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Thursday, June 30, 2016

Ewa Michalak S Jeżynka 65FF

When the M Jeżynka popped up on Ewa Michalak's website, I knew I wanted to try it. Problem is is that the M style is designed for smaller busts and does not come in my size. A quick email to Ewa later I found out that I could order it in an S style and since I was already in contact with Ewa I decided to buy it through here to see what the special ordering process was (I usually buy through Jaimie at Bra Obsessed). It was easy enough: I told Kaska (Ewa's customer service maybe?) what I wanted and what sizes and they set up a special order for me and paypaled me an invoice. It is rather easy. It arrived today and while it is close enough to its pictures, it's different enough for me to not be as in love with it as I was the original M Jeżynka. It does have its pros and cons as I will detail. If you order a different style or a special size, it costs 40 pln extra. It also means you can't return them, which is a bummer in my case because I probably would. This is my first Ewa experience that I've felt this way: bummed out in how it turned out and hoping I could do a return. The quality is also not what I've come to expect from Ewa.

Stock photo

The bra as pictured on the website has gorgeous bright pink cups with lace trim. Note how on the
cups there is almost no lace except for a peek at the bottom-it's almost all solid pink. I'm just speculating here, but I believe the lace repeats too close together for an all pink cup to be possible in a larger size/this style and so the lace that edges the cup is also on the cups themselves-on the seams. It is beautifully well crafted, however-whoever made it has painstakingly lined the lace up so that it repeats and has carefully mirror imaged it and I am thankful for that. The straps too are the same as on the M style which is what I was afraid of. They are thin and stretchy and so awful. They are my least favourite type of strap and I have them adjusted all the away. The band is also slightly big and it stretches to 30.5 inches. The cups however are the narrowest 65FF S style wires I've seen yet at a width of only 5.375 inches. The attention to detail in this bra is very nice and there were some unexpected elements that I appreciate. I also found a real camera to use but these pictures were taken with my laptop because I wanted to catch the last of the sunlight and didn't have time to figure out how to take photos of myself with the camera. Here's how the S Jezynka turned out for me. Be warned, there are plenty of pictures. I might have gotten carried away with the novelty of an actual camera.



With pads. I tried it on this way first because it comes with the pads in and I didn't realize that I would have to tighten the straps allllll the way. You can see here that my cups have lacy pattern on them rather then bright pink which does disappoint me a little but it is growing on me. I know I said this but I really really appreciate all the care that went into the pattern matching of the lace. It's almost flawless-you can see on the angle that there is almost no break in it and it is mirrored on both cups.




The colour was so hard to catch. I love how narrow the wires are in this style. The straps look closer set then normal but because of the style of them they don't feel it. It's hard to put them on or adjust them without them flipping or twisting. They are extremely stretchy and I had to adjust them all the way for the cup to not gape. I like all the little details in this like the purple clasps and the pink metal findings on the straps. I feel like the shape of this one is pointier then my Syrena. I compared the two  and everything is the same though. The bands are the same length so I suspect this fabric/lace is stretchy. It is however very soft. There's a double layer of the knitwear and the lace is only one layer.



Imagine my delight when I saw that the wire channels were purple! It's like my little secret. The cups are lined with foam that feels nice and light-weight and there are cookie pockets with cookies. 


So this is probably the best representation of the purples. Close up of the textured strap, bow and pink metal adjuster.



The lace was so hard to capture. The lighter stuff is pearly and not flat but I hope here you can see how beautifully the lace was matched. I know I keep harping on but that stuff is hard to do and I'm impressed!




Here is the thong modeled by my lovely assistant Nigel the sloth. It is entirely sheer except for a panel at the front. It has 3 bows. Even though it is made of stretchy lace I feel that it runs true to size and I love it. I love the fact that it's almost all lace and the lace is soft and stretchy I can tell it'll be super comfy to wear.



 So besides the unexpected lace placement and straps, the quality was also unexpected. Normally the quality is flawless but on the wings/back of the band there are several instances where the knit fabric wasn't cut neatly so it peaks over the purple strappy bit. On the thong (I hope my photo shows this) on the back there is elastic running up the thin bit. However, the elastic was not sewn equally so it sticks out far more on the side that is on the bottom then is on the top. I'm sure my boyfriend won't notice but I do and it's unexpected that one of Ewa's sewists let this slide.

