This bralette/soft cup wireless bra is from a new Canadian company called Understance.
I kept on seeing it advertized on facebook, so I decided to try (my first 'FB' purchase). I have been looking specifically for a bra like this - soft cup with built in padding, no underwire, longer band than what I need, 3 hooks, etc. I'm having sensory issues lately with tight bands that are too narrow or scratchy so I didn't mind that it was a 34DD instead of my usualy 30F.
This band is too long for me, but stays in place. There are 3 sets of hooks so I can adjust it. ...There is an outter layer of spandex feeling material on the outside of the band, and a inner mesh for extra durability and support (see pic). The straps adjust just long enough for my fall frame and are fully adjustable. The cups have a built in cotton feeling cups for modesty. I love the feel of these cups! It's thin but feels like a boob blanket. The lace extends a bit higher (check the pic).
I'm soft and narrow/short rooted. No natural 'lift' to my boobs, as you can see in this bra. It's not the most uplifting/supportive bra, but it's what I needed right now. My one and only complaint is that the cups cut into my tail of spence a bit, and so I can't wear it for a full day. I originally bought 2 but returned 1 for this reason. Their customer service replied to my email request to return and sent me a return label prepaid. Excellent company to deal with - great customer service. Easy to order and pay online, quick mail out time, and they delivered to a remote address for me. It retails for $68.00 Canadian, but I only paid around $40.00 on sale.
Overall Quality is excellent, super comfortable (minus tail of spence) and pretty good appearance for a full coverage bra.
Sorry about the poor lighting. Read more 223 more words
Thanks BraOdyssey . I literally don't even think I've considered aesthetics of the bras I've been buying once over the last couple months... It's all about utility these days! I just added a few other wireless ones, but I thought I'd post this one to the front page. Sorry the lighting is shit.
Everything about this bra is very comfortable. I feel the construction of this bra is a good half way point between a typical wired, firm cup bra and a shapeless bralatte. The cotton all over is very soft! The cup shape is accommodating and gives a somewhat pointy shape but not to the extent that it looks bad in my opinion. I am a 32DD / 30E and these cups still fit well, and the band is a little looser than I'd like, but it's a size up from my ideal size so that's to be expected. It's not super supportive but I think that's mainly because the band is slightly too big. It's still worth keeping for wearing at home because it's very comfy. It's not very cute or sexy but I really couldn't care less about that.
It looks cute, how much do understance bras cost in Canada?
BraOdyssey They're based in and ship from BC and have discounts going usually like 2 for 20% off so they're not crazy expensive. Most of their bras have a wide size range to choose from. I got this bra on the "last chance" section of their site and it was only $10 which was impossible to pass up. They don't have this model there anymore but they have some others right now for around $15-20.
ooooh. As a fellow Canadian (BC-er), I gotta check this out. This would be a great sleep bra judging by the cotton fabric used!
I am pleasantly surprised by this bra. I previously tried 30H - Understance » Ivy Smooth Lace Full Coverage Flexwire (U00 and found the band massive and the cups far too small. Yara fits really differently. The band is true to size, with the 28 band stretching to just over 28". The cups are significantly more projected than the Ivy; I could use a tad more cup depth on my larger side to avoid the cup cutting in slightly into my inner fullness, but the fit is close enough that it’s unnoticeable under shirts. And, most impressively, the wires are on the narrower side and an ...ideal width for me (5.5", the same as my 28GG - Cleo » Blossom (10581)!).
Quality is okay. The bra came with stitching coming undone on part of the band. I haven't worn the bra long enough to assess comfort, but the material is soft. The wings are just a bit taller than I prefer. Aesthetically, it’s very much not my style.
Update: After wearing this bra for some full work days, this has become one of my go-to, everyday bras. It's comfortable, and I don't need to adjust at all--the straps never slip, and the underwire does not budge out of my IMF. Will definitely be keeping my eye on future Understance releases! Read more 116 more words
Will update after wearing for a bit. My first impressions:
First of all, I got this with the intention of wearing it as a sleeping bra/around the house. It was on super sale and after shipping was under $25, and at this price point, I'm really impressed by the quality of this bra. The fit is not *perfect*; the gore doesn't fully tack on me and I get some very soft lapping at the top on my slightly full on top bust, but it's comfortable and I don't feel the need for an extender. The band seems quite curved, being tapered a fair bit more toward the bottom than ...my usual Panache bras. On the website, I noticed this band seemed to dig into the models less than other examples, and this is also true for me.
