Saturday Spotlight: For Every Season

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Hello Ladies,

For this week’s Saturday Spotlight, I want to plug another local business ran by a friend of mine called For Every Season, which is a specialty gift shop located in the Holly Hill Mall!

For Every Season offers shoppers unique products many of which are locally made or produced, including jams, jellies, preserves, and cider from Cane Mountain Farms (the Southern Moonshine is a stand-out!), Moravian sugar cookies, pendant necklaces, and so much more.  This is the perfect shop if you’re searching for an interesting gift with some local flair, and the owner is always on the lookout for great new items to bring into the store.  Plus, there’s a huge adorable bear out front, and you can’t beat that, right?

Erica

Weight Loss Week Part IV: Building Self-Esteem

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Hello Ladies,

When I discussed my weight loss journey yesterday, I focused on the dietary and lifestyle changes I implemented, so to conclude this blog series, I want discuss how I improved my self-esteem and body confidence along the way.  One of the ways I stopped bruising my already battered ego was by refusing to wear any more ugly sweats or baggy tee shirts.  I  know, I know!  How many times have we made the excuse “I’m not going to buy any new clothes until I lose weight?” Regardless of whether the blame rests with old-fashioned frugality or the failure to accept our current bodies, most of us have purposefully worn clothing that wasn’t flattering, didn’t fit, or was showing signs of wear because we didn’t want to shell out the cash for something new in a size we hoped would only be temporary. However, what we don’t realize when we relegate ourselves to these old, unflattering clothes is that we are damaging our already fragile self-esteem. It’s not enough to be unhappy with our bodies, but now we’re going to wear awful clothes too?

Taking this sentiment to heart, I purchased a small wardrobe of pieces that fit and flattered my figure, and with every size I lost, I did my best to buy a few new clothes even if they were only thrift store finds. Around this time, I also went for my first proper bra fitting, which made my torso look about 15 pounds slimmer and transformed how I viewed my boobs and body.

Cutting my hair into a soft, manageable bob eliminated the temptation to rely on a ponytail as the only hairstyle in my arsenal, and buying practically paint-by-numbers eyeshadow kits helped me experiment with new looks.  These small, cosmetic changes to my appearance gave me one less reason to dread the mirror and one more reason to start loving the body I had.

As I was losing weight though, my fear (as well as that of my family) became that no size would ever be good enough, and I would still be unhappy with how I look.

Between the plethora of photoshopped and airbrushed images saturating the media and the increased pressure to be young and thin with a perfect body and skin, it’s easy to become trapped in a cycle of comparing your body to those of other women—always feeling as though you are inferior.  As a result, I knew that as I was reshaping my body, I also had to reshape my outlook on what it means to be beautiful and sexy if I was every going to be happy.

Obsessing over celebrity photos was the first bad habit to go, and like my diet/exercise substitutions, I added the good habit of focusing on something I loved about my appearance whenever I felt glum about something I didn’t.  I also came to grips with the fact that there is no such thing as a perfect body or perfect skin.  We all have lumps, bumps, scars, and other imperfections, and while it sounds cliche, those are the things that give us character.

I won’t lie though.  As I dropped the weight, I did feel better and better about myself, but a large part of that was because I learned to appreciate my positive attributes and assign less significance to the negative ones.  When I lost beyond my goal weight to the size I currently am, I found a new appreciation for my body.  I’ve been angular and thin, and I’ve been round and curvy.  I’ve been called anorexic, flat-chested, and skinny, and I’ve been called fat, chubby, and ugly.  It took me countless pounds lost and gained to realize that no matter what size you wear or how much you weigh or what body type you have, there is going to be some shallow, mean-spirited person who judges you for it and comments.  At the end of the day, you have to be happy with who you are and what you look like for your own reasons.  If you’re not, then you’re going to fall prey to “never good enoughs,” and you never will be.

Of course, I say this now, but it wasn’t an easy process.  When I could look at my body and feel great, I thought I had vanquished my body image demons, but then my dad wanted to post an older picture of me on Facebook from when I was heavier.  Suddenly, all those old feelings crashed over me as I was petrified of anyone seeing how heavy I had been.  No argument could persuade me for quite some time until I realized that by burying those old pictures, I was ignoring old wounds instead of healing them.  My body hate cycle would never be broken until I truly learned the meaning of self-acceptance and love.