This bra is growing on me and I appreciate all the work that went into it and especially that Ewa was willing to make it for me special. Jaimie at Bra Obsessed up in Canada can order this in the M style for 80 CAD or if you would like it a PL or S style she can order it for an extra 15 CAD (around what you would pay if you ordered straight from Ewa). If you want to order from the States if you're in said states, Zathiya does not have it on their site but you can always email and ask them to order for it I do believe. The cost for the S style will be a little higher, but I'm not sure what Zathiya charges. And of course you can order straight from Ewa if you're comfortable doing so. Even though it said ready in 11 days, from ordering to shipping it took mine 22 days but shipping from Poland to the States was only six days! Six! Even though I said I wish I could return this in the first paragraph, I think writing this has helped me change my mind. Even though it's not quite what I have in mind, it is rather lovely and a worthy addition to my bradrobe.



EDIT:

Here are some photos of me wearing the thong since I don't think my fuzzy assistant did it justice:



The lace is really wide and comfortable. I think the decision to use almost all lace works very well with the flirty nature of the bra. It's my favourite style of Ewa's thongs because it is extremely comfortable and looks great.

According to Jaimie at Bra Obsessed, the sizes for custom styles are limited and I can understand why. I would not recommend this bra with these stinking straps to anyone who has very heavy or very large boobs (I hope that doesn't sound bad, I just can't think of a cup range. It might work for someone who's a 30G but not someone who's a 32G so that's what I mean). You know your bust best and what works for you. If you love skinny straps, go for it! If you don't, sadly this might not be the bra for you.

Tuesday, June 28, 2016

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.


Monday, June 27, 2016

Freya Piper Longline 28FF

Taking a departure from Polish goodies, today I'll be taking about this lovely padded longline option from Freya that I got in a trade for a Comexim that sadly did not fit. It is a 2 seamed half-cup so the shape is very uplifting and round. My normal Freya size is a 30F so this is a sister size down. I thought it would work since Freya bands tend to run big (and this one does) but it sadly did not work out in my favour this time. This is a rather pretty bra. The flowers are small and kind of abstract and really pop against the blue. The bows have little polka dots on them and there is a lace trim at the top and the bottom.

As mentioned, this bra gives a really great shape due to being a half-cup. It's basically two basketballs stuck to my chest. The wires are relatively narrow which is nice however the gore runs wide. The band runs a size large, stretching to 29.5 inches. However, I was unaware of how constricting a longline would be so even though this is my normal ideal stretched length in a longline it is too constricting. I would stick to a 30F next time if it ran larger like Freya normally does or maybe even a 32E if the style ran true to size. The pattern continues all the way around to the back which is nice to see. There are 3 rows of 6 hooks and eyes and they are pretty tricky to do up the first time. Someone on Bratabase told me the trick of doing it up at your waist and shimmying it up and it's so much easier that way. The straps are not connect in a leotard/u way in the back and I think it looks awkward. I much prefer the looks of a u-back. They are also wide-set, wide, and long.


All looks good from the front. The cups are kinda tall on me and it's more of a wider look then a boobs pushed straight to the front. You can see that the straps rest right on the edge of my shoulder blades and if you look closely you can see that I do not fill the cup at the bottom. I like the length of the longline and I do wish it had fit me.


Wires are pretty narrow but not narrow enough for me. However, most bras aren't so that is a "me" problem and not the bra's problem. 


Beautiful shape. You can see wrinkles in the band which I think means it's too tight for me. It wasn't at first, but when I tried to do anything in it it was sooo constricting. 


How disappointing is this back view? Those straps are so ugly, wide, and plain. No u/leotard back makes it look so industrial and not very delicate at all.


Besides the tight band, the cups were a smidge too small and I quadded. I don't think the next size up would have fit without gapping.



The wires were too wide by maybe half an inch. I also did not fill out the bottom of the cups and there was some wrinkling. This was something I could live with if the band wasn't trying to kill me.

