A Bittersweet Tale From Lady V London

It was love at first sight...BAM! On browsing Facebook a few weeks I was completely taken aback by the most beautiful sight. Rosetta was her name, she flaunted as many red roses as a sleazy Lothario on Valentine's Day. She flirtily enticed me to take a closer look and I was hooked.

Photo from Lady V London

Rosetta is of course this beautiful dress from Lady V London. Priced at £60 she's at the higher end of what I'd normally pay for a dress on account of me having so many I don't get enough use to justify the cost. Alas I was unable to resist. I knew she'd sell out quickly so I took the plunge. A few days later she arrived and I eagerly slipped her on...

I'd ordered my usual Lady V London size in the Rose Print Rosetta Swing Dress which is a UK 8. The size chart puts me at a 10 bust, 8 waist and 12 hips but I'd recommend working from your waist measurement if your figure is anything like mine. To ease the awkward 'which size do I order?' dilemma of the Rosetta Swing, you only need to take into account your bust and waist measurements since it's free at the hips. The Rosetta Swing Dress size chart below suggests a UK size 8 to be 33" bust and 27" hips. I'm currently sitting at 36" bust and 25.5" waist and the Rosetta fits fine, possibly because of the mock wrap bust line giving a bit more flexibility on size. The Rosetta Swing Dress sits a few inches below my knee. I'm 5'2" for reference. 

Rosetta Swing Size Chart from Lady V London

So let's take a look at Rosetta in full. Here I teamed her up with red accessories as I felt they worked best. My belt is from a random Chinese seller on eBay and my shoes are an old style from Debenhams. The clutch came from my local indoor market. I chose not to wear a petticoat as it doesn't necessarily need one, but you can add one if you like a more voluminous look. The neckline is definitely ideal for showcasing your cleavage and may not be suitable for those less inclined to flaunt 

Now as you may have gathered from the title of this post, this love story does not end well. It's visible on the middle photo above that one of the sleeves is slipping and that's with me posing in an attempt to prevent that happening. As I've discussed a number of times before, I often have issues with the fit of dresses and tops at the shoulders since I'm quite petite, causing straps to slip, gaping collars and a generally awkward fit. Rosetta, my love, this is where it all went wrong.

As you can see in the photo above, I'm not posing to make it look any worse, this is genuinely how much bigger than my shoulders the dress is. Sadly, the sleeves can't be altered easily as they are pleated and it would be quite a difficult job to do neatly so I'm told. This was the deal breaker for me. It's okay to have a bit of extra wiggle room in the waist, not quite enough in the bust, but the shoulders slipping, nope. 

I feel I need to throw in a disclaimer here that the dress itself is absolutely stunning and I would have kept it in a heartbeat,  but my petite shoulders let me down here, not the dress. If you're of a more standard build around the shoulder area then you'll more than likely find it will fit. Damn shoulders!

Rosetta is available from Lady V London for£60 in 7 different colours, sizes 8-20/22.

Photos from Lady V London

As an aside, if you love this dress but prefer a more streamlined silhouette, check out Loretta which has the same top half with a mock wrap tulip skirt.

Alas, I bid farewell to Rosetta. Please join me and my wardrobe in mourning this sad loss.

Tutti Rouge's feline fancies

When Tutti Rouge contacted me asking if I'd like to review their aptly named Kitty set for them I almost snapped their hand off as this set is truly stunning!

The luxurious satin/lace Kitty comes in a bright pink/magenta and mysterious Liberty blue. I initially wanted the Liberty blue but it was out of stock in my size so I opted for the pink/magenta, and once it arrived I didn't regret my decision one bit!

The Kitty bra is a half padded balconette with satin and lace top cup. As with all Tutti Rouge bras, the adjustable sliders are heart shaped and the brand name is embossed on the back. A new addition to those little details that put Tutti Rouge aside from other brands is the little tag reminding you to check your breasts! It's nice to see that a number of lingerie brands are now working with breast cancer charity Coppafeel, check them out here.

