Dresses are girl's best friend

Dresses are the most comfortable pieces of wardrobe for me. I don't like skirts, I don't think they can be flattering on my extra baggage below the waist. I look like a mother - I've got soft breast, my waist is bigger then my underbust. After 3 pregnancies and loosing around 15 kg since having a son nr 2 in November 2011, I'm left with too much of loose skin and I've got diastasis recti (I'm working on it). Add to it  not the biggest hips (97cm). Most of dresses from boob-friendly companies are designed for hourglass type with flat stomach. Many of them would be too tight for my not so typical waist measurement. If I choose the size according to the cm in my waist, the hips part is always too big for me.
So ,what are the options for a girl like me? I would love to wear Kieska from Urkye but I know it would look awful on me, I'm not keen on Pin Up  and I like my clothes to be rather simple and modern.
Here are latest purchases from a thrift shop (yes, I'm still thrifty in 2013):

1. Kjoni - I bought it with tags still attached, original price was $90, I got if for $2.

The perfect summer dress. Very bright colours make me stand out in the crowd. 

2. Tokito -  it had a ripped pocket so I got it for free.

It's got cute pockets and nice flowery pattern. Colours suit me better then in nr.1. Dress is a little bit too short, I'm going to wear it with tights when the weather will cool down.

3. Crossroads - I need it something for my son's birthday, bargain $2.

This one is a disaster, I really don't know why I bought it. This style is not good when you've got bigger stomach. I do look pregnant, don't I?

4. Laura Ashley - $4

 

This one is my favourite. It makes me feel like a million dollars. It's lined, fits my bust, it's perfect around the waist and not too big around the hips. I love the back! It's so stylish.
The front is a little bit bulky but this is how it's supposed to be, I need to iron it.


What do you think?

Bad bra vs good bra

I was looking for  old bra in local thrift shop, to use it to make  an extender. I found some ugly Playtex bra  in good condition. The cups looked big enough to fit me. After washing it, I've tried it on.
It was like turning back time to old days, when I was thinking  my size is 34e. There, picture on the left, is something what I would be still wearing if I wouldn't know better. Picture on the right is Cleo Alexa 32ff.

I can't tell what size Playtex bra is, but  they don't do bigger cups or bands smaller then 32.

Before getting some bra education, I hated padded bras and I wouldn't wear any bras with narrow straps. I didn't know the most of support in the bra comes from the band, not from the straps. So the band was loose and I would shorten the straps to give boobs some lift. All so uncomfortable and horrible looking. Now, look at the centre gore in both bras:

In Alexa the wires meet between breasts and sit flat against the ribcage. Plytex has underwires too! But because cups are too small and band is too loose, wires are just hanging couple centimetres away the ribcage. 

In Playtex, breasts are squashed and flat and almost not lifted. Side view:

Can you see the band riding up? Very bad sign. Now, let's talk about the band.

My tight underbust measurement is 71cm (28 inches), loose is 74cm ( 29inches). I think +0 inches rule is wrong, it was used in Poland few years ago, when Freya was making very loose bands and before Ewa Michalak started making her bras. 

After few years, the quality of bands improved and all Lobby Biusciastych and Balkonetka users agreed - they used to wear their bras too tight. There is no need to go 15cm down in the band, really!

What's my rule? Measure yourself  not too tightly, use centimetres. Go down 5cm and choose the closest band size. 

So 74cm less 5 is 69 - band size 32 (70). This is my band size in Cleo, Panache Superbra and Ewa Michalak.

Couple more photos, this time with a pj singlet on, can you see the difference?

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Bra ramblings

All bra bloggers and bra-fitting advocates,  do you know this feeling: You've got a great friend. She is intelligent and nice looking but she doesn't care about her looks too much? Her favourite bra is Aah Bra and she hides her body in over sized clothes?  I've got couple of girlfriends like this: one is 30years old, mum of 2 small boys and spends a lot of time training horses. She is so pretty and full of life. But I can't look at her boobs - she is a curvy lady with big bosom, I would say size 34hh. I don't know what size she wears - but her breasts are popping out of every bra and hang quite low.
My other friend is over 50 years old and she loves her Aah bras...I would say she may be similar size to me - but now her boobs look so sad. She just laughs at any of my "bra talks".

Another subject I've been thinking about - teenagers and bigger bust. My 14years old stepdaughter is very slim girl with bigger bust, I would say she is 28dd/30e. She was complaining about getting too much of unwanted attention. Mainly boys at school. Here comes horrible stereotype: girls with bigger boobs are easy. I remember something like this from my teens. Who teaches boys this crap? It's hard to be a teenager this days - girls at 14 talking about being sexy. 15years old boys looking for "friends with benefits".

