I've been looking at this bra for weeks now and finally decided to get it. Unfortunately, it is a shape miss-match for me. As you can see from the pictures, there is empty space in the top front of the cups that my shallow shape can't fill. This model seems to be for those with more projection at the top then I've got. I was also a little disappointed by the color. It seemed much brighter blue on the website were I bought it. In real life, it is a darker satiny blue that is still pretty but not what I was looking for.
The band fit true to size and was very comfortable. The wires were fine for my somewhat wide roots and the gore didn't bother me at all. The straps on this are only half way adjustable, but are very comfortable. The cup is thin and molded. The wings have thin, flexible boning in them that is very comfortable.
A lovely bra for someone, but not a good fit for me. It's being returned.
Thank you for posting this review and pics! I totally wanted to try this but after checking here I can see that the shape isn't going to work for me at all lol what a bummer! It's so pretty! I know it's gonna cut into my tail of spence and I won't be able to fill the top lol
The slight increase in both width and hight in the 32DDD cup vs. the 32DD cup seemed to fit me a little better and be slightly more comfortable. The actual depth of the cup at it's deepest area didn't actually change, the 32DDD just comes up higher on the top and is slightly wider on the outside edge of the underwire. Unfortunately, because the top outer edge was just a little bit closer to my armpit, the motion of extending my arm forward caused the stiff fabric and top trim edge of the cup to bow outward giving me very noticeable gaping. I decided to stick with the 32DD in both the wild pink and wine purple colorway (see my other reviews for pictures of the purple in both 32DD and 32DDD). I have also added pictures to the comparison between the 32DD and 32DDD Charlotte Padded Bra so the difference in cup projection at the top is visible.
I tried on both 32DD and 32DDD in the wine purple color. The 32DDD gave me a bit more room on the outside of the cup as the underwires were a little wider and the cup a little taller. The depth of the cup didn't seem to be different, just the hight and width. The 32DDD was a little more comfortable and seemed to fit me better overall but the gaping on the outer top edge of the cup when I extended my arms forward was just ridiculous. I ended up going with the 32DD, as there was far less gaping.
The cups are a bit large for me at least on my smaller side. I get some wrinkling if i don't have the straps tight. I also feel as if the gore is a bit wide giving too much separation. I think I can easily fix all my issues though. I plan to alter the cup near the gore and also make the gore a bit narrower. This will be my first at alterations, but I think it should be fairly easy since it's not a molded cup.
I also have this bra in a 32dd, when it didn't fit I got this bigger cup size. I should have went up in the band instead. my underbust is 31", the 32 band feels very firm but i can fit 2 finger under it. However, the bottoms of the cups are streching too wide and laying flat against my sternum in booth sizes. It just fits really weird and this size is actually worse.
This bra is at least a cup size too small for me; purchased before I really understood correct sizing--I'd get a 30FF or G if I purchased it again. The fabric is nice quality for this price point, and the dusty rose colorway is lovely. I think it would work well for shallow shapes; cup seems to run small all around.
The gore was strangely far more uncomfortable than any I've ever tried, not sure if it was because the bra is the wrong size or the wires are very stiff.
I've had this bra for awhile. I've gained weight over the past year and gone up in band and cup so now it's just all wrong, but here is info from when it was a better fit (and when I reviewed it on my blog, below.)
The band was slightly tight. The cups were a bad fit for me. There was some wrinkling at the top corners but the seam in the middle cut a line across my breast tissue. I might have been able to correct that with a larger cup, but I suspect that this bra would work better for someone with firmer breasts.
Please bear in mind that bra reviews should not just assess your own fit of the bra (you can do that in the "fit" section), but should be helpful to others! Please include more information if you can.
Like: Do you already have your size? Does the bra run true to that size? What is your shape and how is it working with that shape, etc.
This bra is a more sophisticated version of the everyday t-shirt bra, with lace accents and sleek, soft fabrics. I purchased it at a small boutique while on vacation - I was so excited to find a bra in (almost) my size in a store!
Usually molded cup bras do not match my shape well, but I like to wear them under tight tops to avoid the lines from my better-fitting seamed bras. In the store, I thought that it was a tolerable fit. After wearing the bra once, I decided that it really wasn't going to work for me. It would be better suited for someone with wider roots and less bottom projection. The band is a little loose for me - I usually wear a 30 band and I think it would be perfect for someone who usually wears a 32.
Cupwise, I seem to be in between a 32DD and a 32DDD. I really need a 30 band though. I heard that the band runs tight and the cups small in the Charlotte, so I thought a 32DDD might work well for me. Nope. Band is definitely too large. In the photo, I have my fist under there and it's on the tightest row of hooks. Also I feel like maybe this is too projected of a shape for my wideset shallow breasts. I had gaping at the top. Back it goes. Maybe it would work in a different size.
