Lovehoney Plus Size Adore Me Bustier

March 20th, 2015

Lovehoney Adore Me Bustier
$49.99 from Lovehoney

You guys, I love black and red. Obviously. The color combination is great. Given that it’s the palette Lovehoney decided to go with for their new Adore Me line of lingerie, I instantly fell in love with almost every single piece. No lie.

So I left it pretty open when it came to choosing which piece to send me, and I got the Adore Me bustier. I opted for plus size because standard sizing has no XL. This might be a mistake on their part, but I think the design takes into consideration different body shapes and sizes by being stretchy and adjustable in multiple places.

This might be might first bustier. I generally choose babydolls that are more loose fitting around the midsection. So how did my first experience go?

I liked the feel of the Adore Me bustier as soon as I put it on. The microfiber bustier is super comfy. It slides right across your skin and isn’t much of a barrier between your body and your partner or even your own hands. You could probably sleep in it.

But like any bustier, it’s going to show any bulges or whatnot. If you’re worried about your tummy, you might look for something other than the G-string it comes with to prevent panty lines and bulges. As a whole, this is the more revealing piece when compared to the Adore Me Chemise, which is a little longer, features a straight laced hem all the way around and covers the breasts with a layer of microfiber. The chemise is still pretty form-fitting, even though it’s longer and covers your butt, so these pieces might not be up your alley if you’re working on body issues.

The chemise might offer a little bit more support to the chest. Although neither of these pieces of lingerie have underwire, the lace cups on the Adore Me bustier are definitely on the low end of support. My breasts needed a little adjusting to be ideal. Because I need more support from the side, this wasn’t perfect for me.

However, the straps are a thicker fabric, which should be good if you’re more well-endowed. You can adjust both the length of the shoulder straps as well as the two straps that cross in the cutout at the back. This enables you to choose how much skin you want to wear and even adjust the fit. Because the plus sizes cover a range 1x/2x or 3x/4x, this is important and a smart decision on Lovehoney’s design team’s part.

So how does sizing run on this piece? I am barely plus-sized and it was comfortable. There’s a lot  of stretch so you could definitely fit up to a a 2x, but it likely wouldn’t be as flattering. I took a couple measurements. These are flat measurements:

  • Empire waist: 17.5 inches
  • Center waist to bottom hem in front: 12.5″
  • Side waist to beginning of garter: 17″
  • Distance from bottom of cutout to lace hem edge along ruching: 7″
  • Minimum shoulder strap length: 5″
  • Max shoulder strap length: 9,5″
  • Min garter length: 2.5″
  • Max garter length:  5″
  • Length of cups in center: 9″

Obviously, 35 inches for the waist line isn’t super plus sized, but I was easily able to stretch it to 25 inches. It may not wear comfortable that way, but there’s a generous amount of give in the fabric. In the product photo, its stretched much more so that it will cover the taller-than-I-am model’s tummy and some of her pubic area.  I stand only 5’2″ and this is about how long it is on me, unstretched, with the bra straps about 1/2 longer than the minimum.

Aside from the cups, pretty much everything on the Adore Me Bustier is adjustable, and I think many people will find they’ve gotten their money’s worth with this piece.

lovehoney-adore-me-bustier-details

Adjustable straps, Lovehoney charm and twisted strap

The detailing doesn’t just stop with adjustability. I enjoy the lace details at the empire waist and along the back hem, which isn’t as drastic of a curve as the front. Beneath the open back, there’s vertical ruching in the center of your lower back/butt, which brings the lace hem upward. This allows your butt to peak out from beneath it, as you can see in product photos.

There’s a tiny Lovehoney charm between the breasts that I initially didn’t even notice, but I quite like it! In fact, the attention to detail really shows through. It’s not a groundbreaking design by any means, but the lace, ruching, ribbon and charm all make it feel very “complete.”

However, one thing I did notice was that one of the shoulder straps was sewn incorrectly, so that one side of the strap always twists and won’t lie flat. It’s not a deal breaker, but it is something I would notice.

Like any set that comes with a G-string, this one was much too large for me. If sizing is an issue, you could consider the Adore Me garter panties, which have removeable garters and come in both standard and plus sizes, for a better fit.

I might have liked the Adore Me Chemise a little better in hindsight, but I definitely enjoyed my first experience with a bustier overall. If the attention to detail and general quality — minus the one twisted strap — is any indicator, Lovehoney’s doing a good job with their lingerie!

1 Comment

Categories: Lingerie, Reviews

Kissable Leopard Babydoll and G-String

March 30th, 2012

Kissable Leopard Babydoll and G-String

Kissable Leopard Babydoll and G-String
$19.48 from Amazon

I am a at a weird in-between point with Coquette’s lingerie, it seems. OS stuff either just fits, but awkwardly, or doesn’t fit at all. And the plus size? Pretty much swamps me. This sucks because I really like the Kissable Leopard Babydoll and G-String, but it’s just a bit too large in the plus size.

Although this runs large with my 38″ bra band/ribs, it’s not a big deal toward the bottom. It’s just more flowy, and I don’t mind. My problem is with the cups, which seem to be too large and sit too low on my body. I’ve actually discovered that if I pull the straps together on my back, racerback style, it fits much better. I think I will find up getting one of those bra strap clips or cutting the straps to create a halter out of this instead.

