Kristinr

Everyone is right that the band sizes run small. I usually need a 34 band -- and a 36 when the band is very firm. But the H cup starts at a 38 band in this model, so what can you do? At first, the band was quite snug, but it stretched out a lot within a couple of weeks. I didn't expect great quality from this brand, though, so I wasn't surprised. I've worn this bra about 12 times, and I'm already using the second column of hooks.

It's true that it feels like your breasts are encased in a cloud when you first put on this bra. ... At least at first, it was the only bra I've found in a long time in which the straps didn't dig in painfully. It's shockingly comfortable at first, but that doesn't last very long. Still, I got this bra marked down for just $12.50. Even though the quality is not great, I don't regret spending $12.50 on it.

I have narrow shoulders and a wide root. I'm also bottom heavy and uneven by about a cup size. Unlike most with wide roots (at least so I've read), my breasts are not shallow. As a result, I usually have to choose between bras that have enough depth and bras that comfortably contain all of my side breast tissue. I've never found one gets this balance exactly right -- AND that has straps narrow enough not to fall down. This one is no exception. I do have underwire against my breast tissue on the left side, but it doesn't hurt the way most bras do thanks to all the cushioning. I also have quite a bit of gaping on the right side and some empty space at the bottom. I never have empty space there -- this bra is for breasts that have a lot of depth. Still, I couldn't go smaller because that would make the pain worse on the left side. The straps are...extremely wide set in this bra. I need a racerback strap to keep them from falling off.

In spite of the bad fit, this bra makes my breasts look fairly even, and the gaping doesn't show under t-shirts. Even though it wears out quickly, it's still one of my more comfortable bras. I have problems with straps digging in most of the time, and the straps on this bra are padded.

It's also kind of a maximizer, and I feel slightly awkward whenever I go anywhere wearing it because it makes my boobs look quite a bit larger than they are.


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Updated on Jul 14, 2014 Flag this

This is my most comfortable bra because of the thick padded straps, but it fits very poorly. I am pretty sure the cups have too little depth for me. There is empty space on the sides, but the underwire and cups both cut into my breast tissue on the sides. The straps do not adjust long enough. The bra -- like all bras -- gives me east-west projection. The straps -- like most straps -- are place too far apart and fall off my shoulders too often. The center gore does not lie flat as it is much too narrow for my wide set breasts.

The padding is good ... and protective, and the band is snug (it's more of a 34 than a 36, though, so size up in the band). I'm having a very hard time finding a bra that fits my narrow shoulders. Most cause a tremendous amount of pain. I'm bottom heavy, and the weight of my breasts pushes down too heavily in this bra. Good quality, and it's my go to until I find something that actually fits.

I'm including a photo to show what I mean about folding up my left (larger) breast due to lack of depth. It shows a crease near my left armpit where I have folded the breast (sort of extreme, very uncomfortable swooping) -- this always result in too much pressure on the straps and bottoms of the cups. Most bras do not adjust low enough on my torso.
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Updated on Jul 25, 2014 Flag this

Before I bought a Kris Line, I was warned that the brand could be a big granny-ish, but this bra is far from that. It is probably the nicest bra I own. It has beautiful detailing and uses high quality fabric. There is some cotton blend in parts of the bra, which makes it comfortable and breathable. It looks pretty good under clothes. That is, it gives me lift and forward projection and minimizes east-west migration. It is also wide enough in the cups to encompass all of my side breast tissue. And the problems with it don't show up under clothes.

But it isn't quite right. I ... have quad boob on both sides, but especially pronounced on the left. My nipples fall under the sheer lace rather than under the padded part of the bra. Even though the cups are clearly too small on top, the lace still sticks up a little bit at the edge where the quad-boob starts.

The band is extremely stretchy. From the moment I purchased this (brand new), I have needed to use the fourth hook and eye column in order to get any support from the band. I would need to go down one or two band sizes for the band to work.

But I like the bra so much that I am determined to figure out the correct size. It's my most comfortable bra now, and I imagine things would be better if it fit properly.

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Updated on Jul 19, 2014 Flag this

I bought this bra because it felt great when I tried it on in the store, and the seams didn't show under my clothes. Plus, the straps are fully adjustable, and I rarely find a bra that sits low enough for my torso. There was slight wrinkling at the top, but that happens with virtually all bras. After wearing it for about 3 hours, I realized that the band is way, way too stretchy and long -- and I should have sized down to a 32 band. The cups are too deep but also too narrow. So, I can sort of push all (or most of) my breast ... tissue into them successfully, but this mostly just presses my boobs down flat. And the underwire still presses painfully against the breast tissue on my larger left side. This bra has too much stretch in the cups and the band to provide any support at all. I think I found it comfortable because it was like having nothing on, except for the pain in my left shoulder that began after a few hours. It gives me no lift, forward projection or shape.