Super, super comfy material! If it was just a little bit deeper at the bottom, it would be a keeper for me. Fits my smaller side well with decent projection and narrow wires. I get a good profile on that side, but the uplift doesn't happen on the larger. The band is a good 32, and the color is a gorgeous red/purple berry. The biggest downside to this bra is the side supports; they cut into my narrow boobs in odd places (happens to me with most side support bras, though, ugh). Probably best on someone medium/shallow with slightly wider roots than me.
My shape: slightly shallow teardrop/FOB with super wide/tall roots and very close-set tissue in the middle.
This review is for the darker Nude colorway.
I won this bra in a blog contest, but took someone else's size recommendation, which turned out to be a mistake! See my review of what I believe to be the correct size 30FF - Parfait By Affinitas ยป Casey (2801) .
It's a lovely bra, and I think the cups are a little more forgiving to my FOB boobs because the band is too loose. However, the standard fit problems (namely, the band riding up in the back and the gore moving around some) are obvious.
I have fewer problems with the straps being so far into my armpits and chafing with this size, but it still gapes across the top of the cups when I slouch, and I quadboob in this one when I pull my shoulders back.
I also tried this bra in the 30E, but heard it ran small in both band and cup and so got the 32E as well. I found that my normal 30E fit better, as the 32E cups wereuncomfortably tall and the straps came too far into my armpits. in both bras I gapped if I wasn't standing up mostly straight, so I returned both sizes. The 30E and 32E seemed to both have an okay cup volume, it was just a matter of having more or less coverage of my breast.
This is a lovely, simple bra that feels very comfortable... but it's too big for me. I think it may run large in the cups, as I have 2 bras that are 32DDs that are too small for me, but this 32E is far too big for me. I would love to have one in 32DD, though.
The tag size on this bra seems to have little to nothing to do with the actual measurements of the bra. It originally fit more like a 30E, but I loved how pretty it was (and didn't know any better), so I wore it long enough that the band stretched and I could breath in the bra. It still leaves deep red marks though, and after some breast tissue migration it looks ridiculously small. But it is very pretty, and well constructed- after a year of heavy use, it looks like it could be new- so if someone wants to suffer through the guesswork of finding one that fits, since there's little to no correlation between tag size and fit, it could be a very nice bra. Great price for a bra in this size range, too, since most of the other ones I look at tend to be $80+, and IIRC, this one was under $40.
This is an all around great bra, the sizing is just way off. I bought when I was a cup size smaller, and I wish I had gotten a 34 instead of a 32- this band fits more like a 30 than a 32. Since it was my first specialty bra, I didn't know any better and would wear it all day comfortably, except for being unable to breathe. I would totally buy the same bra again, just in the proper size. The construction of the bra is excellent, it's very durable.
It's very basic and plain bra, but I guess it will be good for it's function: go under tight T-shirts with V-neck and white shirts. I think it's a good alternative to @Deco for girls who find its wires too narrow (like me). I also gives more depth near the root than @Panache @Porcelain Plunge, so I'm not getting crease due to orange in the glass effect in this bra. It's a little bit too big in the cups for me, it didn't show when I'm standing, but I'm getting gaping when I move my arms forward. I tried to measure as accurately as I can, but it's kind of ...hard, because supposed apex is higher than ends of the wires. I would tell that cups are quite tall and mold to give a very rounded shape. Band feels pretty sturdy to me. I think part of it is side boning. And powermesh feels strong. Straps are fully adjustable, and in this bra I really appreciate that, because I had to shorten more then I usually do. So I guess it could be problem for girls with short torsos. Shade of beige is quite light and truly neutral.
Overall verdict: nice basic bra for those who need wider wires and have fair skin. Read more 100 more words
This bra has a lovely round plunge shape and holds my boobs up very well - they feel extremely perky! However, I'm not sure that the underwire goes up high enough on the sides/there seems to be some displaced breast tissue that I can't get to fit inside the bra. I also feel like I need to swoop and scoop often to fill the bra, yet a size smaller wouldn't help - when I do swoop and scoop, my breasts almost quad-boob.
Edit March 2013: This bra was obviously a band size too big and probably a cup size too small when I bought it so take my review with a grain of salt. I still wear this bra sometimes b/c even though it's too big it's smaller than a true 32 band. It does give a great shape and is comparable to the Deco.
Thank you for posting this review and pics! I totally wanted to try this but after checking here I can see that the shape isn't going to work for me at all lol what a bummer! It's so pretty! I know it's gonna cut into my tail of spence and I won't be able to fill the top lol