That way I will be able to wear to sleep. As long as you remember that this piece is sheer and don’t answer the door in it, it’ll work well as a sleepwear piece. The lace detail on the bottom hem and around the cups seems to be sewn pretty well, as does the ribbon and bow around the waist. The ribbon is only sewn to the sides, not around the back, though. I always find that look to be a little odd. With this being a little too large on me, the cups fall to the side as I sleep and my boobs pop right out. Hello there, girls!

The straps extend to a maximum of 21″, with a minimum of 11″. The waist is about 17.5″ flat. It stretches to 25″ flat. From the top of the ribbon at the waist to the bottom of the hem, this piece is about 16″. With the 7″ cups, I really needed to adjust the straps to their shortest, so this hit me at the top of my thigh. Part of the reason I opted for the plus size was that it appeared longer. However, on my short frame, I have to wear it shorter to fit me up top. =/

And the G-string? Well it’s mostly elastic, with one long triangle of leopard-printed mesh and lace detail on top. Even though I can stretch the elastic way up over my hips, the fabric in front is much lower, barely covering my mons. It also has the weird Y-style in back, which I hate. I prefer my G-strings to be sewn as a T. No one expects a fantastic G-string in these sets, though.

Here are the pros, folks:

  • It’s super comfy in silky mesh
  • It’s cute and leopard-y, meow
  • It’s easy to wear
  • It’s flattering on a variety of shapes
  • It’s priced pretty well. PinkCherry is selling it for less than $30.
  • It will fit the larger ladies well
  • It seems to be sewn well enough

But there are some cons too:

  • The adjustable straps are un-stretchy ribbon, so the adjusters seem to move on me
  • I’ve noticed the ribbons have started fraying, too.
  • And one of my straps is sewn so that the ribbons are twisted and can’t be fixed
  • There’s not a lot of breast support
  • The thong is going to fit even fewer folks, I’d imagine
  • Although it has no breast support, I feel like the cups are designed to fit D-breasts on up

If you’re sure about your size when it comes to Coquette, go ahead and order this piece. I love the way it feels on my skin and will definitely be trying to fix it up so that it fits me better.

1 Comment

Categories: Lingerie, Reviews

Deep V-Neck Polka Dot Baby Doll

October 1st, 2011

Deep V neck polka-dot baby doll

Deep V neck polka-dot baby doll

The most recent addition to my lingerie collection is the Deep V-Neck Polka Dot Baby Doll by Elegant Moments, a manufacturer whose designs have really attracted my attention. They strike me as super cute and feminine, as opposed to just barely there. It’s a baby pink, with poolk dots, babydoll that flows and has a medium pink ribbon that ties in a bow and falls delicately down the front. The epitome of femininity.

I do suspect that the images have been photoshopped. You do get an idea how sheer it is because you can see the model’s nipples through it but the pink is so light that the polka dots don’t contrast as much as the publicity photos. This isn’t bad.. it just is.

The piece is made of a super-stretchy and light polyester. It feels cool against the skin. The hem along the bottom edge and sleeves is done so it’s a little ripply, not straight. The ribbon is satin and all the edges are finished and the bow is sewn in permanently. It’s only attached from one side in the front to the other; it doesn’t extend across the back. However, the way it’s sewn makes the empire waist the tightest part of the babydoll.

All the stitching seemed secure until I tried this one, for the second time, and I realized the ribbon was doing that fraying thing away from where it was sewn on both sides. Because it’s sewn along the top and bottom edges, too, it will stay on but it’ll bug me forever

Fraying ribbonFortunately, or unfortunately, for me, I’ve been losing weight. The result is the XL that I ordered is actually too large for me me. The babydoll is designed so that the V-neck will sit at the widest parts of the shoulders, revealing most cleavage, than closer to the neck. The cut of the neck is quite low and dips well below where the bottom of my bra would sit, especially because my shoulders are not broad enough. It seems to me that the XL is intended for someone with at least DDs but then it’s so stretchy that it really offers no support.

This babydoll is designed with long, ruffly cap sleeves and I guess I could do without quite so much material. It doesn’t look bad on the model but, on me, I felt as though the sleeves were ginormous. It could just be because I need a smaller size but then I worry that the waist would be too tight on me because that was the snuggest part of the outfit… but the model for the plus-sized version doesn’t look all the appealing in it either, to be honest. It definitely seems like there’s far too much fabric for even her well-endowed top side.

Included thongOn the other hand, I do like the thong even though it’s got an interesting aspect. The front consists of the same fabric as the babydoll with a darker pink trim. There’s contrasting stitching that’s pretty adorable. The strange thing is that the back of the thong actually loops around the waistband and is movable from side to side, along the waistband. Also, the tag is sewn to the back piece which is just plain odd. Usually, with thongs, it’s sewn to the front panel. You’ll definitely have to cut it off. Still, it’s cute.

Ultimately, the sizing issue still would have resulted in an okay review from me because I do like the feminine design, the ribbon and the cool, silky feel of the material. But it’s obvious that the quality is lacking and the manufacturer just didn’t know how to make this fit a variety of body shapes and sizes. Even if I loved it, there’s no way I’d pay MSRP for it and this makes me hesitate buying from this manufacturer again.

Comment

Categories: Lingerie, Reviews

Image © MisterUnlucky; used with permission.