This is a very old discontinued style. You can still find it on ebay in a few (not so mainstream) sizes like 28J or 28D. But it was my first properly fitting bra so I still review it

The colors are fun. I like to let it peek out a little under a dark tank top with spaghetti straps. But it also works with a white shirt since the light orange doesn't shine through too much.

The cups make a very round shape. Their fabric is a bit thicker then the normal Cleo mesh which makes it looks very smooth under clothes and prevents my nipples from poking though ... even if they don't align perfectly with the seems. It felt a bit rough at first but became more comfortable washing it. The wires are incredibly firm, stiffer then all of my other bras. They don't distort at all and follow my IMF perfectly without digging in. They are also somewhat closed on top. Combined with the rigid fabric this gives excellent support without looking “full coverage”. The downside is that the is no room for size fluctuations. Sometimes I put this on with a bit of wrinkling in the morning and the cups are filled out perfectly by noon and even a bit too small after eating lunch. The band is very snug and narrow, which does horrible things to my back fat. But it feels good. It also didn't stretch significantly in the 6 month I have it now which is amazing considering that I wore it almost every day in the first couple weeks.
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Updated on Mar 29, 2018 Flag this

Great support in a beautiful pattern. I feel like it works well with fuller on the bottom breasts like mine.

http://www.bratabase.com/blog/2012/aug/29/hello-birdie-a-review-of-meg-from-c...

Updated on Sep 06, 2012 Flag this

Firm band, I'm a 26 and it's fairly alright for me. Good quality, not itchy in any way. Fits true to size, as a 28DD. Wires are way too wide for me, personally. Best for wide or average width. Projection is great, probably not suited for shallow breasts. Would be best suited for someone with upper fullness and average roots or someone with tall roots but it still works pretty alright for someone (me) with short roots/conical breasts. It's a very pretty bra, breathes well. All in all, I really like it!

Navy blue, red with floral and bird print colorway

Updated on Jun 14, 2021 Flag this

The cleo Meg is related to the Lily which is good for even shapes. This bra fits okay. There is some wrinkling on the smaller breast. The cups wrinkle on the bottom but the tops do not cut into my roots.When I first tried it on the gore was sitting on breast tissue and it hurt slightly. I altered the gore so the wires would overlap. Tried it on again and the gore hurt even more. With the gore overlapping it is sitting on less tissue so all its pressure is more concentrated in a smaller area, so it hurts more. I have decide me and Cleo/Panache wires do not get along. They all cause me too much pain even if the cup fits okay.

Updated on Oct 01, 2016 Flag this

After I ordered the Cleo Meg, I had one of those "I made a HUGE mistake" moments. I thought for sure that it would be absolutely terrible on me, given (what I thought was) my breast shape. Trying on the Meg led me to question my shape, because I can actually fill out the top of the cups. What is this madness?

The Meg is just a really cute bra. I love the colors and the pattern. Before I started shopping online for bras, I had no idea that such whimsical patterns existed on bras in my size. The fabric for the cups seems really stiff, but washing ... the bra seemed to soften them up a touch.

I find the Meg to be quite comfortable, and the band doesn't seem too stretchy, though it stretches out to about 31". I can use the outermost hooks rather than having to tighten them up. The gore doesn't dig into my chest. The underwires go up into my armpit area, but this is a good thing because it allows me to scoop in that extra ... stuff around my armpit area. It doesn't go up too high and stab me in the armpits. I am somewhat short-waisted so finding a bra that goes up just far enough on the sides WITHOUT digging into my armpits is a chore: they are either too low or too high.

The shape of the cups are different from any other non-padded bra I've tried on. They do this thing where it rounds out the breast rather than giving me pointy boobs or squashing them outright. While I like the roundness, there's this odd slight dip at the top of the cup where the ribbon is. I believe I read somewhere someone comparing this shape to a shortened duck's bill, lol. Other than this bit of weirdness, I am happy with the shape. It looks great so far underneath my clothes. When I scoop and swoop, I fill out the cups. I don't experience any quadboobing when I throw my shoulders back, or raise my arms. I have to really make an effort to hunch my shoulders to get gapping. I am still a little confused as to why this bra would even work for me -- maybe it doesn't and I am being delusional.

I do wish that the straps weren't set so far apart. I have to keep them pretty loose or else they will start to dig into the front of my shoulders, above my armpits. This is probably due to my narrow shoulders. https://d28qt14g3opchh.cloudfront.net/smileys/icon_sad.gif" alt=":(" /> To prevent this, I keep the straps somewhat loose and I try to scootch them inward toward my neck. Other than that, this is a great bra for everyday use.
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Updated on Mar 08, 2013 Flag this

Wow- this is a generous bra. To put this in perspective, I found that a 32J in most Cleo bras is a tad small in the cup, whereas this is spot on for me in cup volume. You may want to consider getting one-two cup sizes down from your normal Cleo size.