The fit is very poor on me, but I will use this on lupus high pain days because it is less painful than most... At least until I find a bra that actually fits, if there is one out there. This French/American H cup is much, much bigger than any FF cup I've ever tried on in a UK company. If you have narrow breasts, you might want to size down in the cup.

Chantelle bras, as I understand it, are designed to fit long torsos, narrow shoulders and wide roots. This one...gets a little closer to accomplishing some of these for me than most bras, but... It's still a terrible fit.


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Updated on Jul 14, 2014 Flag this

This is the Elomi plunge bra that I got at Nordstrom Rack before I bought the Elomi Betty that I thought was the correct size at Nordstrom. As a test. Nope. I just cannot wear this bra. I took the band in by about 4 inches to make a 32H, but... The cups are too wide and shallow. And there is a ton of space on the sides because they're so wide. This bra pushes my boobs flat, down and to the sides. And it's just really uncomfortable because the cups give me no support.

This bra's measurements have been altered

Altered band,

Updated on Oct 25, 2014 Flag this

This is the right model, but clearly my version is not the black one. This bra is about right in band size, but far too small in the cups and not wide enough in the center gore. I get major quad-boob from this one. I had high hopes for it because I live in a hot climate. This is an unpadded spacer that apparently has some sort of sweat-wicking, cooling function. It's just far too small for me. Back to the drawing board.

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Updated on Jul 19, 2014 Flag this

I ordered the 38 in this bra because reviews suggested that people should size up in the band. It's about right, but I wish I'd actually ordered the 36. Still, the center gore lies flat on the last hook column, and there is no gaping at the top (a problem that I usually have). All things considered, this is one of my better fitting bras, but it does have too much of the east-west thing. Also, my left breast is at least one cup size larger than the right. That means this bra requires me to scoop up the left side and sort of...fold it up into ... the cup. There's a slight quad-boob effect, which is rare for me because I'm bottom heavy. But it doesn't look pronounced and doesn't show up under clothes. Other problems: As with most bras, the bra straps are set too widely apart and tend to fall off, and... The thing is, I'd be able to live with all of these fit issues if the left strap -- my larger side -- didn't dig in so painfully. I can only wear this bra for a few hours at a time, and I need strap pads to make it bearable. There are only 2 rows of hook and eye closures, but the band is more snug than most, and it doesn't bother me much.

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Updated on Jul 14, 2014 Flag this

NOTE: I first chose the wrong model from the list and had to add this one. I have tried to delete the regular Melissa entry, but I think the photos and review remain. All of it should go with this entry.

This is a good quality t-shirt bra that simply does not fit me. It has light, soft padding to conceal nipples.

The band of this bra is clearly too big, and the cups are much too small. The result when I scoop and swoop is quad-boob, which is most pronounced on my left (larger) side. My breasts are too heavy for this bra to be supportive. Too much weight is shifted to the straps, which dig into my shoulders and cause pain. The straps are ridiculously far apart for me and do not stay on.

Updated on Jul 19, 2014 Flag this

This bra is lovely. The fabric is soft and high in quality. It doesn't fit me at all. I can fit just fine in a Wacoal 34H, but this brand... I've never been able to wear Natori. I think this Natori in an H cup runs more like a DDD in Wacoal or Chantelle. I also think their bands run quite stretchy, so this 34 isn't tight at all. Basically, I can only get this bra around my breasts as a kind of sling. When I swoop and scoop, I have to hold my boobs up in order to show how bad the quad boob is when I ... do that. But my boobs don't stay up in this one, they just fall back down, and the band stretches right back out. Also, I think my boobs are too far apart for Natori bras. So many bra shopping problems would be solved if Natori worked for me, as this brand is easy to find in so many American department stores. Also, the straps are close together and don't fall off! That would be another problem solved.

Regarding "comfort" and "bra appearance," I'm not entirely sure whether I'm supposed to give a sort of overall assessment. The bra is not comfortable and looks very bad on me because it doesn't fit. If it did fit, I'd check excellent on both counts.

Also, I guess bratabase will tell me if my measurements are off, but just in case: I measured this bra down to the lace, which lengthens both the center gore length and the wings. The lace part is not sturdy bra band material, but sort a sheer tulle fabric. Not at all scratchy as I've found bras in similar styles, though.


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Updated on Jul 16, 2014 Flag this

This bra is seamed on the inside but has soft, light padding in front to hide the seams. So it's a great t-shirt bra. Unfortunately, the cups are too shallow and small for me, and there is no stretch in the cups. I have quad boob on the left side. Because my left side is so much larger, it pulls the center gore to the left and prevents it from tacking. I also get underwire sitting on breast tissue on both sides, and too much strain on the thin straps. Even though the cups are too small on top, I have a bit of empty space in the bottoms of the cups.

Updated on Jul 19, 2014 Flag this