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Bras » Cleo » Lily Balconnet Bra (7351) » 30F 30:7

Measurement Cm
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Fits ribcage72.8
B. perimeter26.1
Stretched Band76.7
Band Length61.3
Cup width13.4
Cup depth23.8
Wire length24.8
Cup height15.2
Cup separation1.9
Gore height7.4
Wing height9.0
Strap width1.4
Hooks2

22 measurements - 30 bras

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  1. 7
    like

    Fits

    I own this in the old-school parrot print colourway.

    QUALITY: It's nice! Maybe not as luxe as some other $$$ bra brands out there, but it feels sturdy, there's no loose threads or unfinished, itchy corners (cough, Freya), and the elastic holds over over time admirably. It was designed with a real person wearing real shirts in mind, and the seams aren't obtrusive under shirts - even the flashy pink stripe at the top of the cup is just sheer fabric, not ribbon, so it doesn't poke out or interfere with the rest of the cup construction. The fabric is a little acrylic and stiff, which is weird ... when you first put it on, but as your tissue relaxes into it, it becomes a perfect and secure fit.
    COMFORT/FIT: This is the best fit in a bra I've ever had. The gore doesn't dig, the band is just snug enough, and while I get some puckering at the top of the cups, it disappears after a few minutes of wear. I wish the wires were padded up just a little more - the wires can dig in the underbust after a long day. I highly recommend this bra for people with close-set boobs and with centered/evenly full tissue.
    APPEARANCE: I'm so down for these parrots. The print is kind of busy, but as long as it doesn't interfere with the bra's functionality, I truly don't care. The pink ribbon at the top makes your boobs look like luminous, perfect spheres through the power of forced perspective, and the shape this bra gives under shirts is great - rounded, lifted, and unlike many other unlined bras, your nipples aren't the center of attention when it's cool out.
    IDEAL USES: Boppin' around town, lookin' cute, day-to-day boob business
    KEY AESTHETICS: Modern Independent Woman, Abbi From Broad City, Cold Brew & Cults Concerts, I Own A Succulent Garden And Also I Do My Own Taxes, I Have A Record Collection But I'm Not Going To Be A Douche About It

    Read more
    228 more words

    Updated on Mar 13, 2016 Flag this


    • I love this review :D I just wish the lily didn't wrinkle weird on me :)

    • Lily parrots is super sturdy. I wore mine weekly for over a year before I had to start moving the hooks to a small setting.

    • 1

      I got a Lily Swan print set listed for sale in the sister size to this, 28FF. Just an FYI ;-) The Lily's are classic, well made and give a great rounded shape to those who have the even fullness and short roots they demand.

    • KEY AESTHETICS: are you stalking me? (minus the cold brew..give me blazing hot coffee, or give me death)

      Thanks for this review, I really want to try this bra and it is helping me to make a decision. :)

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  2. 6
    like

    Used to fit

    I wrote a massive, and I do mean massive, review last night for this bra. I knew that my phone was low on battery power, so I plugged it into the backup battery I had. Little did I know that the backup battery was also low on juice, and I was nearly done with my review and my phone died. I was so engrossed with finishing the review, that I didn’t see the battery power begin declining once the backup was done. And everything was lost, as I had been typing in the site as I always do, but hadn’t thought about copying the text at “save points” ... in case something happened. So here I am again, trying to see what I can recall from last night.

    ************************************

    Warning: this is going to be long. Like really really really long. For the tldr, skip way to the bottom. Like WAAAY to the bottom. Sorry...

    This review begins with teenage Calluna, in the early 90s, shopping for bras at Victoria’s Secret with my bestie, as you did. I think that this may very well have been the peak, or start of the peak when VS was really popular with teenage girls. Like any and all 5’ tall 100 lb girls, I was put into a 34A/B (*snort* because you all know it is true). I remember having this beautiful white eyelet bra, one of my first underwire bras. I don’t know why I remember that one, but I do. I think that my friend might have also had the same, or she had really liked it. Anyway, I’d often complain about the straps slipping from my shoulders and would be told it was because I was so petite. Later I would be remeasured and told that I was a 32 band. Think that I listened? Ha ha, you’re right, I didn’t. I think that for me, the idea of a 34A/B seemed hugely normal for someone like me that was hugely abnormal in my eyes. I have a lazy eye for a start, and at the time, I’d already had 2 surgeries as a kid and my muscles grew and my eye would go out again. As mentioned, I was tiny. I still am tiny. And I look young. Nobody believes that I’m 44. I have size 4.5 feet that come with their own set of problems, my ears were huge and stuck out so much that my parents opted for me to have surgery, and I was very smart in class (except for math). Socially, a bit awkward too. I was so very abnormal on so many levels, that fitting what seemed to be a normal size was a comfort, so being told that I was not what I thought in my mind was normal went in and out of my ears so fast. At the time, I had very little knowledge about bras or even the social myths and misconceptions or anything about size.

    I do recall that sometime after high school, I would submit and accept my 32 fate, and would you know it, my straps felt better and slipped less. I was still tightening them a lot.