 So, back to bra subject: stepdaughter wears baggy tops and she doesnt' like to be a girl with biggest bust in the class.  She was quite uncomfortable in cheap padded bras from supermarket. Size 12(34)c!!! Her mum won't think about getting a proper bra for her, so I took her to bra store. We managed to get 2 great bras by Gorgeous by Debenhams in 30e. She was so happy and told me she never was so comfortable in a bra before!

At least one successful story to share:)

What Myer has got to offer for 32ff?

Myer is one of leading Australian department stores (something like Debenhams in UK). I went to one of the stores (at Tea Trea Plaza) yesterday to check the lingerie department out. Myer sells quite few brands. Most of them are part of Bendon group (Elle Macpherson Intimates, Fayreform, Pleasure State, Lovable and Evollove). The others are Berlei, Triumph and Playtex.
I wasn't interest in any of brands except Evollove and Elle Macpherson Intimates. There wasn't single Elle bra in size that could fit me, something around 32g or 34ff.
Evollove is supposed to be a brand for bigger bust, all bras have tags saying "Sizes from D to G". It may look great but there are only cups  D, DD, E, F and G. Bands start at size 30, which is size 8 here. So size 32g is really 32ffUK.


First to try was my favourite, white Sweet Blush Contour Bra in 32(10)g:

You can buy this bra in black version too. It looked great on the hanger, but I don't like it on me at all. The cup cuts into bigger breast and bra is giving my boobs horrible flat and east-west look. The band wasn't smug, I would go down to 30.
I love the look of the bra, it is so girly and sweet, but even if size 30h would be available, it wouldn't work for me.


Next was another contour (padded) bra, beautiful and  elegant, blue (Algier Blue) Dawn In Eden in 32g:

 

It even hurts looking at it. It's smaller in the cups then Sweet blush and the band is tight. I was looking for size 34g - the cup could fit and band should be OK but bra wasn't available in this size. Maybe next time:)

 

 

 

Third bra I've tried, was  dark blue ( Evollove call it Astral Aura)  Lost Love in 34g:

 

 

 

 

This bra makes me fell like I'm wearing Fayreform again - awful east-west look, no support at all, very sad looking boobs. Band 34 was way too big (there wasn't 32g available in the store). Left cup isn't too small but is cutting in the top of the breast. Big NO.

 

 

 

Now. time for something red (called Infra Red) - Fallen Apple in 32g:

 

 

 

 

 



The cups were too small so I got 34g:

 

 

 

 

This bra was probably the best fit but the band was too big and cups (being on bigger side) were still cutting in - it is strange because my boobs are quite bottom heavy. Better support then in Lost Love but the sad look is still there.

 

 

 

All of Evollove bras have few things in common. The straps are really short,I had to make them the longest as possible and it wasn't still comfortable. I'm sure someone shorter wouldn't have this problem but if you are over 175cm, the straps could be too short. Bras are really tight on the top, can cut into breasts, I can imagine it wouldn't be good for someone with breasts full on the top.

All of the bras have very poetic and romantic names and prices are around $50-$60 AUD, which makes them  $20 cheaper then Freya/Panache.

Bras are quite pretty and look great on the hangers, but maybe I'm too spoiled with Polish and British bras and don't like the look of myself in them. The construction of especially,unpadded bras isn't good at all. This is me in Fallen Apple and too big in the cup Chloe:

 

 

 

 

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At the end I've tried something from Fayreform! Profile Perfect in 32f, I don't know why I even bothered, this bra isn't attractive:

 

 

Very bad fit, the band is too loose, cup aren't too small but are squashing me, the centre gore is far away from the chest. It looks like old Berlei T-Shirts bras I used to wear in size 34e.

 

 I would like to go to Myer again to get fitted (just for the sake of this blog) - I couldn't do it this time because I had company of two little boys:) I had one offer of fitting but it was after I've tried all bras and we very just too tired and bored:) I've told the girl none of the bras fitted and I need something with bigger cup but band has to be 30 or 32. She told me she wears band size 34 or sometimes 36 (she was very slim)...yes, I don't think she had any clue about bra-fitting at all.