Disclaimer; As I always say, it may well be my boobs that don't work with whatever I'm reviewing rather than the bra itself being at fault. So please don't be put off by my minor gripes I'm about to describe!

So the fit: I really struggle with Tutti Rouge. I don't know what it is that makes my boobs not work with them but they just don't particularly well, and the Kitty (£32) is no exception. I'm a big fan of round, forward projection when it comes to my boobs, which isn't ever going to happen in a balcony bra on me. I feel Kitty gives me a bit of an east/west fit, and the pattern would benefit from a little more structure at the outer sides of the cups to encourage forward projection. My other mini moan is the straps. Please, Tutti, I beg you to make them FULLY adjustable! I have petite shoulders so I face a constant battle with dresses and bra straps so I need them to be adjustable.

On the plus side, it's not too bad a fit! I went for my 'usual' size of a 28GG so Kitty is very much true to size. The band is nice and snug, just how it should be. The straps, as I've said, are too long, and I will be shortening them to get a bit more support as I feel it's sitting like a strapless bra at the moment.

Again, it's those little details that win me over! That eyelash lace on the upper cups, the contrasting purple ribbon with offset pink rose, the little roses on the base of the straps, oh my!

I was also sent the Kitty Skirty Short (£16) in a medium which is perfect on my 40" hips. As  much as I love these I found the skirt part was difficult to get right, but I think on someone with a smaller backside it would sit properly! The front centre is finished off with a purple bow with offset pink rose like on the bra and a two roses on the back. The back is full coverage mesh, and as always, no photos of my sheerly covered rear end!

The Kitty Brazilian (£15) I was sent worked much better on me. Again in a medium, and again with the same details. I much prefer this style. I love how the lace back hugs by butt cheeks! These are some seriously pretty pants!

So, You're probably wondering how the set looks on me. Here goes, unedited and gratuitous as always!

Kitty bra and Brazilian

Kitty bra and Skirty Short

Kitty bra and Skirty Short

Kitty bra and Skirty Short

Kitty bra and Brazilian

The Kitty set also features an awesome suspender belt(17.50) which hasn't yet been released, so if you love the set, keep an eye out for it in the future.

The Kitty bra is available in sizes 28-38 D-HH and the Brazilian and Skirty Shorts in sizes XS-XXL.

All in all I love this set. It's up there in my top 5 most beautiful sets I own for sure! Tutti Rouge are certainly one of, if not THE most aesthetically pleasing lingerie brands catering for bigger cups. Who are your favourite brands for looking great?

*please don't steal my photos without my permission (unless you're Tutti Rouge!). I don't watermark them because I don't want pervs coming to my blog to steal my pics for misuse*

Bitter Lollipop tastes good to me!

Over the past few years more and more brands are popping up here and there to cater for the more busty amongst us, and in this post I'm going to introduce the latest off the cutting table; Bitter Lollipop, whom I also have the pleasure of reviewing a dress for!

Bitter lollipop specifically caters for sizes 8-14 in the two options of 'Busty' and 'Buxom'. Here's their size chart.

Bitter Lollipop was launched in September 2014 as a result of founder Kelly's passion for fashion and struggle to find dresses to fit her frame. The name Bitter Lollipop is a combination of her bitter feelings of the difficulties in dressing her own lollipop-shaped figure, in case you were wondering! 

Kelly is Chicago born and bred and moved to the UK a few years ago for her Masters degree, settling to set up Bitter Lollipop in Nottingham. Much like Made In Preston, Bitter Lollipop pieces are hand made here in the UK, promoting local industry and boosting the national economy. Kelly's designs are influenced by British culture as well as her American heritage , which are most apparent in her fabric choices. 

