I've been gone a long time, and with that break I let go of two cup sizes and a fair amount of funds into home improvements (no Tim Allen included). Sup, ya'll. I'm back with not a lot of money and not a lot of worthwhile blogging material. But I do have this lil gem - and I've had a few months to marinate on it, so what's up.
I got this bralette a while ago, maybe back in the dark days of winter, maybe in the spring. I had originally ordered the plain old Lucy, a tried and true Hopeless style that I'd been eyeing for ages, but Gaby offered me the Lucy2, which had not been released at the time. Racerback? Extra support? Yes please. Gaby was awesome and kept me informed, even accommodating a size change that came a month after I placed my order for this custom-sized baby.
I watched The Holiday today, and if anything from that trash-ass movie resonates for anything in life, you can't fit a square peg into a round hole. It feels like this bralette and I were just not meant to be. But before we go into that, let's dissect this gorgeous piece a little further. For sizing insight, I believe Hopeless combined an XS band and an XL top.
Solid elastic makes up a practical and sturdy band. It's perfectly snug, probably the best-fitting band I have on a bralette. The big-cup-lil-band folks will feel me on this; bralettes are often a dance of sliding out the top and bottom, a lot of bouncing, and a lot of adjusting. Lucy II stays in place perfectly, and has three hooks on the back to choose from. Tightest feels most secure for me, but for visual purposes I prefer the loosest. Like a good bra, both work for all intents and purposes.
The difference with the Lucy2 is the racerback, connected with a lovely little silver ring. The straps are made of a standard satin elastic, and every strap on the thing is adjustable with little silver sliders. Each strap connects to the body with a tinier silver ring that the beauty on the back. Adjustability, racerback, and a strong sensitve man band should be the makings of a dreamy full-bust bralette, right?
Before I even get into it, I don't want any mixups. This bralette is amazing - fantastic quality and gorgeous look that you expect from Hopeless. And when I'm standing still for an indefinite amount of time, it lives up to the hype. If I wear something compressive over this, like a strapless top or a close cropped cami, everything will (mostly) stay in place, and the detail of these swooping double straps gets to shine as it should. The tough thing is, fuller breasts move, fabric moves, and before you know it, your nipple ring is snagged on a fine edge of a cup and you're screaming for help.
It often feels like there's just too much fabric on the side. It goes clear into my armpit, leaves the girls hanging in the front. The top and bottom feel mismatched.
The only true, real criticism I have of the bralette is that the sliders don't stay in place. Everything else? It's a gorgeous piece, the mesh is dainty and soft as you'd expect, and the aesthetic rules. If you ain't got loosey-goosey sandbag titties like myself, I 110% recommend you scoop this puppy up.
For now, I'll leave you with this: I'm getting a new schedule, a raise, and and unfortunate lack of sunlight. Get ready for the traffic to pick up on this page.