 

I'm glad I've tried Evollove, I can go back to my  bras now - it was relief to put nicely fitted Fauve Emanuelle in 30gg back on:)

 

 

 

 

 

 PS. If you are keen, you can check the bras out on Bendon's website: evollove

 

 

 

 

 

 

 



Cleo Chloe

Finally I got my hands on one of famous George's sisters - Chloe. Bra called George from Cleo is  well known as great balconette style bra which can make your boobs look very round, lifted and just great. George isn't made anymore, but there are bras based on him - Eleanor, Lizzie, Zia, Natasha, Marcie and Chloe.

I haven't got much experience with Cleo bras, I've only got one, Molly in 32gg (my favourite bra at the moment, much better plunge style then Ewa Michalak).
I was sure I will not go for 30 band so I got 32g. It was mistake - there is a photo:

 

First thing - the band is too small.  My ribcage is 72cm and this bra is extremely tight. I could fell the underwires stretching to my back and it was very uncomfortable. This photo is taken when I had an extender attached. It was a relief, I could breathe and the wires weren't digging so painfully anymore.

After all scooping, the cups were still too big, especially on smaller, right breast. Adding the extender made the cups even bigger:

 

 

 

 

So, the bra isn't the best looking, but even when cups are too big, it shows great potential:

 

 

 

The lift is nr1, the shape is beautiful (it's not so visible on the photo but please believe me) and if in correct size, this bra could work magic on my softies;) 

I'm going to try this bra again, in 34 band and will go  cup smaller so it will be 34f.

 

 



Curvy Kate "Emily". Twice

Ten months of breastfeeding (and still going) and change of eating habits and I am down from 32h to 32g/30gg. This means goodbye to many bras and I  need new bras. The band 32 is still good but the cups are huge. Having 72 cm under the bust and 98 in the bust, 32g is the size I'm most comfortable in, I do have a few bras in 30gg too.
It was a good time to try some of Curvy Kate's unpadded bras for the first time.
First was Angel in 28j...not a good choice. It was second hand, so I was hoping to fit into 28 inch band. I've read about Angel's cups being on the small side. The bra was too tight, cups were too big. The worst was the fabric which bra is made of. Very uncomfortable and itchy.
It's a pity because I like the look of this bra a lot.

After Angel I found Emily in 30h (on  Clothes For Boobs group on Facebook) and after again, reading about cups being on the small side I decided to give it a go.

Emily in lovely Flame colour (it's red with orange embroidery) came with matching briefs size M (perfect fit for 97cm hips). My favourite bras are purple and red so the colour of Emily was big YES from me.

 

 

 

The band is too tight for me, it can be closed but it's not comfortable. Luckily I've got an extender, so I tried with it on. It was much better. After putting the bra on I had to do some serious scooping, because at first it looked like cups are too big. It's still not right. I can see that even with extender, the underwire is pulled too much under my armpit. CK bras are shallow and wide in the cups so now the cups were even wider.  There is too much fabric under the arm too, it's cutting in. The straps are wide too and I've got narrow shoulders.
Cup h isn't much too big but bra is not doing much with my breasts, it's just giving a little bit of support, but shape is quite round and I like it.

Can you see  the underwire almost on my back? It means the band is too tight, cups are too big - underwire is too wide.



I was wondering if I go up in the band, will it make any difference? I must admit, I made mistake by not going size down in the cup. I just wasn't sure if 32g wouldn't be too small.
I got Lavender version in 32gg:

It looks blue on the photos but it is really lavender. So, the band is great, feels snug. The cups are too big but as you should see, in this bra at least my boobs are lifted and don't look so sad. The underwire is tiny bit too wide but in 32g it could be perfect - my breasts like wider wires.
I love natural, round shape this bra gives. I'm going to try 32g - it could be great bra!

I love my Tuba

This is my favourite top at the moment. It makes me feel sexy and confident. My grey Tuba from new and very young (Ula - the designer and owner is only 25years old) www.urkye.pl.

Size 40o/oo is perfect for bust size 32g. I like  the colour, the fabric is nice and soft (95% cotton).
I think is very flattering, oh it just make me feel great:) I am saving to buy more colours (there is pink, red, green and black). I've got a Purple Tuba in 40oo/oo which is bigger in the bust - it's still wearable and it just covers more up.


There you go:

I have to add - customer service at Urkye is superb. Ula's husband Wojtek is very kind and helpful and Ula is always giving great advice. So, if you aren't sure what size to choose or have any questions, just e-mail them. After ordering for the first time I had some problems with Paypals currency calculator. It charged me more then I had ready to pay (it was few $) and I got an offer from Wojtek " Don't worry about it, because it's your first purchase with us, we will give you discount". Isn't this lovely?