

Updated on Mar 19, 2015 Flag this

I first thought this one was too tight, but it actually fits well even though it needs a bit of wiggling into. Since it will stretch a bit when wet, a bigger size would not fit me then. It will stay up well even without the straps. A very cute bikini.
I think the bottoms run a bit large; I got one size smaller than my usual one and it fits well.

Updated on Sep 29, 2013 Flag this

I do like this bikini top, but it does have its flaws. First of all, it is extremely shallow both all along the wire and at the apex, hence why I had to size up to 28G instead of my usual 28FF in Cleo. The band on this runs a full band size tight, as it only stretches to 25.5-26". The wires are quite wide and wrap around nearly to my back, and they also sit a lot lower than my IMF. The gore doesn't quite tack. The shape it gives me is not ideal (it flattens me out a lot), and it cuts into the top of ... my breast tissue a little bit. However, I ignore most of these issues because it's cute, I've never been able to wear a bandeau bikini top before, and it stays put whether it's dry or wet. In fact it really feels like it conforms to my body when it's wet. There's absolutely no chance of it going anywhere. It does hold a lot of water though, so it takes a while to dry.

I don't have the matching bottoms; I just picked up a cheap pair from Joe Fresh in a white and navy flower pattern and it coordinates well enough.
Read more
101 more words

This bra is not owned any more

Updated on Jun 14, 2017 Flag this

Super duper shallow. Probably would fit a 32D or E.

This bra is not owned any more

Updated on Oct 10, 2016 Flag this

I got this bikini top cheap on eBay. It is very shallow and slightly small. The 8 inches of cup depth I got seem to be very small. The gore does not tack with me - up to 1 cm of floating. I bent the wires a bit to fit me better. The back closure tends to twist a bit. The padding is quite heavy for my taste. The separation of the two layers (padding and top layer) is what hides the wires so well. The closure is plastic, the buckle at the front is coated metal.

In the end it's cute enough to keep it. I might order it in 32FF if bought it again.

Edit (July 2016): I altered the cup depth of the top to better fit my size. The process can be found here: http://imgur.com/a/2sjyU

Updated on Jul 17, 2016 Flag this

Sooo cute from the front. Very slight quadboob from the side only, but I was expecting that and it's a strapless bikini for crying out loud. Extremely tight band, takes some practice to fasten and a few adjustments afterwards. However, even after wearing it for a few minutes around my room I could tell that it was starting to work better for me. Stays up fine without the straps. If I bout it again, I think I'd go up a cup size or band size, whichever was more on sale https://d28qt14g3opchh.cloudfront.net/smileys/icon_wink.gif" alt=";)" />

Nautical Print colorway

Updated on Jun 19, 2016 Flag this

Super cute bikini top with nautical theme. I haven't had a bikini in ages, and this is my first bra-size bikini. Some issues, but overall I like it. The E cup is a little larger than I would have expected, but I didn't check measurements before I bought this , so that's on me.

There are some issues with the gore. I have wide-set breasts so the absence of a fully seamed gore between the cups lets tissue get pushed to the center. Not a bad look, but that means I have less tissue to fill out the cups.

As per usual, the right cup fits fine because I ... can fill it. The left cup has empty space at the bottom, so it wrinkles, and at the top, so it collapses in before the cup ends (cup too tall ) so it kinda looks funny if you look too closely. I can't quite reach the projection of the cups. jlcl119 suggested bending the wires to fix the fit, which I'm going to do, and if that doesn't work I think I might try to alter it rather than buy another bikini. I really like this one! I'm not giving up hope.
Read more
94 more words

Updated on Jun 02, 2016 Flag this

I got this from swap, I had a Freya bikini that was much too small that I bought on vacation in a pinch because I had no swimsuit and was on sale. Since the Freya had a band that was torture to wear, when I was offered the Cleo Lucille, I jumped on it despite the measurement not being ideal, I figured at least I could comfortably close the band.

The Lucille is very cute, but it is not a good fit for me at all. The cups are wide and shallow, and the gore is very wide. If the gore weren't so wide I might stand a chance at making it work for me. It has straps as well, but it doesn't help enough to justify keeping it. It's really a shame because it is adorable.

This bra is not owned any more

Updated on May 27, 2016 Flag this

amandafire

2567 reputation

196 bras