    At one point, I went on the pill, and every underwire bra irritated the crap out of me, and I lived in that kind of pullover lounge bra that had the wide elastic band at the bottom and was ribbed like a tank top on top. It was also VS. I eventually realized that I it looked crap under clothes and I was starting my first office job that was business casual and so I found some wireless bras that worked. I can’t recall if this is when I adopted the 32 bands or if it was pre pill, but that’s not important.

    One day I realized that my 32C Chantelle wireless bra was not fitting anymore. I consulted with my best friend (different one from high school) because frankly, she has a much larger chest than I do, and we’re super close and have no TMI issues. I mean, we met in the IUD Divas group on live journal and discussed our insertions which were both the same day. So yeah, discussing the plastic T in your uterus is pretty open and revealing. She gave me so many resources. I learned about Fig Leaves, Bare Necessities, and Bravissimo, along with the basics of bra fitting via the sites and her. I ordered the first round of bras, took pics with my phone and emailed, and she suggested I try one size higher...32DD. That seemed to work, and I had two Fantastie bras and a Panache Tango Plunge which I ended up getting in a 32E. I actually have the two bras from Fantasie still, and I even have one in my bras here (Rimini), but mostly because I wanted to add data. I have not worn them a decade, but have put them on over the years as my weight has shifted and affected my size...I used them to gage size. I later got a Freya Pollyanna which I liked even more. I still have that too, and I used it for data here as well when I first started. I got rid of the Panache plunge, because gorgeous as it was being a Bravissimo exclusive colourway option, it was a love hate relationship. It took a while to readjust to wearing underwire...I weaned slowly. The Fantasie bras were more comfortable than the department store ones.

    And thus began my long affair with 32DD and feeling like I was more educated on bras than the average person. At one point, I tried a t shirt bra at Gap Body after resisting them (I don’t remember why), and realized I was getting a nice shape, and while I still wore my Fantasies and Freya, I was beginning to realize that I had a bit of a pointy shape.

    I started to wear molded cups, even with a few size fluctuations. I was now in Canada and La Senza was my go to, and once I sized out of the Cotton ones, I switched to the So Free Lightly Lined Balconette. I’ve had soo many of them over the last several years. At some point around 2014/2015, I am trying bras at the newly discovered specialist shop and told on more than one occasion that I should be wearing 30s, but of course you know that I resisted. Right? https://d28qt14g3opchh.cloudfront.net/smileys/icon_wink.gif" alt=";)" /> I’d admitted that the 32s from La Senza were feeling a bit loose and stretched out fast, but 30s felt too tight and I didn’t want to use any extenders.

    Flash forward to two years ago...October 2016. It’s our 20th wedding anniversary, and we’re headed to England. Our honeymoon was there, and it seemed only natural to go back for this. And you all know what this meant. BRAVISSIMO!!! My plan was to visit as many as I could. Screw the rest of the vacation, I wanted to go to Bra Mecca on pilgrimage.

    Side note:

    Dear Apple,

    Thanks for putting your stores close to Bravissimo stores so that hubby can be babysat while I try bras. Lol!

    Grateful,
    Calluna

    Anyway, I got to TWO different Bravissimo stores...Birmingham and Oxford Street (?) and had tried to get to more. At the Birmingham shop, I went in hoping to try a Freya Patsy Half Cup. Asked for a 32DD. Tried it and it was huge. Like, it was just ginormous! Everywhere. Seriously. Band and cups. I tried a 30E and 30DD...the former was gapping a bit, but the latter was too small. I wanted it so much but I was not having luck with the fit.

    After trying on different bras and then explaining what I liked about the one I was wearing, I was brought a 30E Lepel Lilly. She had said that it was a stretchier band and people were sizing down which was why the 30E sister size. I really liked it...the shape was good, and I absolutely loved the bird print. I’m also a sucker for navy blue. The strap had a weird thing about it but it was discounted as a result, so then I called my hubby to come meet me to buy the set for me. Matching briefs, oh yeah! I was ecstatic and over the moon! For whatever reason, the 30 bands felt fine at this point. Maybe because they ran big? The Lilly was a little bit tight, but I was able to manage.

    Later in the trip, at the other store, they had no 32DDs in anything I wanted, but as I was just scouting out sizes and fits of the bras and clothes for potential web orders back home, I opted to try a few 32Es. At first I thought that they were too large. And then I was reminded to swoop and scoop from the fitter, which I had not done in ages! Surprise! The 32Es fit. Well sorta. I had some shape issues going on (I’m looking at you Envy and Jasmine!) but this is when I fell in love with Marcie. Only I was pretty broke upon returning home after such an expensive trip, and I never had a chance to get it...I was relegated to only buying the La Senza ones on major clearance. But Marcie would pop in my head periodically.

    I bet you are all wondering where this is all leading, but it is leading somewhere, I promise. I swear.

