I have long been a fan of Panache's wired sports bra. I love the padded wires and straps, the shape it gives under clothes, and (in a band size up), find it to be a super comfy bra for lounging, which is why I've continued to buy it even though I'm sized out. Unfortunately, it's been years since I've been able to buy my correct size, and with my FoT breast shape, I don't get as much support and coverage as I need in a cup size that's too small. So while it still works as an actual sports bra for me, it doesn't work as well as ... it did when I could buy my actual size.

I recently learned that the sports bra from Panache's plus sized line, Sculptresse, goes up to 34K. To the best of my knowledge, their normal bras do not, so I never would have thought to look. The only thing I'd been able to find out about any differences between the normal Panache Sport and the Sculptresse version is that the latter is unlined. So having tried both now, I thought I would write a quick review/comparison.

The Sculptresse version is significantly shallower than the regular, molded-cup Panache Sport, even though the cups are unlined, rather than molded foam, and reduces my bust circumference by about an inch compared to my best fitting unlined bra (Panache Jasmine). It seems to be a combination compression-encapsulation bra rather than a purely encapsulation style bra. This creates a decided minimizing effect, which may be useful for people in this size who prefer a minimized shape due to dysphoria or other concerns. Sculptresse may also be more closed-on-top, based on the mild quadding, but that may just be because it's so shallow.

The compression makes this slightly less comfortable to wear than the regular Panache Sport, even though it's closer to the right size, and I find it slightly more difficult to breathe. The wires are also not padded, so I think this bra would be more difficult to fudge your size with (the padded wires on the other mean that I don't really notice them sitting on breast tissue on the sides until the padding starts to break down).

Since the cup is approximately the right size (it seems to run about a size small) and is possibly more closed on top, it does a better job of containing my breasts when I lean forward, so I don't feel as much like my breasts are trying to strangle me in downward facing dog (I haven't tried running in it yet). So even though I find it less comfortable, I'm going to go ahead and keep it.
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Black, pink, blue swirl colorway

Updated on Aug 06, 2021 Flag this