This is easily going to be my longest review so far, because it may be the only one in this size on Bratabase for a while. I bought this from the Parfait by Affinitas sale on Zulily, and the tag for sure says 32C. Apparently I bought a bra that doesn't exist, but photographic evidence is included. ... Maybe they quietly expanded their size range to include C cups?
Note that the band in this size only has 2 hooks, not 4. Another difference between this and the larger sizes is that the cups don't seem to run small or shallow here, as others have noticed with the larger sizes. I'd say this is a true to size 32C with average projection. It is definitely more projected than my b.tempt'd and Natori bras. I can only fill the cups with a LOT of scooping and swooping, but once I'm there, it keeps me in there pretty well. My larger left breast sits nicely in the cup, and the smaller right one has a small amount of gapping at the top, but not so much that I can't deal with it.
Anyway, I'm a bit conical, a bit shallow, splayed, separated (2-3 finger-breadths), with a wide root but not a super-tall root, and soft squishy tissue. My snug underbust is usually about 31" and tight underbust 29". This bra looks awesome, but there are 2 major comfort issues.
The positives: It brings my boobs front and center in a very "in your face" way. The whole "lifts and separates" thing is in full force here. I completely agree with the person who said "boob scaffolding," as it's extremely supportive. The wings go up high enough to bring all my armpit tissue inward, which is rare for me given how spread out my boobs are. It's also very well constructed and has a gorgeous 1950s vintage pinup feel. Looks awesome with the matching high-waist briefs.
The negatives: It's SO uncomfortable on me. The gore wants to eat my sternum. I have a very bony sternum, and this gore digs right in where my sternum meets my ribs. It's made worse by the fact that the band seems really small and really firm. Either a wider amount of space between the wires or a lower gore would be preferable. The band is also quite wide and very firm, so it goes up high enough to dig into my lat muscles and create a little bit of an unflattering back fat roll. However, wearing it with an extender all but eliminates the back fat issue and definitely improves the gore issue. Finally, the wires are not quite as wide as I prefer, but the construction of the bra brings my roots inward and keeps my axillary tails from leaking over the wings, so it doesn't seem to be a big problem.
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Updated on Sep 13, 2014 Flag this
If you look at my past adventures you will see I linked to a small discounter in France who sells Empreinte at a very competitive price, about $50 per bra shipping to the US included. Their stock is quite low in my size right now (80F), not sure what size you'd be looking for though. They are very friendly and you can email them to get advice or help.
Oh awesome! I am looking through it right now - according to Bratabase, in the Thalia I'd take a 32E, which I think is also an 85F??? Not sure? I don't really know how to translate the sizes on this page. Should I take the UK size and just translate it straight to French size?
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