    Flash forward to the beginning of the year, maaaaybe the tippy toe end of last year. I co-admin a group on Facebook thats focus is wavy hair (we’re the hair type that no one knows how to handle because it’s not straight, exhibits elements of curly hair, but isn’t inherently curly either). We often allow the occasional off topic post and someone was asking about bras and that opened up the rabbit hole and so many people commented. I think that she was looking for places to buy and suggestions. I think that it had 200-300 comments. Now at this point, I’ve been in 32DD mostly, and feeling like I was pretty educated on bras and sizes and fits. Only a bunch of really smart and intelligent ladies piped up and brought up things like A Bra That Fits, this site, Polish bras (say whaat?), breast shape, and so on. Suddenly, I felt very very dumb about bras and boobs.

    After reading a ton of the links and guides and getting totally lost and confused even further from figuring out my breasts, lcl0706 came to my rescue. She helped me out and was soooooo instrumental in my learning and understanding what my breast shape was and what the characteristics were, as well as what I needed to look for in a bra that would fit. I’m hugely grateful for all her help answering my questions, often more than once. We determined that we were actually pretty close in size and shape, so that when she sold her crimson Ellace, she offered it to me first. In trying to figure out whether or not it would fit, she told me to get my best fitting bra and she taught me how to measure that bra over Facebook messenger as she was measuring the Ellace. We determined that it would probably fit and that it might be a little small so she included an extender. Anyway, along the way, she was suggesting that I try Polish bras because they had been her best fit. If I wanted basketball boobs and a molded cup, I really needed to go Polish to obtain the depth at the wire that I needed. What did I do? Naturally, as has been shown is my nature over decades, I was resistant! To be fair, it was a lot of unknowns on my end, and ordering cheap UK bras from Amazon was hitting the right buttons at the time, but spoiler alert: she was totally right about Ewas and Comexim being best for me. But in the meantime, I was working with the UK brands because they were more accessible to me, and less mysterious and unknown. Among one of the many discussions, she had said that the ones that fit her best (aside from Polish) was Curvy Kate Ellace and a few Cleos. She’d said that Cleo Lily was amazing and although it is discontinued, should I ever find it somewhere in my size, that I should snap it up, because it’s become one of the mythical unicorn bras. She thought it would give me a great shape and lift and so on the way it did for her. It’s everything that I needed and was looking for. I saw the reviews on her blog and I just about died when I saw the parrot print. I swooned! Well, try as I might, I could not find my size anywhere. I checked eBay regularly. At one point I found a 32E parrot print on braswap for a good price, but the band was super stretched out to over 32” iirc. So I passed on it with hopes of finding one a bit closer to my size. Nope nopity nope. I waited and watched and searched and mythical unicorn bra was indeed mythical unicorn bra.

    Then I spotted this one, right here in the listings, for $3. Wait...what? What? Really? Now this was at the time when I was starting to fit my Marcie better from weight gain and although it was the same size, it was a smaller cup depth (9.4 vs 9.8), and I worried about it not fitting. I wavered back and forth on it but decided to go for it, with the hopes that maybe I could at least wear it for low tide...but I was still super concerned with it likely not fitting in high tide. I knew that I had to at least try it, and if it was not going to fit, I would not be out a lot of money. And thus, my first package from Norway was sent.

    Fun fact: my aunt sent me my grandma’s cameo brooch on November 5th from Texas, and this was sent out from Norway a week later on the 12th, yet I received both the same day. 🤔

    I was super happy to see it. Not only did it have a super adorable small glass jar of Formosa Dong Ting oolong tea, a favourite of hers, but the bubble gum ice cream blue and cotton candy pink brightened my day as it was cold, grey, and rainy, and the bra was like a ray of sunshine. You can see the little jar of tea in one of the pics. It smells so amazing, and I am going to have some soon...

    Now we can get to the proper review...

    My shape tends to be narrowish and tallish roots, though they are vertically shallow or deflated and therefore are functionally short. My tissue is soft and malleable, pendulous, center full and close set, and even to fob vertical fullness. I’m still learning about my shape and suspect that it’s slightly changed from the beginning of the year.

    The shape of this bra is amazing. So round! The band feels great on the loosest hooks*, and the cup height is great on my shorter roots. I spill a little at the center, but that’s pretty consistent with my bras in general right now. The material is soft and light and although I would prefer the parrot print, this one is super fun. I don’t even mind that it is a little bit cutesy and girly. Straps are thin and comfortable, as is the gore, which I was also nervous about after my experience with Marcie, and the wires are just at the edge of too wide. I can do narrower with my soft tissue, but this is as best I can tolerate.

    With all the excitement of this getting this bra, I definitely have a few quibbles with the fit. The first is cup depth. I was worried about it when I got it, and I was right to be. I’m getting a little bit of cutting in at the top on my larger breast, and to a lesser extent on my smaller side. Loosening the straps seems to have helped a bit, but I still have minor quad boobs and some in cup quadding. It’s not *too* bad, but it’s not perfect. I’m also getting wrinkles near the the gore. I’m guessing not enough depth at the gore. On one side I have wrinkles in the fabric from where it attaches to the straps. It’s definitely not a problem from the band being too loose;not enough wire tension, as I have the same thing if I use the tightest hooks. I’m guessing it’s expecting more tissue to fill it out than I have there, given the center fullness. I have been wearing the bra today for the first time, but *while I was totally comfortable with the band on the loosest hooks, I could feel the bra wanting to slide down my rib cage out of my IMF. I could feel the gap between wire and boob. I moved the hooks in one to the middle and I think that was ok. I think that the bra in general is designed for projected breasts, but that maybe it’s a size issue more than shape that’s making it artificially too shallow for me. That maybe it’s because my boobs are fighting for space at the apex and pushing it down the same way it does in my 65F SM Wrozka. Given the minor quadding, center gore wrinkles, and this, I wonder if the 30FF were to be a better fit (were I ever to come across more mythical unicorns).

