It’s coming up to summer now in Sydney, with some lovely hot
days interspersed with ugly winter weather, and then bush-fires in the
mountains, and then the heat, and then storms and rain. Typical. I have an
aversion to clothing that I would not be able to run away from a murderer in,
and my wireless bikini and one-piece, however pretty, fall into the
I-wouldn’t-be-able-to-flee-in-this-without-clutching-my-heaving-bosom category.
I needed a wired bikini, and so I ordered the Cleo by Panache Lucille from the
UK (http://www.panache-lingerie.com/us/cleo-swimwear/collection/21541953/Bandeau-bikini-top/), because buying a 28FF in a store locally (and trying it on first) would have been
waaaay to expensive, and it is impossible to fit into a commercial wired bikini
top.
Aesthetic wise, the bikini is young and kitsch. I would have
preferred something a little more sophisticated, or boho, or pretty, but the
Lucille was within my price range (actually, it was on sale), cute and
inoffensive. The colours are clear and bright, and the nautical theme works,
given that its swimwear. I am not a fan of the heart in the middle of the
bikini, and may snap it off.
Gratuitous beach selfie
The bottoms are flattering, coming up high-ish, without
being high waisted. They give no camel-toe, do not bunch in my butt-crack,
gape, expose my butt-cheeks, or do anything undesirable, and I would say they
run pretty true to size (I got a size 8).
Now for the bikini top. I ordered a 28FF, given that my size
seems to have settled on the FF rather than the F side of the fence. When I
took it out of the packet, it struck me that there was a lot of cup. Like, a
LOT. The cups begin almost at the band. Also contributing to this impression is
the smallness of the band. It was only 22 inches unstretched, 28 inches
stretched, making it quite true to size, which is good.
Surprisingly, when on,
the cups almost seemed too small. They were quite shallow, and though the wire
sat fine on me, my high-set and full on top breasts spilled out a little, or at
least, I got cleavage that looked a little funny from the side, sort of
flattened and pushed up. I would not be able to go up a cup size, as the wires
would have been too wide, and also have way too much coverage. When I lay down
however, my boobs fall out the top, leaving the bottom of the cup a little
empty. I would say that the Lucille might work for lower set/fuller on bottom
boobs.
Sorry about the side-ways-ness
Under a t-shirt
That pushed up, flattened shape
From my bigger side.
And my smaller
Support-wise, the Lucille is much better than any of my
non-wired bikinis, I can walk and swim and cavort about without anxiously
hoicking it up and worrying about nip-slips. I can’t run in without the top,
exposed parts of my breasts jiggling, but whatever, it’s a bikini, not a sports
bra.
Overall, I am happy with the bikini, and can’t wait to see
what Cleo Swim comes out with next!
Xoxo
