I am very prone to back pain from bands being either too loose or digging in from being too thin, so I've been desperately searching for a longline bra. Being a 28GG/H, I'm sized out of the Freya longlines, which leaves this as the only longline bra sold in my size. By the time I discovered it, it had been sold out almost everywhere, but a user was selling a 28H on here, so I pounced.
Unfortunately, the fit, construction and appearance all leave a lot to be desired. The bra is a bizarre orange and grey plaid, which would almost give a sort of ... cutesy retro kitsch bustier top look, had it not been paired with Barbie pink lace straps and back hooks. I knew all this before buying it, and it would have been a small price to pay, had the bra actually fit and flattered well.
My first grievance, on trying the bra on, was discovering that the lace was the same construction as the Cleo Juna, that is to say, it is intended to be loose and fluttery. I don't know what exec at Panache ever thought that was a good idea, but they should be fired. Loose Barbie pink lace? Seriously? It shows through every shirt, and makes the bra look like it fits far more poorly than it actually does
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The second thing to catch my attention was a very poorly thought out tiny piece of flexible plastic boning under each cup. This boning was only about 1.5" long, and ran from the bottom of the underwire down to the stiff elastic at the bottom of the band, but did not intersect the elastic. Every time I would bend over, breathe in or move, these little pieces of boning would bend or move around in their casings, and then snap back painfully. I am speaking here in the past tense, because I wore the bra for a grand total of 10 minutes before cutting out the offending boning. The longer side boning is actually very nice and definitely helps to stabilize the band
Once I cut out the front boning, the bra became significantly more comfortable. Unfortunately, the removal of the most obvious fit problem allowed be to see all the other ones. The reviews I read said that the band ran quite tight. However, when I received the bra, I discovered that the actual fit of the band is rather more problematic than simply being tight. The BOTTOM of the band is indeed quite tight, but the top of the band, directly underneath the cups, actually runs true to size or even a bit loose. Basically, it is made for a very triangular shaped ribcage, which mine is not. The practical implication is that while the bottom of the band is quite tight and has a tendency to want to sit lower on my ribcage than it should, the top of the band is just hanging there. The shallow cups get pushed out by my not-shallow boobs, and the cups end up just floating, and eventually just collapsing downwards. The cups floating issue is made worse by the too-far-apart strap placement - I have broad shoulders, so the straps don't fall down, but they are places so far out on the cups that there is nothing holding the middle of the cups in place, hastening the collapse and drop of the top of the band.
I've now worn this bra 4 times. I'm even more convinced that I want a longline bra, but I'm increasingly certain that this bra is not the longline bra for me. Because I've now cut out the boning, it's unlikely I will be able to resell this bra for much, which is unfortunate, because it would need major surgery to suit my shape properly.
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Updated on May 10, 2013 Flag this