    I also wonder if this means that the 28G/30FF Lucy/Kali would fit based on this one. The 28FF/30F depth is about the same as this, and it is more closed in on top.

    Anyway, I very much like the bra, but being honest, it’s got a few flaws with the fit. I’m sure that it’s going to be ok for now, as long as I don’t grow anymore or try to wear it in high tide. But for now, it’s minor fit issues and nothing is major. If I lose weight, it’s probably going to work better.

    I’d love to have some feedback on this.

    Thanks lovelies!

    If you read this whole thing, comment with “cotton candy pink” 😂

    Read more
    2992 more words

    Updated on Nov 28, 2018 Flag this


    • Show all comments (58)
    • 3

      The combination of cotton candy pink and blue raspberry is fun! I see what you mean,there are aspects of a good bra, but definitely some minor fit issues. As long as it's comfortable nothing to stop you from wearing it while you keep you eye out a different sized unicorn

    • 1

      Thanks veggiechic ! Do you think that I can size you in this if I can find one?

    • 1

      *size up

    • 2

      I think you could size up in the cup, with the little bit of quadding, and on the side it looks like you are being squeezed a little too. That being said, it is pretty on you, and gives a great shape under your shirt too.

    • 4

      Cotton Candy Pink :-D

      This was so much more than just a mere review, it was a window into your soul, allowing us to get to know you better. 22 years of marriage is very commendable by the way!

      It is a gorgeous bra, & I agree with veggiechic, you should size up in the cup.

    • 3

      The dreaded side boob! That looks uncomfortable. I do think you should size up on this one. I enjoyed reading the whole thing, cotton candy pink 🍭😀

    • 1

      Entertaining read... too bad the bra is a touch small, but it still looks good on you. It does look like your smaller side fits better, but you are getting some bubbling and side boob that is more noticeable on your larger side. Like others said... watch out for that 30FF if it ever magically shows up somewhere.

    • 7

      Easy cup fit test for super-petite ladies: take hold of both straps up at the shoulderline, keep them as tense as they are when you wear the bra, and gently move them outward to the point where they'd sit if you had [much] broader shoulders. In your case it may be in mid-air, but that's ok--you just need the straps to be at normalish tension and to sit nice and vertical so they are not angling inwards anymore.

      Now, with the straps vertical, observe the cups: are your boobs (a) busting out of the cups, or (b) fitting perfectly?

      If (a) this means the bra is just too small in at least one dimension and sizing up has a chance of working. The only reason it looked like it kinda sorta fit in the current size is because angling in the straps also angles the cups in towards one another, artificially making the cup edge fit more generously and minimizing spillage even if the cup is too small.

      If (b), unfortunately this means the size is pretty good but the wide-set straps are forcing you to angle them inwards to the point that the cup orientation is too distorted and the poor fit is caused by its inability to hold its shape.

    • 1

      I love a good story about finding your way out of poor-fitting bras. Totally relate about resisting your size - the first time I learned how to correctly measure myself and counted up inches to cup sizes, I got GG. I thought this was crazy and deliberately ordered a band size too big and an E cup. Tried to force myself I tom it for a week before even I knew I was being ridiculous! 🤣

    • Myself into it for a week*

      Sorry typos!

    • 2

      Hey all...I’ve read your comments but been really busy, so I’m going to try to respond back as soon as I can.

    • 1

      Hey all...I’ve read your comments but been really busy, so I’m going to try to respond back as soon as I can.

    • 3

      MamaPagan thanks so much! I mean, I could have just cut to the chase and skipped all the backstory, but this bra is an important part of my bra fitting journey, and I think that seeing the journey of how I got there was important. So what if this review is over 2500 words? Ha!

      Sovavosi its not uncomfortable, and I never thought I had side boob. Is there a picture that illustrates this?

      Wilderness1 I’m glad you enjoyed and hopefully it tells you what you need to know, as I know that you were curious about it.

      wendybien do you mean to test this while wearing the bra? I think that in my case, at least with the bra, it’s too small regardless of whether I have the straps angled in, because I routinely angle them for better strap fit and comfort. If angling them leads to more room in the cups and I’m still spilling, it is too small and won’t matter what they do not angled. Am I understanding this test right?

      Robras I think that because I hadn’t been hugely different, and my size has slowly crept up over the years, I had less size shock. I also learned a good bit about how sizes work and the myths of the D+ cups way back in the mid 2000s. I’d have people say that I couldn’t be a 32DD because they were DD and way huger. I’d basically say that I had the same volume as a 36C. But that my rib cage was smaller.