All I could see in those pictures was the weight prominently displayed in all my features, but eventually, I came to see the photos as they were:  a beautiful, intelligent, and kind young woman supporting her brother on his graduation day or being grateful for Christmas gifts.  I struggled through many of the same issues that other beautiful, intelligent, and kind women face everyday.  I was battling my weight, health problems, and a crisis of confidence, and if showing those pictures and discussing my own journey and realizations could help others, then it was worth sharing.

I learned so much about myself and the person I want to be from my weight gain.  I learned to be thankful for my body and for my health and not to sweat the couple of pounds you gain from time to time.  I learned the importance of nutrition and exercise young enough to prevent future health problems.  I learned to be compassionate toward all people as you never know what kind of deep wounds a hurtful remark can inflict.  Most importantly, I learned that beauty comes in all shapes and sizes and that you can’t find true happiness and confidence from comparing yourself to others.

Each day is a gift, and I encourage everyone to wake up, look in that mirror, and realize just how beautiful and wonderful you are!

Erica

Weight Loss Week Part III: Losing the Right Way

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Hello Ladies,

Over the course of ten years, I went from being petite and thin without a curve in sight to above average height and plus-size with too many curves to count, and I experienced both sides of the body snark coin.  When I hit my highest weight, I started to experience health problems—problems that resonated with me as I had watched my grandparents struggle with a reduced quality of life due to complications from their weight.  I knew I had to change not only how I felt about myself but also how I approached my lifestyle.

My first decision was to stop wearing sweats and baggy tee shirts and actually buy nice clothes that fit me.  Grudgingly, I headed to the mall and purchased a small wardrobe that fit and flattered my new figure.  Next stop was the salon for a new haircut and then the beauty counter for some makeup.  If I was going to be stuck in this body for awhile, I was determined to make the most of it.

Then something unexpected happened.

I didn’t fear the mirror anymore. I was still unhappy with my weight, but I was dressing my body to make the most of my best features. Already people asked if I was on the winning side of the Battle of the Bulge, and my battered self-esteem was recovering from the onslaught that had been inflicted upon it. The need to lose the weight became less immediate, and crash dieting gave way to making healthier, longer-lasting choices.

Instead of drastically overhauling my diet and exercise plan, I resolved to make slow changes that I could build upon over the coming months, and I set a goal range of 160-165 pounds because I had an easier time maintaining this weight in the past:

My first step was analyzing my bad habits and determining how to transition them into healthy ones.  Ultimately, I compiled a list that looked something like this:

  1. Cut out soda and sugary fruit juices and replace with water or hot tea.
  2. Reduce sweets and fatty foods and substitute with whole grains, vegetables, and fruits.
  3. Eat three meals a day and reduce snacking, but if a snack is needed, eat fruit, nuts, or veggies.
  4. Exercise at least five times a week including a mix of cardio and resistance training.

At first glance, this seems exactly like the kind of all-at-once method that had failed me so many times in the past.  My twist is that I deconstructed each goal into smaller, more manageable changes.  Because I hated the taste of water, I decided drinking more of it would be my first challenge.  To combat this, I would gulp down 8oz of ice cold water before breakfast, and after dinner, I’d enjoy a cup of tea sweetened with agave or stevia.  Then I bumped up to two cups of tea per day, then a glass of water before lunch, then water with one meal, and so on.  Over several months, I had naturally cut out all the other cold drinks I would usually sip on throughout the day and replaced them with a refreshing glass of H2O.  Now?  I can’t get enough of water!  It’s the only thing I drink outside of hot tea and my morning coffee.  Nevertheless, this positive change would never have worked if I tried to do it all at once.

The other goals followed in the same way.  Exercise, in particular, was somewhat challenging at first until I discovered how much I enjoyed walking and watching Sex & the City.  A couple times a week, I’d walk for twenty minutes and follow it up with a series of exercise that could be done during an episode of S&TC.  Many of the women I know trying to lose weight struggle with exercise the most, and for me, success hinged upon finding activities that fit into my schedule and I enjoyed.  If you hate walking on the treadmill or despise exercise videos, then you’re setting yourself up for failure if you rely on them to lose weight.  Walking has stayed with me throughout the weight loss and maintenance process because it offers me time to think and relax, and for similar reasons, I’ve really enjoyed  yoga and pilates.

Finally, the plan paid off, and I achieved a victory: the number on the scale decreased. Within six months of starting my gradual changes plan, I lost thirty pounds. My cheekbones were making an appearance again, and I was back in my size 12s. Stressing about my body was something I did infrequently, and I even started to feel (dare I say it?) sexy and desirable.