I was contacted by Kelly a while ago and to be honest, this was the first time I'd heard of Bitter Lollipop. Kelly asked if I'd like to review a dress from her launching collection, to which of course I jumped at the chance. I'd initially fallen in love with the fabric from the geometric print dress but I didn't think the shape would work for me as I prefer a more tailored fit, which is always difficult with my 36-25.5-40 figure, so I instead opted for the safer option hip-wise of the Olivia in the size 8 Busty.

The Olivia dress, prices at £79 is made in what I'd describe as an 'abstract floral' patterned fabric which I initially thought would be pretty for a garden party or a summer wedding, but now I have the dress in hand I can see it's quite versatile and could be worn casually and in the colder months too if you happen to be the kind of person who matches colours worn to the seasons.

Olivia close-up

My first impressions of the dress; impressed! The dress is made from quite a heavy combination of patterned stretch cotton mix and (I admit I was totally bowled over by this) a STRETCHY lining! In all my years I've often wondered why dresses are made in a stretch fabric only to have that cancelled out by having a non-stretch lining. Really, what's the point in that? The quality of the workmanship is excellent. The zip is nicely hidden at the back, the stitching is neat and tidy and a lot of thought has been given to drafting the pattern itself. 

The Olivia fits beautifully on my 25.5" waist and 36" bust, apart from a little gaping under the arms. As you can see from the side view below, my bra is slightly visible. I feel the underarm area could benefit from an extra dart to conceal my bra a bit better but that might just be how it fits on me and may well fit better on someone else. 

Of course, the dress does have it's downsides. You may have noticed I used the word 'heavy' to describe the fabric. Because of this I'd suggest the Olivia dress is more suitable for the colder months unless you're like me and gets goosebumps at the slightest of breeze! Also the weight of the fabric prevents the dress from flowing as you might expect. A twirly dress it's not. I'd suggest to remedy this, maybe the lining could be omitted from the skirt of the dress and just kept in the bodice perhaps? 

I admit I was concerned at how I was going to accessorise this dress, what with the fabric having a combination of pink, red, coral, black and a touch of pale blue too. I first thought the pattern was better suited to a summery outfit, but having tried it with both red accessories and black accessories, I'd suggest it suits the autumnal months equally. I'll go ahead and post a few different looks now to show the versatility. The black flamingo cardigan was from a charity shop, red clutch bag from my local market and hair flowers from ebay. Let me know which look you like best!

I've heard a few gripes online about the cost of Bitter Lollipop and I just want to stand up for Kelly here. Kelly has worked hard to set up her own business, Bitter Lollipop. Creating patterns, sourcing fabric and making the dresses , both fitting samples and making dresses for orders. Her heart and soul has gone into this and this is her baby. I support her integrity, creativity and passion for her business and hope you feel the same way.

Olivia is made to order and available from Bitter Lollipop at £79 in sizes 8 Busty & Buxom to 16 Busty & Buxom.

Build me up, Buttercup! Made In Preston's lovely lace creation!

I was recently contacted by Nikki Hesford of UK booby fashion brand Made In Preston asking if I'd like to review one of their products.

Firstly, let's discuss the brand in question. Made in Preston was launched in June 2013 as a fashion house catering for larger cup sizes. "So what's new about that? We have BiuBiu, Saint Bustier, Pepperberry, Urkye and DDAtelier amongst others" I hear you cry! Well, let me tell you, none of those have real edgy catwalk fashion, which is why ex glamour model and young mum Nikki decided to pursue her dream of owning her very own label. The fact that Made in Preston takes inspiration from the catwalk really sets them aside from other bigger bust brands meaning younger women aren't tied down to squeezing themselves into dresses and tops that don't fit from high street stores, boring (but admittedly very useful) 'classics' and often styles that aren't age appropriate for the wearer. The other thing I love about Made In Preston is that, as their name suggests, everything they make is manufactured in Preston, and that can only be a good thing for the local and national economy.