      Everyone, thanks for taking the time to read everything. I know that it’s long and not necessarily essential to have the whole story, but this just felt like the right bra to have a coming out story, so to speak. I’m definitely going to try to find a 30FF in Lily, but in the meantime, possibly try Kali in 30FF Andy Lucy in 28G as the band appears stretchier then Kali.

    • 1

      Also, my reread spotted some errors that I have to fix...sorry.

    • Calluna , to my eyes, the pictures where can see your armpit, and a good example is the one with the giraffe curtain in the background, are the ones where I am concerned about side containment. Not really sure if your full breast has been totally swooped in from the side, but it looks like the bra is a bit low to contain it on the side and it is trying to escape in that direction...

    • 1

      Calluna I can see your tissue bulging at the side wires, because it looks like it ran out of room in the front and is running to the side. I find this uncomfortable.

    • 3

      COTTON CANDY PINK!
      Had to all caps that since I love reading stuff like this. Bras are such an integral part of ourselves here that it’s really interesting to read these kinds of journeys, if that makes any sense.
      I don’t have anything fit-wise to add, but what size in the parrot print would you be after? If I ever see one that size, I’ll snag it up for you!

    • mandapandarawks The small photo makes it look like those are ice cream cones instead of birds. 😆

    • 3

      mandapandarawks I’d be after a 30FF.

    • 3

      Calluna Exactly! And believe me when I say that I know for a fact that several of us on here do love sharing in the journey just as much as the bras, as you are an important and valued member of our bra family. :-) I also agree this one is too small in the cup regardless of what you do. Sizing up is the only viable solution here for sure.

    • 2

      Cotton Candy Pink! and aah yes the struggles of small feet, I know them well (I'm a 4)

      Hmm..can't really say anything much different than what anyone else has said re: the fit..

      But I will say that the colourway of the bra is cute on you! ^_^ and the shape is good too

    • 1

      Thanks MamaPagan! I will definitely be on the lookout for a 30FF or even a 28G, given that the band is stretched out enough as I’m good with this one on the middle hooks on this one.

      I never really looked at the side as side boob as I thought it was just because my upper tissue is wider than the lower tissue...almost like soft conical, I think...and it’s a lower band/wing height so it shows more. But I guess it’s side boob and I juydidn’t realize it, as I don’t really have any pain or discomfort.

    • Frazzleberry is that US or UK size 4?

    • Calluna it's a US size 4 ....

    • 1

      Calluna If you haven't already, do an EBay search then save it with alerts to your phone. That way if any do show up on EBay, you'll get notified automatically. :-)

    • 1

      Yeah I have done some searches but maybe not in these sizes. Good idea.

    • 3

      I found a 28G Meg (similar to Lily) in the listings here, only the user has not logged in for 4 months, sooooo.....

      http://bra.pe/GCH5/

      I’m really glad that everyone has liked what I wrote. I worried that it was too long, too revealing, and not wanted. But I think it’s a relevant back story for this one in particular.

    • 1

      I would be leery of that listing. If you go to her profile front page feed, you see she listed it in Sept 2014 so not likely still available 4+ years later. ...... Last bra entered was 2015, so again not very active on BtB. :'/

      And the review backstory was appreciated. Not too long, not too much information. It was perfect. :-)

    • 1

      Yes, agreed on the listing.

    • 1

      Calluna yes, I meant to do it while wearing. The point of the test is to see if the strap-angling is DISGUISING a too-small cup and making it look like possibly an ok-sized cup. If that is the case, in a bigger cup size it is possible that the bra would look and feel good (even though you will still angle the straps). It is also possible that in the bigger size you would get gaping somewhere, but that is always a risk regardless.

    • 1

      * because angling the straps also distorts the cup and in some cases it distorts it just enough that it makes it appear too small when it's actually big enough. This is usually when the person has more side / outer fullness, since angling in the straps reduces the space available in the sides of the cup.

    • 3

      wendybien thanks for explaining the test. Now given that I angle all my straps based on the fact that I have narrow and sloped shoulders, can I assume that even if it’s artificially creating more space while angled, that it doesn’t really matter so long as it fits? I’m not angling them to make the cups fit, I’m angling them for better and more comfortable positioning and anchoring. I’m going to angle them regardless. Thanks!

    • 3

      Calluna ok I must be doing a super crappy job of expressing myself or something here...

      The fact it creates more volume--or more exactly, displaces the available space in the cup from the side to the inner (mostly upper) quadrant of the bra--is not inherently good or bad, it just is. If you need more space near the sternum and won't miss the space on the sides it's good; if you didn't it's not. Likewise it can pose a problem if it tilts the cups inward and distorts them to the point they lose support or acquire a weird shape. The vertical strap test is strictly to assess if sizing up or down will help!

      Example, I haven't tried the following bras at my current size but a few years ago, the Cleo Marcie was unwearable for me because my necessary strap angling caused the cups to lose stability and acquire a bizarre shape. So the 32FF gaped all over the place and was too big, the 32F was theoretically a good volume and did not gape but was unstable as described above. In contrast the Fantasie Elodie, which fits generously at the apex but not at the cup edge, superficially appeared to be an ok fit in 32F but after being annoyed by the droopy uncomfortable fit all day I realized it was a too-small cup masquerading as a juuuust-big-enough one due to the need to angle the straps for them to stay on. This was bad news for my pocketbook since I'd worn it but good news for the bra as it meant the 32FF solved the weird shape problem and the distortion caused by my strap angling simply eliminated extra space on the sides which I could not fill anyway as I have no tissue out there.