The bra is a three-piece balconette, with the cups made out of a very sturdy fabric- there's almost no give in it at all. There's a small bird charm in the centre to match the bird print fabric, which is a very nice touch. There's two rows of hooks in three columns on the fastening, which is ... normal for Cleo, although I certainly wouldn't say no to the extra stability of a third row, especially in the larger cup sizes. I'm not really a dark bra person, but I'm also a realist, and this bra was a pretty good fit so I'm sure I'll get used to the navy with red trim after a while.

The band is too long for me, and rides up a little even on the tightest hook (which is unsurprising, as I'd ideally wear a very snug 28 or 26 band). The straps are too wide-set, and will wander off my shoulders unless I use something like a racerback converter. The wires are a touch wide, and there's not quite enough immediate projection in the bra, leading to a bit of wrinkling around the bottom and side of the cups.

However, the shape it gives me is very centred- I have almost no breast tissue at my sides, which is unusual for a bra in this size. It's definitely a very uplifted shape, which some people may consider a bit pointy, but I think that I rather like it. The sturdy fabric is a plus for me, as it feels very supportive. I know some people with upper fullness have said that the bra cuts in on the top, and while my breasts are fuller on the top, they have a lot of projection for their height, and so this works quite well. I'd say it's a good bra for short boobs.

I'm planning to alter the band and the straps a little to improve the fit, and I'll add some more notes to this review after I've worn the bra for a while.
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This bra is not owned any more

Updated on Jun 11, 2013 Flag this

I loved the prints that came into fashion this spring/summer. Some of my favorites were the bird prints, and of these my number one print was the swallows. I know that my dove-print dress and my swallow-print shirt are going to seem dated by the time next spring rolls around, so the idea of a swallows-print garment that I could go on wearing without looking off-trend was appealing.

This is my first Cleo (first Panache of any kind, actually), and I knew from reviews that the fit was going to be tricky. All in all I'm pleased with it, but I have some notes.

Size wise, I suspect I could ... probably have gone down a cup. I've got some slight wrinkling at both the bottom and the top. However, the top of the bra is a bit weirdly constructed, and it's possible a smaller cup would have squished the tops of my breasts into a deformed shape. As it is, the side silhouette I get is the strangest of any of my bras- they slope up very nicely from the bottom, but then flatten out at the top, at a 90 degree angle to my chest bone. Fortunately this isn't noticeable at all under clothes, not even tight fitting clothes- not that I'd wear Meg with anything tight, because the seams at the top show through. The shape from the front, on the other hand, is great.

The bra isn't very supportive, my breasts bounce a bit more than I'd like (possibly a smaller cup would have partially alleviated this?). But the lift I get is incredible: my breasts have never felt so high! If the top angled/sloped up rather than flattening out like a table they might even be too high. Nevertheless it's a great feeling.

Others have mentioned the marvelous attention to details on the Meg, and I must concur. My favourite detail is the red metal clasps on the straps, to match the red in the bird print.

Best of all, this bra is immensely comfortable- at the end of a long day I don't want to take it off.

Update- I've discovered this is my perfect PMS bra. For one week a month I swell up to fill Meg's cups perfectly.
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Updated on Dec 07, 2012 Flag this

I've wanted one of these forever, so when I saw one for cheap on eBay in around my size, I had to try it. I didn't have high hopes for it seeing as it preceded the Lily, which never fit me at all, but supposedly they "improved" the fit with Lily, so it might be different in a way that fits me, right? Lol no. It's worse than Lily.

Besides just being too big, the shape is just weird on me. The top seam sticks out and makes an odd bulge, making it look kind of... square? I don't know how else to describe it. And on my right side, the smaller side, it just gapes ridiculously.

It's so cute that I considered just altering it to make it fit me. What's not to love about navy blue with birds and red trim? And there's even an adorable bird charm on the gore.

This bra is not owned any more

Updated on Aug 14, 2019 Flag this

Navy bird print.
This is a tricky fit; I would only buy it at retail if it was free to ship returns. I have it in a 30H, and the fit was perfection until I gained a few pounds and it became too tight everywhere. I thought sizing up to the 32H would be just the ticket.
It's not horrible but it's not nearly as good. I have the slight bit of extra fabric (where the seams meet at the apex) that so many other reviews noted but the rest of the cup fits fine.
It seems the wires are wider (I need to input measurements for both) than necessary and 2 hooks feels inadequate now.
Update 12/2018: The 32H fits fine these days.

Updated on Dec 24, 2018 Flag this

Fits PERFECT! The band is not too snug and the cups are of ideal size and shape for me. Most importantly: it minimizes my unevenness. When I tried it on, I said to myself: "OMG, now I have to throw all my other bras away and get more Cleos of this size and cut!"

Updated on Mar 29, 2017 Flag this