The flex wire is sturdier than I expected, but still more flexible than my usual bras. I used their size recommendation from their quiz while also cross referencing the US to UK size chart (I wear a 32GG in most Panache) . I put in that my bust is full in the middle, which recommends a cup size up, which was a good idea. Probably one size up from this would be even better, but I would buy this again even at this size. The straps are nice and firm. Though there are no strap stays, it's not incredibly bouncy. I find the lace soft and comfortable, and the elastic at the top of the lace helps keep in it place (the lace has no stretch, but a bit of ease is worked into the elastic). Read more 165 more words
It's like this bra was made for me! I can't even begin to state how much I love it. The lace along the top of the cups is just stretchy enough to handle my asymmetry, and the wings and wire do not run way up into my armpit (a frequent problem of mine). There is decent projection, not TONS, but enough for me (I am moderately projected). Another person reported that despite the bra being described as lower coverage, it fits like a full cup, and I will agree with that. Honestly, I find that all of Understance's bras are just, VERY full coverage. This one is slightly less so.
The band is stiffer than I would like, and the cups run small by maybe one size. I’m not sure, because I haven’t actually gotten my hands on many bras in this size.
The crossing straps at the front are really helpful. Since I’m center-full with soft tissue, I tend to pop out between the cups when I lean forward. This keeps me in without a high gore. The gore still isn’t low enough for me, though.
There’s no elastic band on the top of the wings. I’m not sure why.
After a few wears, the bottom of the band (under the cups) has rolled in and scratches a ...lot.
I’m a bit disappointed in this part, but maybe it was my mistake: I got this from Understance’s “asymmetry friendly bras” collection, which advertises “removable padding or uniwire.” Since it’s lightly lined, I assumed I could take out the lining on my large side (that often shoves lined cups down) and leave it as is on my smaller side, so the cup doesn’t crumple. But I don’t see a way to remove it without destroying the bra, so it’ll just get shoved down and dig into my ribs. Anyways, the lining is soft and comfortable. Read more 96 more words
Ever so slightly too closed on top for my tall roots but cups seem to run a little small so that may be why. Wish I could try it in a cup size up. It's great option for close-set breasts as the gore is low and the wires channels touch at the centre. Love the mesh wings because they don't cut into my back and create bumps. Overall well made and comfy as usual with this brand.
Not really a fan of the straps at the top (although they look neat) as they limit the depth of the necklines I can wear. But they're holding up the cups so I can't remove them.
This bra is beautiful and very comfortable. It has a lot of stretch but is still supportive if you're not running 100 meters or jumping. The underwires don't come up too high in the center and on the sides so it's perfect for a short torso. When I first put it on the bra is perfect, but after I start moving I get some over-the-cup spillage on my largest side. Huge bummer that it doesn't come in 42K.
Love the fit of this bra. I am close set with even vertical fullness and roots that are average height but slightly wider than average width. The gore is low enough for me and the mesh lining of the cups provides great lift and support. Also, it's advertised as "low coverage," but it covers nearly all of my breast tissue. Perhaps if I was more top-full or had less dense tissue it might be an issue as the top portion of the three-part cup does not have the mesh lining, just a stretchy lace. I've only worn it five or six times and washed it once, but it's still in pristine condition.
This is my fourth bra from Understance. Compared to the others, the band is firmer and runs much more true to size. It is definitely a full coverage bra and comes up pretty high on me, however this was surprisingly not an issue. Normally I struggle with this style as I have short roots, however on this bra, the upper fabric somehow doesn't gape. The design is beautiful.
Here is an example of a bra that fits (*technically), but is not wearable. I am measuring fit by my larger breast (left breast), but you'll notice that the other side has some wrinkles in the cup.
The reason why I marked this bra down in "comfort" is because the shape is just not correct for my breast shape. This is especially noticeable on my larger breast. The cup shape unfortunately just fights against my natural breast shape. That feeling is annoying.
I tried this bra for about 30 mins, and that was all I could wear it for. Which is, I admit, better than a Freya bra (I can only stand to wear Freya for about 10 mins, lol), but if you can only stand to wear a bra for 30 mins, it defeats the purpose. It's not wearable all day.