      To recap, I have composed an ode in blank verse, because it's better than doing work:
      MOST FULLER BUSTED PEOPLE HAVE TO ANGLE THE STRAPS ON AT LEAST SOME BRAS
      THIS IS FINE
      SOME PEOPLE MAY HAVE TO ANGLE IN THE STRAPS ON ALL BRAS
      AS LONG AS IT IS COMFORTABLE AND FITS THIS IS ALSO FINE
      IT'S MORE THAN FINE, IT'S GREAT
      COS STRAPS STAYING ON IS A PRETTY BIG PRIORITY
      UNLESS YOU LITERALLY HAVE A LITERAL ANGEL ON EACH SHOULDER STRETCHING OUT THEIR LITTLE ARMS TO HOLD UP YOUR STRAPS ALL DAY 2" OR MORE AWAY FROM YOUR BODY
      WHICH I GUESS IS POSSIBLE
      BUT NOT THAT COMMON REALLY
      SO ANGLING STRAPS IS A PRETTY SOLID SOLUTION IF THE STRAPS ARE TECHNICALLY TOO FAR APART FOR YOU AND ANGEL-ING STRAPS IS NOT AN OPTION
      ACTUALLY ANGLING MAY BE THE SUPERIOR CHOICE AS ANGELS COULD BALK AT HAVING TO MATCH THEIR HEAVENLY ATTIRE TO THE DAY'S CHOSEN BRA AND THEN WHERE WOULD YOU BE
      YOU WOULD EITHER HAVE TO CLASH WITH THEM OR STICK TO WHITE BRAS
      WHICH I THINK WOULD BE A SHAME
      SO ALL THINGS CONSIDERED I WOULD RECOMMEND ANGLING STRAPS AS THE PREFERRED WORKAROUND EVEN IF YOU HAVE ANGELS CHILLING ON ONE OR MORE OF YOUR SHOULDERS
      ALSO THEY WILL BE HAPPIER AND FILE FEWER WORKERS COMP CLAIMS
      Amen.

    • 1

      I’m more center full anyway, so less space to fill at the outside from angling the straps is a ok with me since I already lack tissue at the sides anyway. ;)

      In the case of this bra, angled straps or not, it’s just too small in the cup. I tried the test and I had zero change.

    • 2

    • 2

      Not sure if those are CAD but the store is based in Toronto. Can't beat a new bra for $25 tho!

    • 1

      wendybien There is no need to shout. Seriously, it is a review and Calluna knows her body better than you do. Using all caps will not force her to listen to your theories and honestly is quite rude. If you can't be respectful, please stop commenting on her review. Thank you.

      @Calluna Loves <3

    • 2

      Ooooh the price IS in CAD! so CAD 25 not bad at all

    • 1

      That is a great price brasaremean! Good find!!

    • 2

      I just got it for myself in 30G lol. I've been looking for the swan print EVERYWHERE. Hopefully I don't need a 30GG

    • 1

      Hope it works out for you brasaremean! :-)

    • 1

      Wow, great find! I personally prefer the parrot over the swans but it is a great price. I hope it is still available when I have funds again. I don’t have any money to spare for anything else but food and rent right now. We just had to fix a crack in the windshield that was getting worse with the heat being used now. It was almost too far gone. Thank goodness for the insurance paying a good chunk of it, but we still had to pay money that we don’t really have to spare right now. I can’t wait to see your swan print when you get it.

    • 1

      I like the swallow print too, but the contrast in this is amazing. I am having second thoughts about getting 30G lol

      30GG is also up, but I find for me cups are so deep (and wide) on Cleos and Panache in general I have to size down a cup usually.

    • 2

      Yeah, I love the swallow print. I’m a little bit concerned with the stretched measurements on the listing, so pending reply, I will ask for updated measurements. It’s a little bit too small for my comfort, but if it’s stretched since it was entered, it might work. I’m not sure if I would be able to use an extender with it and maintain a proper or decent fit in the cups. But we’ll see. As for the swans, I’m going to contact the site and see how much they have in the 30FF... I am guessing just the one. I’m going to see if they can hold it til after the strike backlog clears which hopefully will also give me time to save money again. I also have to see what the return is like given the price reduction, if any. I’m told that the prints vs solid colours fit different as well. So it’s possible that it might not fit still.

    • 2

      Ok, message sent to the website asking if they had more than one 30FF Swan print and whether they could hold it til after the Canada Post backlogs clear for me to buy as it would also allow me to save money again. They also have a 28G Lucy in red that I am interested in. Red would be great. It’s the new nude under whites and frankly, I have enough black bras and have little interest in a solid white one right now. Plus, the red is cheaper than the white one on Amazon anyway, but I gotta check specs on the red though in case I need a 30FF instead. But it looks like the band is stretchy on the Lucy.

