I was pretty excited when I saw that Cleo was making a 28-band bikini, especially a wire-free one... I couldn't find it anywhere in the US, and it was really expensive to get from the UK. Then, I found it online and couldn't wait to try it.
I'm a little disappointed. The band fits just fine. Due to the lack of wires, the bikini does not have much shape. The bottom of the cups tend to collapse a little. Since there are no wires, and the gore doesn't tack, there is less contour around my boobs, making me look flat. This would all be not so bad, except the halter straps are way too far apart. They're located next to my armpits. If they had been an inch or two inward, I think I might have kept Tilly.
I love this bikini top! Doesn't gape when I'm lying down, or when I put my arms up. Perfect for my wide shallow breasts.
I used to wear those triangle string bikinis and was so depressed about how they flattened my chest out. But this bikini has given me so much more confidence going to the beach (if you live in Australia, you'll know what I mean about the pressure to look good in a bikini!)
Cute!! This swim top seems well designed with thoughtful features like removable / convertible straps and the cups are somewhat molded/ padded which I like. The center gore is wrapped in contrast blue fabric (matches the straps) and a white plastic heart is threaded through the fabric. The fabric has a chevron pattern over the seamed cups, which draws the eye upward - nice touch.
The good: The band is nice and snug: love! The ok: The cups are a touch wider than my shape, but that's ok The bad: I get a little quad-boob on one side. This is acceptable for me because I'm still losing weight and my boobs are adjusting from coming off B/C. I imagine the cups will stretch out a bit over time and swimming - and I know a cup size up would be too big.
Overall I look forward to enjoying swimming in this set. I got the swim briefs in XS and I'd say they run a touch big if that's helpful to anyone.
The band is nice and snug (26-28 inch ribcage). The material is at least as thick as the padded cups of the Juna, and there is a vertical seam bisecting each cup. The colors are vibrant and I love the shape of the bandeau. The enclosure is a plastic clasp that "snaps" into place easily. The style of the straps are classic multi-way, with 4 loops in the usual places on the bandeau.
Aesthetics aside, the cups are shaped for short (maybe average?) breasts, so I'm immediately slammed with orange-in-a-glass because of my low-set, tall (and therefore shallow) shape. I quad and can't fill the apex of the cup. I had such high hopes from reading "tall cups" in reviews, but they were probably from women with higher roots since I found it way too closed on top. From my various fitting issues, I can tell that this top will not stay on me very long in the water, so it's not a keeper for me.
This one looks so much better in person than on the website!!
I wore it as a '30' band for a while, but decided it wasn't working. Before going on holiday, I altered the band down to what turned out to be a sub-28. At first I thought I overdid that, but after the first dip in the water it now fits like a dream. The straps are fairly useless, I don't even bother with them any more.
Don't attempt diving into a pool with this bikini though. The bottoms (tie-side) don't stay put very well, as is common with these types of bottoms. Neither does the top, ...if you dive. I've swum with it fine otherwise, and I've also swum with it in the sea and exited with my bikini still on.
Also: I did not alter this because it stretched out much. I alterered it because it was too big to start with, and now it stretch to fit. So: not too much stretch. Definitely quality stuff, unlike the Freya bikini's I've had that wouldn't even survive one measly holiday of 5 days. Read more 78 more words
This swimsuit is AWESOME! It has detachable straps and can be worn strapless...and it stays up! The clip on the back ensures that it is secure and doesn't fall off. It fits so much better than my old triangle top swimsuits. It actually supports my boobs instead of just covering my nipples.
This bikini really is modeled after the Cleo Lucy (5851) , which means I get an awesome shape in it. I'd say all in all, it might run a little looser (because it is a bikini, not a bra?). The band was definitely too big and I feel like the whole construction was affected by this. I probably could do with a cup size smaller, too, so I will try to get my hands on the 28J. I tried the briefs in my usual size 12 and they fit very well. In real life, the color is a bit darker and more "saturated" than in the promo pictures, which imo is a good thing. Still, the color is for the brave and I'm not sure yet whether I'm one of them. Although I have to say that I found it very flattering on my super-pale skin.
How is the fabric in the cup? Does the cup stretch or are they more non-stretch like the ones on Cleo Lucy (5851) ?
I have already sent it back, but I *think* both the cups and the band were made from the same stretchy fabric. The shape/construction is the same as the Cleo Lucy (5851) , but the bikini uses different fabric. This is why I think the 28J will fit me, even though the 28J bra is too small for me now.
LOVE this swimsuit! I have a little bit of spillage on the top, which might be fixed by sizing up a cup, but it feels secure on my ribcage and doesn't slip down. No pokage either! The fabric is great, I just love this swimsuit - as well as all the details like the heart on the front of the cleavage. Can't wait to get this thing out in the water!
cute, but not really my thing. the cups are really tall, wide-ish, and shallow. there's one external vertical seam so the cups have an odd angular look to them. my major issue was that the cup was just too tall - i'm pretty short and i felt like it visually just took up too much space on me.
since it's a swimsuit, there's only one hook - it felt pretty normal for a 30 band. two detachable straps, the underwire is hidden pretty well, i just wasn't really feeling it.
I may be speaking out of turn here, and I apologize if I seem bossy, but I think that swimsuit looks fabulous on you. At least from your pictures, it doesn't seem to go up too far on your decolletage/shoulder area. Nor can I see where it looks angular from the seaming. It looks, in fact, ideal. Just like a product photo, in fact--without the contouring and highlighting all those photographers use. Just wanted to mention it, because it's a really cute suit. It took me forever to find swimsuits that work for my much more problematic body. I don't have the slimness you do that is so helpful when shopping for swimsuits.
that's really very sweet of you, but those pictures aren't of me :] haha
I have a shallow and wide root. I can't fully scoop & swoop into this bandeau bikini top, or else I get quad-boob, especially near the armpits, as the (removable) straps are somewhat centered, rather than right next to my armpits. Note that there are 2 individual bra-style straps (not a halter). The cups themselves are fairly shallow, but pretty closed on top. However, the cups are "tall", so it works ok.
I deliberately ordered a 28 because I was worried that in the water it would expand and feel too loose if I ordered a 30. It is quite firm, but I'm ok with that.
Despite the fit issues, this is a really cute bikini. Love the colors, the retro styling, and the contrast piping. I wear US size 4, and the UK 8 bottoms were perfect.
See my review of the 32D Betty. The only good thing I can say about this bikini top is that the colour is a beautiful teal /turquoise, much darker than it came out in my pictures.
I'd say this is a complete fail (at least for my type of boobs - wide root, shallow). The bikini top feels massive - I've actually considered weighing it. While I cannot for the life of me get my boobs into the bottom half of the cups in either 30D or 32D, the top of the cups creates massive quadboobing, also in both sizes. I have a suspicion that the frills might just have been added to hide this. The band is supertight, so that I found it hard to fasten it on the 30D top (I usually wear 30 bands in all bras except Ewa M.s and ...Shock Absorbers), and the whole thing is just extremely uncomfortable in both sizes. It felt like some kind of armour to me and not like a bikini top. I wonder if it would even dry after swimming. I really wanted to like this so much, because it's beautiful - in photos and sitting on my desk (needless to say, it keeps its shape and it can literally sit, stand or whatever you might require of it on its own), but there's just no way I could wear it. I'll judge bra appearance on a person. Read more 95 more words
Do you know where your root height starts/how tall your roots are? I also have tall roots, and I have been looking into buying this.