Nikki from Made In Preston (photo from lep.co.uk)

Not only do Made In Preston produce clothes for the bigger bust, they also do a range of funky lingerie, of which I'm excited to be reviewing today! Nikki has designed the lingerie in order to stand out, and boy does it do its job! With neon patterned lace fabrics, and blah blah blaaaaahhhhh, you'll be sure to find something for your more adventurous side at Made In Preston!

 

More from Made In Preston

Within a few days my bra arrived, wrapped up lovingly in branded tissue paper with heart stickers to secure. I'm a sucker for nice packaging, it really feels like you're getting a gift and therefore makes it easier to justify the odd splurge on yourself.... Well that's what I tell myself anyway!

On opening the package, I found Nikki had very kindly sent me this awesome buttercup yellow unpadded bra (currently at £34, matching knickers £10) in a 28H. As you may know from my previous post on the Cleo Marcie Babydoll, my boyfriend is a HUGE fan of anything yellow, so he was pretty happy Nikki chose this for me! The shade of yellow leans slightly more towards neon/green tones than the Marcie, which I would call a true buttercup yellow.

I don't tend to wear unpadded bras for anything other than dossing around the house, so I was slightly apprehensive about trialling the bra. On fitting the bra I noticed the band is nice and snug, like a true 28" should be. I'm currently measuring 27" so this is perfect. In fact it's by far the best 28" band I own. I also notice that it gives a rounded shape, not dissimilar to my all time favourite, the Deco by Freya, only without the epic cleavage, which is a good thing if you like the rounded shape but don't fancy having a cleavage for whatever reason. I normally wear a 28GG Deco and this is a 28H so bear this in mind when ordering.

The bra has a black lining with a yellow lace overlay meaning that if, like me, lace makes you itch, the lining prevents this happening.

My only criticisms are that the band only has a row of two hooks where I'm used to having three, although admittedly this doesn't appear to have made much difference with regards to support, although it might with a larger band and cup size due to the weight of the bust. What I have noticed is that the band rides up a little, so I don't know whether that could be to do with it not being wide enough or if I need to use the tighter hooks. Also the straps are a touch too thin for my liking, again not what I'm used to in bras with larger cups.

Strap comparison with the Curvy Kate Ritzy (left)

Having worn the bra for a couple of days I'm happy to report that I'm very fond of it! Like I said, I'm not a fan of padded bras and avoid wearing them wherever possible but this wonderful yellow creation will be one I hope to get more use out of.

This style of bra also comes in Monochrome, Powder Pink and Black and can be purchased here.

Crop tops for busty gals? Can you, would you, dare you?

A few weeks ago Georgina of fullerfigurefullerbust tweeted that she'd tried on a crop top and since then I was curious about how they would look on me. As I was browsing in Primark one lunch hour, I saw a few I quite fancied and decided to give them a try just to see how they'd look.

I chose to team the crop tops up with a green jersey midi skirt, costing just £5. The skirt is available in red, blue, green and black. Primark didn't any have any in my usual skirt size 8 so the one in the photos is a size 10. I'm not overly keen with the midi length on me, but apparently it's THE length to wear so I guess I can live with it.

Unfortunately Primark don't have an online shop, although ASOS ave a small selection available. 

First up, a colourful Aztec print top in a size 6. Costing £6 (I think it was?) it's a cheap and easy way to work this seasons daring trend. The problem I had with this top is that besides making me look ALL boob, you could clearly see my bra straps.

                                         

You should all know by now that I'm a complete sucker for anything polka dot, so this black and white crop top immediately caught my eye. Costing £4, it's so tempting! Again, it makes me look very busty, but I kind of like how I look in this outfit and may well end up buying it. At just £9 fr both the top and skirt, I think I can justify it. My only issue is that the outfit might be a bit too young for me with me turning 32 in a month's time.

                                         

So, my curvy readers, what do you think? Would you dare to bare your midriff this summer for this latest fashion trend or is it all a bit too much for you? Would you avoid wearing fashions you know look good on you because you feel you're too old for them?