    • 1

      I hope they reply with good news!! :-)

    • 1

      Me too, though I’m doubtful that they have more than one given the reduced size range available, and thru probably won’t hold it, but it’s not a well known site so maybe it will not sell right away. Still, never hurts to ask.

    • 5

      wendybien omg your poem about angels angling bra straps killed me. Literally dying of laughter over here. I did not know about your quirky side- I should have known you would be wordy quirky, being a translator and all.

    • 2

      So it looks like the 30FF prints, parrots and swan alike, run bigger than the aqua print I have here. So, brasaremean the 30G might be ok. I’m still interested in trying it but worry that it might be too big.

      http://dreamsandunderthings.com/2015/10/04/bra-review-cleo-lily-28ff-parrot-print/

    • 2

      I just searched the FB group and found the post I referenced. It was from December 23, 2017 and had 302 comments. It’s amazing how taboo bras and boobs can be in society...no one willingly wants to talk about them, but as soon as someone says they are this size and looking for help, everyone is open and revealing what their sizes are. Or giving tips to remeasure and teaching others the ways of the bras...and it becomes a community with putting our tits out there, so to speak. 😂

    • 1

      Too true Calluna! We are women, hear us roar! ;-)

    • 2

      Late to the party but cotton candy pink <3 This was a wonderful read, I can also connect a Cleo Lily to the journey of bra discovery!

    • 1

      Oh really corvidsandtea? How does it connect to your journey?

    • 3

      omg Calluna I just read further up into the thread and realized, months and months later, that some other user thought I was yelling at you and being disrespectful and contradictory when I used all caps for my stupid bra poem!!! I am just checking in to make sure you didn't think the same thing! I was just being silly. (Also if they had bothered to read the poem they would also have seen I was agreeing with what you had said you preferred to do, but I know some people jump to conclusions a little fast.) It just really, really upset me to think you may have also thought I was being mean :-( I guess it wasn't funny, but it definitely was neither disagreement nor yelling and certainly not disrespect. I very much respect you. I remember you had thought at the very beginning of that tangent we went on that I was disagreeing or criticizing in some way and I had explained and maybe even overexplained to be as clear as possible that I was not.

    • wendybien if you are going to mention me at least have the courtesy to tag me, haha. FYI all caps is yelling in written form, and is rude even if it wasn't your intention. You simply sounded crazy or on drugs honestly, but I think you know that which was why you removed yourself from the feed until you could come up with an acceptable reply, yes? Please play nice and let Calluna have her moment with corvidsandtea.

    • 1

      wendybien I for one loved your capslock bra poem <3 It was really funny and it was a clever fun word thing you did :D I think the user just misread the situation. Capslock is technically shouting, but you did it for clarity AND it was a poem. So it was a combination of things that maybe went over their head.

      Calluna Well, as it turns out, my first bra that fit was one of these elusive Cleo Lilys! That year had a lot of firsts for me, and I might just add that bra a new so I can re-review it as well as measure and such.

    • 3

      MamaPagan I'm going to mention you now, since we both spoke about you. I'm going to call you out directly and say I think you're being condescending to wendybien . Saying "Please play nice and let these two people have their moment" in a public comment section, where noone has intentionally done anything to stop or interrupt the conversation, is plain rude. I still don't like the comment you left on my bra adventure about bra shopping, but I wasn't interested in trying to explain to to you how I thought it was ignorant. You could have made one click and seen that I have enough reputation and bras to likely know what's good routine and what isn't.

      Saying you assume someone spent a month "coming up with a decent reply, yes?" is honestly plain petty, and downright condescending when you phrase it like that. Wendybien apologized for potentially coming off as rude. I understand if you're confused or misreading the situation, but there is not more you can do in these comments after her comment. If you don't think either of any of us are in the right, I suggest you take it up in a personal message instead of making Calluna's review so incredibly long.

    • 1

      corvidsandtea Okay....you are entitled to your opinion and we can agree to disagree. :-) Have a beautiful day!

    Entry closed


  3. 2
    like

    Didn't fit

    The Cleo Lily is an old classic and an old favorite, but this bra is a little tired now. It looks cute as ever and I wish I had this in Brand New condition with some matching briefs!

    The band sometimes rides up a bit and the gore doesn't tack, and I have some quadboob so I'd say the band is too big and the cups aren't big or deep enough.

    The aquamarine/pink colorway is really sweet and definitely a clear sign of that the Cleo line is marketed towards younger women. The classic Cleo bow in the middle is cute and the frills at the top of the cup and the straps are nice little details.

    Blue/pink colorway

    This bra is not owned any more

    Updated on Oct 11, 2018 Flag this


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  4. 1
    like

    Didn't fit

    I'm finding lately I'm a 28G or so in molded cups, and a 28FF in most unlined bras. Is it common to be a size down in unlineds? Works the same for the Freya unlined bra I tried vs their padded half cups or Decos. Anyways, I searched high and low for a 28FF swan print and couldn't find it anywhere, and since I wanted to try this bra so bad and was so in love with the swan print, I settled on a sister size and prayed the band would run tight.