Around 180 pounds, I hit a plateau where I stayed for another six months.  I never regained any of the pounds I lost, but my weight hadn’t decreased either.  Since I was still twenty pounds from my goal weight, I researched what could be done to overcome a plateau in weight loss.  Ultimately, I realized that despite improving my eating habits, I was consuming most of my daily calories closer to bedtime when I had less of an opportunity to burn them off before they were stored as fat.  I instituted a three hour cut off time for eating before my bedtime, and I also started moving more during the day.  My previous job as a computer programmer meant long hours chained to a desk, and these lulls in activity would create a sluggish metabolism even with the exercises I did almost daily.  To jumpstart my body’s fat burning abilities, I set an egg timer for 45 minutes so I could stretch or walk around a few minutes every hour.

Fifteen more pounds were gone from the scale in about four months just in time for Christmas.  By February, I was at my goal weight of 160 pounds and started buying clothes in a size 10—which felt like a “Perfect Ten” to me after years of wearing a size 12+.  Without even trying, the gradual changes plan resulted in another ten pound loss by the end of April, dropping me to a size 6/8.

Aside from the normal challenges of the holiday season (I always gain about five pounds between mid-November and the first of January), I maintained the weight for over two years.  When I opened my store, I dropped another five pounds, and I’ve maintained that weight for almost a year now.  However, the weight is only one component of the changes I made.  My blood glucose levels dropped to normal again, and my blood pressure is fantastic.  My energy levels have soared, and I’ve found that my skin and hair look better without all the sugary and fatty foods.  The biggest shock to me was how little I crave sweets now.  Occasionally, I’ll have desert, but I feel no need to go back for seconds or to indulge everyday or even every week.  I still have a wicked French fry craving (especially if they are smothered in cheese and bacon), but I’ve learned to indulge less frequently.

What breaks my heart reading the blogs and stories of other women struggling with their weight is that I know how it feels to wish the weight would magically disappear overnight, but I also know that’s all it is:  a wish.  Losing weight takes hard work, but it also takes time—sometimes more than you care to give.  If someone had told me it would take 18 months to lose 60 pounds, I would have kept switching from diet to diet, each one promising a 25 pound loss in six or eight weeks.  I would still be overweight too.

It wasn’t until I stopped setting goals of two pounds this week or six pounds by summer and focused on what was healthy that any of the weight melted away.  Be patient but more importantly stop beating yourself up and realize you are beautiful the way you are now. 

Erica

Weight Loss Week Part II: The Yo-Yo Cycle

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Hello Ladies,

Yesterday I discussed my own initiation into the business of body hate that began with mean-spirited comments slung at women on the thinner side of the size spectrum.  Today, I want to continue by talking about the dreaded problem anyone who has struggled with their weight encounters:  the Yo-Yo Cycle.

Who hasn’t heard of the “Freshmen Fifteen” that plague many a college student who gets into the habit of drinking too much coffee and eating too much fast food (we won’t even touch the alcohol!)?  Like my fellow students, I gained them as well . . . plus another fifteen because I’ve always been a bit of an overachiever.  Until college, I spent so much of my life being active (walking, playing sports, bike riding, etc.) that my metabolism could support some pretty awful dietary choices.  Burger, fries, large coke, AND an apple pie for lunch?  Super size it, and you have a deal!  I never needed to learn proper nutrition, and as a result, when my activity slowed during college, all of those poor choices piled on the pounds.  My size 6/8 clothes gave way to a size 12.

At first, I didn’t realize I had gained weight.  With an engineering heavy course load, I didn’t have time to shop or spend much time obsessing in front of the mirror.  Couple that with skirts that have an elastic waist, and you have a recipe for unnoticed gain.  The summer after I turned 18, I went to the beach with my family, and I had to go bathing suit shopping.  Until that point, I think I was in denial about how much my body had changed, but when I saw myself in the mirror squeezed into unforgiving lycra/spandex blends, reality crashed down around me.

Even now, I’m not sure why I suddenly felt so bad about my size 12 self.  Nobody had commented on my shape, and I can’t recall being influenced by the media (although perhaps I was on a subconscious level).  Whatever the reason, I wasn’t happy, and like most women who are unhappy with their bodies, I decided I wanted to lose the weight.  Yesterday.  So, again like most women, I overhauled every bad dietary and exercise habit I had developed and lost about twenty pounds.

Of course, the sad fact about weight loss is that the loss itself is only half the battle; the other is maintenance.  School started again in the fall, and the same lifestyle problems (long hours, lack of healthy choices, etc.) resurfaced and the weight crept back up.  By the next summer, I was a size 14, which meant I had even more weight to lose.