Sadly, this was not the bra for me. I love almost everything, but the fit and that ugly back were killing it for me. If you're thinking about buying a longline, I'd size up one band size at least for your best fit. Freya has some pretty solid options on the market and anything Comexim makes can be turned into a longline (I believe-don't quote me on that). I have heard the Comexim's longlines' wires tend to float at the bottom and not tack but this was not an issue I experienced with this bra. If I get a chance, I'd totally try another Freya longline halfcup in either a 30F or a 32E. I have listed this bra in the hopes of passing it on to someone who can wear and appreciate it.



Wednesday, June 22, 2016

Ewa Michalak SM Cukiereczek 65FF

Like the lovely SM Summer Time (review is coming up-I started writing one but it disappeared because I am technologically impaired), I've wanted the SM Cukiereczek since I saw it. It's sheer, it's got giant bows and beautiful pink flower embroider. What's not to love? I am a member of the Facebook group "Clothes for Boobs Buy/Sell/Chat/Share Page" and I saw a member had posted a picture of an HM Cukiereczek back in December or so of 2015. It was new with tags and I knew it was a long shot but I asked if it was still available. It was(!) so I went ahead and contacted the seller to purchase it. To make a long story short, unfortunately the seller could not find this new with tags HM Cukiereczek but she had a practically brand new Cukiereczek in the SM style and would I like that instead? I agreed because any Cukiereczek is better then none. I am glad I was able to get the SM instead of the HM style (although I would like to try it) because after reading reviews on other HMs and this version I saw that the gores tended to be higher than usually works for me. I would have been wicked bummed if this bra didn't fit me but luckily it does! It's a perfect fit and in near perfect quality, besides some loose threads, some pen marks, and a couple pulled hooks that took a few minutes to fix.

I love the SM style so much you guys. The SM is the unlined version of the padded S style which is a balconette. This one is slightly different then the SM Summer Time I own in very important to me ways. Mainly the straps: on my SM Summer Time, the straps are awful and stretchy and thin. They bite me because of how thin they are, but because they're so stretchy I have to adjust them all the way short and even then they're almost too short. On the Cukiereczek, the straps are nice and wide. They have little frills on the edges so they don't slip. The adjusters are metal and a little lighter than the tan of the straps. The band is really slim where it hooks and I wish it was just a tad wider. The material for the band is really satiny and sooo lovely. It is similar in feel to that of my CHP Summer Time band. There is a double layer of fabric on the wings and gore. The wires are the perfect width for me. They feel too narrow when I put my breasts into the cups as I'm putting it on but when I fasten the band they stretch to fit my roots perfectly. The wires are short and overlap at the gore making it very narrow. It is also rather low. The construction of the cups is absolutely brilliant: it is seamed, but the seam work is done on the inside so it gives a very smooth impression under clothes. I hear that the Wanilla is done the same way and I hope to confirm it any day now! The colours in these photos are pretty true to life. I was able to catch the last of the daylight.


I swear the bra does not make me look lopsided. It's just the photo, but I can't find what happened to the others and the light is gone. I get very subtle cleavage in this. I don't mind this at all and it's perfect for tank tops or other lower cut tops hat get a lot of wear in the summer months. The bows end up really high on my shoulders with how high I have to shorten the straps. I wish they were smaller although they don't appear to show under clothes. I forgot to mention this on my CHP Summer Time review but Ewa's team does an incredible job with pattern matching. On both bras the embroidery is perfectly mirror image to the other side.



I love the shape the SMs give. Uplifted, almost round but with a lovely perky apex. It is maybe a smidge flattening to my upper tissue on my larger side but it's not too noticeable. Do not let those bulges alarm you. I was cursed with prominent tails of spences (tails of spence? tail of spenci?) especially on my larger side. 



So nice I had to show it twice! You can see the slight flattening I mentioned in the bottom picture. The band is nice and wide but the wires and wings are low enough to stay out of my armpit. The straps are wideset as is my usual complaint but they don't really bother me.


The back is a boring tan. I wish there were some of the flowers or something but we can't have everything.