    Well, it's not a tight band, but I've worn worse. It's on the ... middle set of hooks. I think the swan print is a love/hate thing - either it's your thing or it's not. I think it's quirky and cute and different.

    I really, really, really like this bra. Even though it's not perfect, I like it a million times better than the Lucy, because it's not mesh and not lace and doesn't itch! At all! That's huge for my sensitive skin. I like it enough I've worn it the last two days.

    There's wrinkling at the top in my smaller breast and minor quadding in my bigger breast when freshly scooped. I swear that's a problem in every single bra. My right boob would be swimming in a 28G or 30FF though. The quadding goes away as my boob "settles" - someone on ABTF mentioned it could be because I have soft tissue and it's easy to over-scoop tissue into a bra that isn't really breast tissue, and since my tissue is soft it settles down quickly. It made sense.

    This is the narrowest cup width I've tried to date, measuring 5.25. It's not uncomfortable, although I feel like maybe the wings and/or wire come up a bit short on my left & bigger side. I took my 5.5" wide Deco off a couple nights ago and took pictures of the wire indentation marks and they're spaced away from where I believe my root is, and also below my IMF, so I really think narrower and more projection is better for me, assuming I've correctly identified my actual root.

    When I raise my arm, there's a vertical wrinkle all up the side of the cup, I have no clue why. This is the first bra I've ever owned that brings my boobs to the center and into my frame. It's crazy! It feels like a very uplifted, rounded, centered shape, and it's good enough that I might hunt around for another one.

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    Swan print colorway

    This bra is not owned any more

    Updated on Jun 11, 2015 Flag this


    • 1

      From what I've heard it's pretty normal to be a size smaller in unlined styles. For some reason, unlined cups tend to fit a little deeper than foam cups.

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  5. 0
    like

    Didn't fit

    I think this bra (Cleo Lily (7351)) is a good, sturdy bra. My only complaint is that I've grown out of the band, and if I use a band extender, the cups get too big. It's a very good, comfortable bra for those boobs who are wide set and heavy on bottom. The straps were slightly uncomfortable for me and dug into my shoulders a bit, but I do have low set boobs. I think if the band was not so tight, this would definitely be my go to bra!

    Updated on Apr 19, 2017 Flag this


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  6. 0
    like

    Didn't fit

    I love the Cleo Lily. See my other reviews for more info. I searched high and low for this swan print in my size, but I'm shrinking, and by the time this international order came in, it was already too big. I wore it once, but the sternum stabbed me because I didn't fully fill out the cups. For whatever reason, it arrived to me "new" with the Cleo tag cut out, but the size tag intact. For reference, this "charcoal" color is like the "soft black" color in hosiery.

    This bra is not owned any more

    Updated on Jul 09, 2016 Flag this


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  7. 0
    like

    Didn't fit

    The Lily is my dream-fit bra. I sized up to a 32E in the aqua/pink colour way, since that was so tight in the band; this colour way appears to be looser in the band (and is pre-loved) so it's pretty much perfect on the loosest set of hooks straight away.

    Gives the most glorious rounded, front-and-centre shape, and even rounds out my smaller breast despite the large discrepancy in cup size between the two. Much as I never really warmed to Lily's colour ways, I'm devastated that this one has been discontinued. The only thing that could possibly make it more perfect for me is if the wires overlapped down the length of the gore; other than that I don't have a single quibble.

    Updated on Aug 06, 2015 Flag this


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  8. 0
    like

    Fits

    This bra has been a work horse. I've worn it probably every week for the last year and a bit and I've just moved it to the second set of hooks. I like the centered rounded shape and the print is cute. I wish cleo could put out something I could wear under light tees but at least this one works under darks. I get a bit of over spill the wrong time of the month but otherwise this fits well.

    Updated on May 23, 2015 Flag this


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  9. 0
    like

    Didn't fit

    Very good for even shapes. Something about this particular one makes in-cup quads way more obvious, but I do think my shape is changing or my girls are growing (hard to tell). I will always love the Lily. It has a slightly minimizing effect but one of the best "lifts"! Doesn't have enough immediate projection, though.

    Updated on May 17, 2015 Flag this

    1. Link to this bra
    2. Fit information
    3. Other bras that fit her
    Quality
    Excellent!
    Comfort
    Excellent!
    Bra appearance
    Excellent!

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  10. 0
    like

    Used to fit

    This was the second bra I tried in my true size journey.
    I'm not a big fan of the super bright blue and pink color scheme, but hey it was cheap on zulily so I thought I'd give it a go! This is probably one of the most comfortable bras I've tried yet. I find it very supportive and decent compatibility with my shape (FOB, close set, narrow, maybe short root?) if not a tad bit pointy profile from the side. Does give a very front and center appearance as with most cleos. It is kind of closed off on top which might be a problem for ... people with more upper fullness and/or taller root. I found the band to run on the smaller side of a 30.
    I think my only real complaints is the gore being a bit too wide and that I could probably benefit from going up a size to a 30FF or maybe even a 28G due to some slight quadding and escaping tissue on the sides. I figure a size up would give longer wires to prevent that from happening.

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    This bra is not owned any more

    Updated on Apr 17, 2015 Flag this


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