Eventually, the poor choices I couldn’t seem to shake combined with a medication side effect to skyrocket my weight to 210 pounds.  I was exceedingly happy if I could squeeze into a size 16 although an 18 or 20 was a better fit, and I went from being unhappy to being miserable.  Then, I started torturing myself with my wardrobe.  All of my clothes were from my size 12/14 days and hung abandoned in my closet, collecting dust and serving as an accusatory reminder of how much weight I had gained. Cheap yoga pants and baggy tee shirts were the staples of my pathetic wardrobe because I was adamant about not buying any clothing in my current size. It would only be a month or so before those size 12s fit again, I reasoned.

Every day, I purposefully avoided the mirror because staring at my now foreign body clad in ratty clothes escalated the depression to a whole new level. Buying new clothes in a size that actually fit me meant recognizing that I might stay at this current weight long enough to wear them, and I was petrified of acknowledging that possibility. Refusing to buy clothes at my new size acted as a psychological buffer, which prevented me from fully accepting my weight gain and enabled self-loathing instead of self-love.

After three months, the scale taunted me by rejecting my pleas to concede even a single pound.  Worse yet, my blood tests came back and revealed I was pre-diabetic, and my blood pressure was a little high.  Around this time I was also diagnosed as having Polycystic Ovary Syndrome—a disorder that can make weight loss even more difficult.  We were in the end of summer, and I heard the nasty comments people love to make about plus-size women in bathing suits.  I took to wearing an over-sized tee shirt on the beach to conceal my shape and the stretch marks.  Oh the stretch marks!

We all know that people can be cruel, but it doesn’t change the shock you feel to be on the receiving end of that cruelty.  I love the quote from Eleanor Roosevelt “No one can make you feel inferior without your permission,” but that’s a lot easier said than done when someone calls you a beached whale.  It’s hard not to feel inferior when you’re being berated with that message from all angles, but Mrs. Roosevelt was right.  You have to ignore the hate from people who don’t matter and love yourself for who you are.  Some days are just easier than others.

Erica

Weight Loss Week Part I: The Skinny on Being Skinny

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Hello Ladies,

Lately, I’ve been reading a lot of posts about body image, weight loss/gain, and size discrimination, and as a result, I wanted to dedicate this week toward discussing some of the battles I’ve faced and what helped me to overcome them in the hopes that other people may be helped.

When I was younger, I was athletic and lithe—the latter so much so that I was nicknamed “Two by Four” because of my complete lack of womanly curves.  While the rest of my friends were bragging about their training bras and speaking in a foreign language about “cup sizes” and “underwires,” I was still running around bra free.  At first, the disparity between my bust size and theirs never bothered me.  I was more preoccupied with what sport I was playing that season than whether I needed to move to a B cup.

Then, I had sleepover for my birthday, and my 13 year old friends (already way more into being a “woman” than I was) complained about how they were moving up a cup size or how bras were torture devices but necessary because of how big their boobs were now.  Since my bra consisted of a boy’s undershirt, I had nothing to add, so my “friend” turned to me and asked what bra size I wore.  When I replied that I didn’t know because I didn’t wear one, the girls burst out giggling.  “Well, your chest is so flat anyway that I don’t see what the point of wearing a bra is,” one sniped.

Until that point, I never felt bad about my body even if I was less curvy than the other developing girls in my class, but in one fell swoop, I was indoctrinated into the body hate cycle.  Suddenly, the body that allowed me to play competitive sports with boys, complete 30 or 40 push-ups without breaking a sweat, and eat 1,000 calorie lunches with no weight gain wasn’t good enough anymore.  It was flat.  It was angular.  It was wrong.

Soon after, my parents can attest that I sat in front of my bedroom mirror staring at my chest and praying—no, begging—for my boobs to finally grow.  All of the women in my family are busty, and I thought for sure I was going to be the one that stayed flat-chested forever—a fact I had now been peer-pressured into thinking was the worst.

Then, shortly after I turned 14, puberty truly struck with a vengeance, and my boobs weren’t the only body parts to come into their own.  The Meredith Behind (as my grandma affectionately called it) jutted it out in the back while my hips curved on the sides.  No longer was I a “Two by Four.”  At the time, I was 5’3″, probably a 28FF, and a size 4.  Life was good.  I had just enough boobage to feel good about my size but not too much that I attracted unwanted stares or comments.