I'll leave you with this imgur pic to explain what I think is going on with this bra, https://imgur.com/wuKovXy Not enough immediate depth at the bottom of the cup which is pushing the underwire down.
This is my absolute favorite bra. I will definitely be buying more bras from Understance.
The material is soft and the wire doesn't dig into me in the way my other bras do. I was surprised when I looked in a mirror and saw how supported I was, because I didn't feel anything digging in anywhere! (Crazy that you CAN have both!) The lace and strappy things are really lovely and delicate. The Understance website says the lace is "okay" under clothes and not perfectly smooth (another thing to love about Understance: they document the pros and cons of their bras excellently), but it's actually much smoother than ...my Panache bras and you can't really tell I'm wearing a bra through thin tops.
I have close-set breasts in a large cup size for my petite frame, so I've had perennial problems with center gores. My old 34C bras didn't even come close to touching my chest for obvious reasons, so when I discovered my real size I tried a Panache Ana and it had the opposite problem, stabbing me before I even had the band closed. I've since bought two other Panache bras with higher gores that can get uncomfortable throughout the day since the wire is in contact with my breast tissue. With the Gemma, though, the center gore is perfect. It sits on my chest so docilely I forget it's there, but it still holds everything in.
My one qualm is with the strappy things, since they do show under anything with a square neckline or lower V, but I think they actually help the structure of the bra stay in place so I'm not complaining too much. Read more 172 more words
I bought this bra on clearance and took a guess at the right size, but guessed wrong. The bra really doesn't give me any support because the band is too big for me
This bra was on final sale with no returns, so I took a chance and purchased it. Overall, its a little big on me especially on the cups. I tried tightening the straps, which did help, but made the bra sit too close to my underarms. I have a hard time finding bras that sit flat on my sternum, and this bra does that perfectly. Because I did get the flat fit in this style and the price was so reasonable, I will buy again in a different size.
The Gemma has more room in the cups and is better suited for my bottom-full breasts, with a layer of lace and a layer of mesh lining. The gore is shorter and wider, and the bottom of the band is shorter (less vertical distance from the bottom of the cups to the bottom of the band).
The seams are itchy! I got a rash on my large side where it gaps at the top and rubs my tail of Spence. Maybe it wouldn’t rub if the fit were different, but this is the Gemma’s biggest cup size.
My shape: Narrow roots, projected, full on bottom, tall-ish roots, close-set. I prefer wires to be very U-shaped and cups to be short in height and open on top. I wear a 28D/DD depending on the brand and style.
This bra: The complete opposite of almost all of the above. The wires were extremely wide and long while simultaneously managing to somehow come up fairly high into my armpits (which wasn't an issue for me, but would be if you're sensitive to high wires). Maybe it runs one cup volume too big? I'm not extremely full on bottom and had noticeably loose fabric at the top of the cup when sitting or leaning over. Otherwise, there were no obvious fit issues or discomfort wearing it for me, but because of the shape mismatch, this bra ended up giving me a very flattening silhouette, which isn't at all what I personally want.
The size I bought was one or two cup sizes too small, but the shape seems projected enough and overall I think I would like this bra if I got the right size. It's very supportive with a lot of lift. However it's a very firm bra with zero stretch in the cups, the inner mesh is not particularly soft, and the over-the-top embroidery shows under most shirts, so it's not a very good everyday candidate.
This bra looks great and I really wanted it to work, but it didn't quite fit. I don't fill out the bottom of the cup. The wire sits below my IMF at the bottom. It starts out in the right place when I scoop and swoop, but moves lower as I move around. Trouble-shooting on the Understance website suggests that this is because the bra is not deep enough or possibly because the cup is too tall. However, it is advertised as a very projected bra and I'm not experiencing any gaping at the top. So I'm not sure what is going on. You can see the wrinkling in the bottom of the cup in my side view picture.
This is probably the most lifting/supportive wireless bra I've ever had, but the scale of it seems completely off. The sides and back come up so high that they run out of room, and end up rolling over/bunching in my armpits. It's like it was designed for a larger body than mine and as a result, it's not very comfortable. Sooo much fabric!
I really wish this bra fit, because it's really pretty! But it's just too tall for me, and the wires are too wide. Instead of fitting like the plunge it is sold as it fits like its full coverage. It also puts pressure on the blood clot scarring in my armpit if I try to slouch while wearing it because the wings live in my armpits. Still better than all my old bras though.
This looks super flattering for a wireless bra!