Here's a close-up of the clever strap placement (and embroidery). Instead of being attached directly to the top of the cup it's attached to a triangle piece instead. I am not 100% sure so don't quote me on this but I think that this is to help distribute the weight. It also provides a nice appearance in my opinion.


How it looks under a cheapo Walmart shirt. I want to say that that is an embroidered flower and not my nipple on the lighter side but I'm honestly not sure. I would assume flower since they are bright pink and the shirt is thin. The seams are relatively hidden but the embroidery is not.


Lovely shape again. Projected for sure. It's more of a front and center than out to the sides.


And a close up. Even though it's heavily embroidered I'm really happy with how much it hides. This shirt is pretty thin so I think I'd have even less of a problem in one of my regular shirts.

I really really love the SM style from Ewa Michalak. It's so sheer and perfect for summer. My next SM will be the Bra Obsessed exclusive Wanilla and I can't wait. This Cukiereczek is no longer available from Ewa Michalak's website but you might get lucky somewhere else. If you are looking to order directly, Ewa has plenty of SM styles available here.





Thursday, June 16, 2016

Ewa Michalak CHP Summer Time 65FF

I have always loved the SM Summer Time. It was the bra that got away. I never thought I would get a chance to own one and I never saw one second hand in my size (I did eventually get lucky, that review is coming up). A few months ago, Jaimie from Bra Obsessed sent out an email saying that Ewa had a small amount of fabric left and she could order some CHP style Summer Times if people wanted on. I unfortunately was jobless at the moment and couldn't afford it. The universe giveth, and the universe taketh away. However, sometimes the universe giveth again. Jaimie sent out another email a couple months later and said that there was style some fabric left, would anyone like an S style? I decided this was a sign and jumped on it. I originally ordered this in an S style, but at literally the last minute (Jaimie was just about to pack my order) I switched to a CHP that she luckily had in stock. I had tried a CHP only a few weeks earlier and I decided (at the time) I liked it better than the S style. Jaimie still has a few various Summer Times in stock: a PL, a CHP and an S here. I also ordered the thong but Jaimie mistakenly ordered/sent me a brief. Jaimie, being the absolutely amazing woman that she is, immediately rectified her mistake and ordered me a thong. I offered to send the brief back but Jaimie insisted I keep it. Bra Obsessed's customer service is second to none.

This bra is absolutely beautiful but there are some minor changes between the CHP (and S) styles: the bows are different and there is no checked fabric on the band of the later styles. The quality is pretty great. It doesn't feel as soft and luxurious as other models: the foam feels stiffer then the S Syrena, the lace is only attached at the seam and not the top, and the straps are kind of boring. I wish they had a scrunchy ribbon detail like the Syrena does. However, they are thicker then the SM Summer Time and flatter. They have loopy detail on the outside edges but no trim running down the middle They are fully adjustable and pretty comfortable. The band is so soft and luxurious though. It's super thick and satiny and I love how it feels. I've babble enough, on to pictures. I was really excited about this one so there's plenty.

Without the pads in. This shape is superb. It's very round, but more "hourglass from the front" then sucked in and pushed front.


Again, no pads. The bulges on top are my very noticeable trail of spence. Basketball boobs! A perfect fit. So lovely.


This band is nice and wide but still super low and out of my armpits. The straps aren't too widely set and don't really bug me.



With the pads in. Incredible cleavage but with some quadding.


Again, pads in. Shows minor quadding. I find that this doesn't really show up under clothes.

The back. It's kind of plain and I wish it didn't get so narrow. 4 rows of two hooks. You can see the straps are kind of wide set which is my always my biggest complaint.




I never think my breasts are big until I see them in pictures. Because of the embroidery, this does not hide well under clothes but it's so pretty I don't care. The first picture shows the "hourglass from the front" best. They're definitely not free of my arms! The straps do show under tanks but that doesn't bother me too much. I don't think many people are shocked I'm wearing a bra. I really love this bra and I'm glad I was finally able to try it. It's one of my favourites with or without the pads and I really recommend snapping one up from Jaimie before it's really too late.