I was nearly 18 before I hit my final growth spurt, however, which resulted in over 3″ in height, multiple cup sizes, and a lot more curves on the lower half.  It was also shortly after this birthday that I started battling my weight and would welcome the days of getting taunted for being thin.

What strikes me now, as an adult looking back, is that my body hate and discontent did not originate from within but only arose because “friends” in so many words told me that I should hate my body.  For their own personal reasons, they felt my body was inferior to theirs or perhaps their ideal body, and because they would have been unhappy to look like me, they thought I should be unhappy in my own skin.  After all, why do we make comments like “Eat a cheeseburger,” or “Lose weight, etc. if not to convey our would-be dissatisfaction if we had a body like the target of our criticism?  I wonder how many of us would feel good about how we look if we had never been on the receiving end of these kind of comments.

Erica

The Curvy Kate Dilemma

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Hello Ladies,

Yesterday, I received a comment on our video review of the Curvy Kate Elegance bra that I wanted to address in a longer format:

You do know that Curvy Kate is “Brastop”, right? They use brastop to sell bras for less than you pay wholesale for them for. I’d be willing to bet your wholesale cost is higher to cover their ability to deeply discount their own bras on their own online store. Are you like the other “un-bias” bloggers? The ones who are given freebies to review? Or maybe their hired blogger staff that pretends to be regular bloggers? — Diana

Hi Diana!  I would like address your concerns one at a time and hopefully offer some insight into my personal feelings as well as to state the store’s position on blogging.

First, I did not know there was any connection between Curvy Kate and BraStop; however, due to the prolific linking to the BraStop website on many of the blogs I follow, I am aware of the deep discounts offered on Curvy Kate products.  In some cases, there are items we currently sell in the store that are being sold for only dollars more than the wholesale cost I pay.  For every bra we sell, the profit margin needs to cover reinvestment in future inventory as well as the store’s overhead, which includes rent, utilities, and wages.  Consequently, BraStop is literally able to sell Curvy Kate bras at a price so low that competing with them would force our business to take a loss on the brand.

Inconsistent pricing across retail formats on the products you sell can be problematic for any business owner, but for a boutique like ours, it can be devastating, which is why we focus more of the store’s budget on brands that look out for our interests too.  Because of the undercutting on Curvy Kate products, I am questioning whether to continue carrying them in the store this fall.  They are quite expensive for us to purchase, and there are some wonderful lines, such as Parfait by Affinitas or Femi, that work more with retailers to ensure fair pricing.  I’m not privy to how Curvy Kate determines pricing here in the US versus the UK or what kind of incentives they give BraStop, so I cannot comment on that aspect of your post.  All I can say is that I’m a practical person, and I am not going to invest money in a brand that has no interest in helping me sell their product.  Whether I continue to work with Curvy Kate in the future will depend on the demand we see for their styles and how much they sell.

Moving on to the level of bias within our reviews, I cannot honestly say that our reviews are without bias.  Dezi and I evaluate bras based on our own expectations of how a bra should fit and feel, which naturally impacts our overall feeling toward the style.  However,  both Dezi and I try to offer honest, useful information in our reviews so that women can gain insight on whether the style will work for them.  As I mentioned during the Review Recap post I did a few weeks ago, some bras proved over time to be winners while others became styles I would never buy again.

Furthermore, Dezi and I do not get any “freebies.”  I pay full retail price for my bras to support my store and so does Dezi.  Often times, we’ll both review a bra that is stocked in the shop by trying it on (as a customer would during a fitting) and discussing how it feels.  Other times, we like a bra so much that we buy it and test the longevity of the materials and comfort.  Dezi, for example, bought the Curvy Kate Elegance because she truly did love the bra.  Since the store is my baby, I tend to rigorously research any style that comes through the doors to see if it is not only going to be a style our customers will love but one that will fit well and hold up over time.  As a result, since we mostly review what I sell, you won’t see too many totally negative reviews.

Not to mention, I also like to think that it’s nice for women to see how well a bra works for women who wear two very different sizes (32F/34E vs. 30H/HH).  There are some bras I love that Dezi considers to be “okay,” and the same can be said of what she loves.  If you compare our reviews to the ones you would see on other retail websites, we go the extra mile to provide women, especially those purchasing online, with the information they need to buy confidently.

I hope this helps to clear up you concerns, and I hope you have a nice day!

Erica

Saturday Spotlight: Moms!

