Mini Reviews! Forever 21, Soma, and Victoria's Secret

At my closest mall, we have very little in the way of bras outside of Victoria's Secret (VS) and Soma. I love Forever 21's selection of cheap, adorable bralettes/bras but they don't really work for me (not that stops me from trying!). I, as usual, tried something on from Forever 21 even though I know it wouldn't fit-I'm definitely not a 32C! Outside of the Forever 21 '32C', I wasn't really planning on turning it into a bra trip. I thought I was going to write a quick post on Forever 21 and be done with it. However, my fuller-figure friend wanted to stop into Soma. While we were waiting for her to join us from her bathroom break, I discovered someone I knew was working there. I figured it didn't hurt, and asked her what the smallest band/biggest cup size they carried. I was told that it was a 32G US, which translates to a 32H UK! Doing that research makes me realize I definitely did the mental conversion wrong because I thought that the 32G US was smaller then the UK conversion size. That does explain why nothing fit in that size though. I tried on the most at Soma. Finally, we ended up at VS. We always end up at VS. My friend loves their underwear and fragrances and stuff and I like to wonder around. I only tried on one bra, but it was a hell of an experience. Excuse any funny faces/lighting: fitting room selfies are extremely awkward.

This is the 32C from Forever 21. I wish I could have tried it on in a 32D but this was the smallest band/biggest cup I could find. It's super cute but everything is wrong. The cups are made of a stretchy soft lace that is not very supportive. I loved the bold mesh lace and the color of the bra. 

Sad sad shape. I get no support. I think it was a triangle seam cup with a side sling for added support. Straps were stretchy, cups were stretchy, band was stretchy. No support.

The band was divided into two parts: a mesh half and then a trendy strappy bottom half. Note the side sling-I'm not entirely certain it did anything.

The gore was too wide and rested on tissue. I thought it was an interesting way to treat the gore.

So Forever 21 was a bust. So many cute things-nothing in my size! On to Soma. I hate to say that I was a really bad bra blogger and forgot to note what style these were. :/

So I first asked for the smallest band/biggest cup they had. I had my conversions mixed up and thought that the US size was larger then the UK size. Knowing that it is the opposite explains why these next two bras were so damn big on me. Interestingly enough, this one and the tan one are molded cups. They're very thin and flexible like fabric though but offer no seaming.

Both bras in 32G US were far too shallow at the root for me. They were also full coverage and all up in my armpit. No bueno. I asked for the next size down and my friend brought me...a 32DDD. I was too confused to ask how that worked. I was expected a 32F (because a 32DDD could be considered a 32E). Doing some research, Soma has 32Es listed from the retailers Freya and Fantasie. 32F isn't even an option. The next time their own brand pops up is in 32DDD. If anyone can make heads or tails of that let me know!

So here is this tan one 32DDD. The volume is pretty good on the larger boob. I'm not entirely certain how much of that extreme wrinkling on the other is due to size difference and what is due to my taking photos. Again, super full coverage-tall cups, tall gore, long wires, tall wings. 

Band is true to size.

I didn't dislike this bra at all. However, for 65 or whatever dollars, I better be pretty damn wowed and to be honest I thought this bra was butt ugly. That plus the less than perfect fit made it a no go.

So here is Soma's version of a pushup bra (also in 32DD). Very shallow and wide. I almost hate to admit this...but I bought this bra. I know. It does not fit. It is a Bad Fit with capital letters. Yet, it is comfortable and soft and I have some clothes that are so clingy that even my flattest Ewas don't hide under them. Also there was a sale if you bought two so you know. I did this so my friend could get the deal. Anyway: shallow, wide, no immediate depth. Medium wings, low gore.

Band is nice and firm for a 32. I'm estimating 30/31 off the top of my head. I get some quad when I wear this as well as deep wrinkling in the bottom of the cups. Since this is a bra for certain outfits mainly, this was not as big a concern as it would be in a bra I'd wear every day. I'll go into this more in depth with my review, but I think the quad is actually from a shape mismatch and not a size one. I plan on putting in narrower wires but I'll go into that in my review, as well as my very pleasant store experience. 

And finally, Victoria's Secret. I haven't bought a bra from them since I found a bra that fits. And even then I wasn't buying bras from there. This was by far the most unpleasant experience. There was a very very pushy saleswoman who was trying way too hard to make the sale. I saw a 3 part cup in store but it didn't come up to a 32DDD or I would have tried it on. I tried on a longline and it's a laughable fit.

This bra was just a mess. It was too small and shallow, the band shifted around, the gore was too wide and I had quad. And the straps weren't fully adjustable! There's nothing special about the front of the straps that would necessitate half adjustable straps. I was very disappointed with my overall experience at VS.

Overall, I'd reccomend Soma if you are in their size/price/shape range. The bras are super comfortable and they do have some cuter options. I did not get sized so I cannot judge that part of the experience. However, the store was very pleasant and everyone was super nice. They also wrap your packages up really nicely with tissue and don't fold them to put them in a bag. I hope to have my full review of my Soma t-shirt bra up within two weeks at the latest. Thanks for reading! I hope this helped.

Old Navy Bikini Top in Medium

My boyfriend took me out to the shops a week or so ago. I wandered into Old Navy just to see what shorts they had (negativo on the shorts) when I spotted this glorious rack of bikini tops! They looked seamed! And supportive and pretty! I grabbed a medium and full of false hope I tried it on. It did not work. It did not come even close to working. I do not know why I tried. I have given up, and have ordered the lovely Bra Obsessed Port bikini top by Comexim in a 65H (or 65HH? I don't remember-it was whatever Jaimie recommended) that should be coming in next week.

I did not purchase this swim top. I do not have measurements for you. I picked the one day to not carry my tape measure (I have no idea how I started this habit but it's been surprisingly useful). However I can say that it is wide and shallow. The band has 3 different 'tabs' I guess for the usual plastic bikini hooky thing but I would say that this would best be suited to 34 or 36 band best and for those that have wide shallow breasts that don't need too much support. The straps on this model are removable/multiway. I forgot to take pictures of that for you, sorry guys. The biggest disappointment is that the cups are not seamed. I completely understand why-it's quicker and cheaper-but I did get my hopes up. The quality is okay and if it fit I would have purchased it. When I saw it, it was priced around 30 dollars.

Looks deceptively good from the front. However, the gore is wide, resting on tissue and does not tack. I had no issues for once with the width of the strap placement. If you squint, you can almost see the fact that I did not fill the bottom of the cups. They were shallow and the overall cup is wide.

Again, almost looks like it fits! However, this is without the gore being pushed in place. When I pulled the band back tight, it was obvious that the cups were way too small. I got super quadding but I could not get a decent photo of that sadly. You can see the breast closest to the camera trying to sneak her way out.

And this is what happens when I pressed the gore flat. Quad city. Again, too wide and rests on tissue so it would have been a no go even if the gore voluntarily tacked.

Adjustable slots for the hook.

I can't figure out how to make this un upside down, but you can see the inside of the cup, the spots for the straps and the wire channel.

There was no tag information on this bra so I am unsure what it is called. For the price, the quality is okay. Again, I would reccomend it for a woman with a 34-36ish back with wide shallow breasts that are not close set and don't need too much support.