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Hello Ladies and a happy (early) Mother’s Day to all the wonderful moms out there!  As a small “Thank You” for the love, kindness, generosity, and strength our moms and grandmoms give us throughout our lives, I want to dedicate this week’s Saturday Spotlight to motherhood.

My own mom passed away three years ago, making this holiday a bittersweet one, and even though she is no longer here, I am forever grateful to the love, life lessons, and discipline she gave me.

Mothers are our biggest fans, so be sure to show them some love this weekend even if all you do is call.  Oh and by the way, as an animal lover, I include moms of furry family too.  Those of you who have visited the store may have encountered my (mouthy) kids:

Happy Mother’s Day!

Erica

Video Blog Review: Curvy Kate Elegance

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Hello Ladies,

It seems this week has been all about Curvy Kate!  Between their announcement of the Top 30 finalists for their first US “Star in a Bra” competition and my review of the Romance, we’ve been discussing them quite a bit.  To cap off the week, Dezi joins the lovefest with a video review of the tried-and-true Elegance plunge bra.

Erica

P.S.  If you’re interested in another review of the Elegance, I gave it a whirl several months ago.

Curvy Kate USA Announce Top 30!

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Hello Ladies,

Following on the heels of yesterday’s review of the Curvy Kate Romance bra, today the Curvy Kate USA Top 30 finalists for their legendary “Star in a Bra” competition were revealed!  Per usual, all of the girls are lovely and gorgeous, but I wanted to single out two members of the blogosphere who made the list.

Brittany of Thin and Curvy:

Criss of Red Hair & Girly Flair:

This is a wonderful opportunity not only for the finalists but also for the voters to select who should represent the Curvy Kate brand and the American girls who love it.  Congrats ladies, and good luck to everyone who made the Top 30!

Erica

Product Review: Curvy Kate Romance

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Hello Ladies,

At the same time that I bought a Curvy Kate Emily, I also ordered the Romance in the black with purple trim.  I was most excited to try the latter as I loved how it looked in the catalog, but did it live up to the high standards set by the Emily?

Sizing & Fit:  After finding success with the 30HH in the Emily, I assumed the Romance would run true-to-size but immediately ran into some fit issues.  The center gore would not tack properly to my chest, especially near the top.  My index finger fit comfortably between the underwire and my sternum:

Consequently, I bumped up another cup size to the 30J, which felt perfectly snug against my breastplate, but I had extra material at the top of the cups.  Even after tightening the straps, the fabric on the top of the cup would not lay smooth.

Either I am between the HH and J cup sizes, or the part of the cups near the center gore is too shallow for my breast tissue, hence why the HH cup fit other than the center’s adamant refusal to tack.  Below is the HH cup taken from a straight-on angle followed by the J cup so that you can see the difference between the two sizes.

Aside from this sizing issue, I liked the fit of the bra, and even without proper tacking, I still received great support and shaping.

Materials:  The mesh cup felt luxuriously soft against the skin, and I loved the embroidery on the top.  In many cases, embroidery can be stiff without any give, but on the Romance, it contoured well in the HH cup.  Also, while I love the flourish on the straps of the Princess, I appreciate the fully adjustable straps on the Romance since I often need to tighten them considerably.  Finally, I like how they used three hook and eye closures and comfortable wings to keep my sides and back supported.

Design:  I love the design of the Romance!  The black and light purple make for a lovely contrast that works year round, and the ornate, classically inspired embroidery on the top cup is eye-catching with precise details that are both feminine and fun.  Moreover, I have a soft spot for the black-on-black details adorning the bottom portion of the cup.  It adds a textural element to the bra without competing with the beautiful purple at the top.

The Romance also uses purple circular swirls on the center gore and near the hook and eye closures in the back—a thoughtful finishing touch characteristic of the brand.  Examining the bra, I can understand why Curvy Kate chose to call the bra “Romance” because it does have a traditional, romantic vibe that perfectly suits the modern lingerie lover.

The Briefs:  They’re as soft and comfortable as the bra with the same fashionable details carried to the front while the back is sheer with a cheeky keyhole near the top.

Other Comments:  Had I been able to find the perfect fit, I believe this would have been my favorite bra, but due to the sizing trouble, I had to forgo keeping this style.  One thing I have noticed with Curvy Kate is that the H+ cup sizes tend to increase the width of the mesh panels at the top of the cup.  If you look at the bras on the gorgeous Lauren Colfer, for example, you can see that in her 30G cup size, there is less embroidery.  In some styles, I think I would prefer to have a smaller partition on the top cup and more material on the bottom.