Introducing the New Ewa Michalak SF Semi-Soft Cut

Happy new year 2017! A year of better bra blogging for me, I hope. Every now and then full-bust brands claim to have come up with “a new revolutionary” shape or a cut, that they are trying to sell as a cure for every bra problem in the world. This is not one of those times, as Ewa Michalak comes up with a new shape every now and then in all quietness. They make no fuzz about it, yet many gals wearing a D+ cup size swear by her bras. I can see why – EM bras are known by their incredible shape and narrow wires that are not rivaled by many. Today I would like to tell you about the new SF shape they came out with just recently.

I received two styles called SF Trapez and SF Czerwona Pantera, the latter hasn’t been released yet though, but I thought you would like to get a complete idea of the new style. When you think of a semi-soft cut, made popular by Polish bra brands, you automatically think of a style with padding at the bottom and a sheer or a lacy top that accommodates your upper breast tissue. However, the Ewa Michalak semi-soft, shortened to SF, is a style which is actually not padded AT ALL, just reinforced at the bottom to gain a sturdier feel to the bra.

I was a bit worried when I thought that I was going to get yet another bra with padding, but I actually think this is a brilliant way of making sturdier bras without adding bulk. The bottom part of the cups is double-lined with strong poly-blend material which is rather stiff and thus holds its form better than some flimsier materials. The cut is rather similar to the soft full-bust style BM, but offers just a tiny bit more support in my opinion. The shape is very rounded and uplifted, which is something I always enjoy about Ewa Michalak bras.

As the SF style is pretty much based on the BM, the sizing works similarly with it as well. I received both of the styles, SF Trapez and SF Czerwona Pantera in 70G, which seems to be a pretty good size for me with both of them. I would say though that even them both being a same cut, they are not exactly the same when it comes to fit. I prefer the red and black SF Czerwona Pantera as it feels a tiny bit larger in the cup and band than the Trapez. As you may notice in the pics above, the Pantera (which is how I will refer to the black and red bra from now on) covers my tissue a bit more from the sides and thus contains my boobs better.

As said, the band of the Pantera is also a bit stretchier so I like it better than the Trapez one. However, the Trapez isn’t bad at all, just needs a longer breaking-in period. Both of the bras feature a stretch lace on the top panel of the bra, which is great for a variety of breast shapes. The depth aspect of the bras is just about right to me and thus you cannot see any dents at the bottom of the cup, nor gaping at the top. As the Pantera covers my armpit area better than Trapez, I would go as far as saying it has become one of my top three bras of the year!

The materials of both of the sets are a bit more “basic” than my other EM bras – instead of luxurious embroideries and sheer mesh, these bras are made of something stronger and everyday-appropriate. They are pretty and even sexy, but there’s no extra hassle to make them feel too precious and delicate to wear under your everyday wardrobe. The straps are fully-adjustable which contributes to the practicality aspect of these bras. The bands have three hooks and eyes, and four rows of them, which is great in regards of durability.

The panties that come with these bras are as uncomplicated and sweet as the bras. Both of the styles feature the same stretch lace that is featured on the top panel of the bras, and the materials are nice and light-weight as they should be with comfy panties. These were both a size UK 12/ Polish 38 and they fit my 40″ bum very well. Even the thong is super comfy, as the rise hits me at the perfect spot and the materials are stretchy enough to hug my curves. I also really like how wide the thong is at the hips, it is such a flattering cut.

Out of all the EM styles, I would say the SF is my new favourite. I love wearing it regularly and it is one of their styles which does not try to stab me in the breast tissue. If you would like to try the SF, you can find eg the SF Trapez here at the EM online store. The Trapez is almost sold-out at the moment, but I would suggest taking a look at their new SF Roma (189 zl) which is a beautiful colourful style with a full size range of 30-44 E-JJ.

Late Summer Offerings from Signature by After Eden – Review of “Bilbao” & “Alicante” in 70G

Hi everyone! How are things on that side of the screen? I am all good just been extremely busy taking part in my first pinup pageant (which went decently, I was the 1st runner up!) and settling back to work. I must say, working with special needs kids can drain the life out of you at times. This is why I have been battling a lot with how to use my time between a full-time job, starting my uni work for this year, seeing friends and keeping up with my hobbies as well. Now everything is getting back to routine so I have more energy to blog again. Hope that makes you as happy as it makes me!

Today I will be bringing you a couple of lovely styles from the SS16 collection of Signature by After Eden, Bilbao and Alicante. The SS16 collection at Signature included two colour schemes, pink and blue which were kind of two different collections altogether. I wanted to introduce you to a set from both of these collections, so here goes! *These sets were generously provided by Signature. All opinions are our own.*

The Design: As per usual, Miss E will be assisting me with the review so be so kind to welcome her back to the blog! I picked out two sets that felt appropriate for her age and preferences (young, laid-back & fun!) and decided to go for Bilbao (the blue plunge bra) and Alicante (the pink strapless balconette). These styles are incredibly appropriate for summer – the first one being a great option under low cut tops and the other under strapless and spaghetti strap tops. The colours are light yet not too cutesy and pastel-y – the shades of pink and blue remain vibrant and look gorgeous against a tanned skin. These t-shirt bras are adorned with a moderate amount of lace and thus are perfect for everyday wear.

The profile of both of the bras is very rounded and looks a bit similar to most American bras, to be honest – American women are known to love rounded padded t-shirt bras which is why I am wondering whether Signature will be expanding their sales to other parts of the world in the future. These bras are also very appropriate for young girls in general – they are not overtly sexy or super-padded but have a lightly padded moulded cups that give you modesty and a nice shape under most of your clothes. The bra is also constructed to be supportive for a fuller bust as it includes both a wider band and sturdy fully-adjustable straps to give you a better overall fit.

The Fit: I asked for the samples in Miss E’s regular Signature bra size 70G (32F in UK sizes) but exchanged the bottom size from Medium to Small as she preferred a snugger fit. The Signature bras run a tiny bit large in the cup, which is why the bra cups are gaping a bit on E’s smaller boob. However, I would always advice to choose your bra size according to your bigger boob which is why I wouldn’t have gone smaller in the cup with these bras anyway. However, if there were an option of 65H, I would definitely give that one a try as Miss E is more of a 30 band than a 32. Signature makes very few 65/30 bands at the moment as they are targeting their full-figured customers more, which is a bit of shame on our behalf. Wearing the band on the second tightest set of hooks works pretty well for E though, so we are not complaining that much.

I would say Miss E is a full-allover shaped gal, which is why she would perhaps need a tad more space in the bottom part of the bra cups; this makes me think Signature would probably suit better someone who has more full-on-top boobs. However, the denting on the bottom of the cups (the so-called orange-in-a-glass phenomenon when your boobs can’t sit at the bottom of your cups as there is not enough space) is not super bad and in my opinion, isn’t even a crucial thing to note when talking about a fit of a bra. What does matter more, in my opinion, is how the wires sit on your body – as you can see, both of the bras tack Miss E’s sternum at the front and encase all her breast tissue, which is important when trying to avoid migrated breast tissue. With the Alicante the wires are significantly taller though, which is discussed more in the comfort section of this review.

Comfort: As with the very first review we ever did on Signature, there is significant difference in comfort level when it comes to these bras. Signature still has a challenge in front of them: how to make their balconette bras more comfortable and yet still supportive. The problem with Alicante is simple – the straps are placed way too widely on the shoulders and the underwires come too high up at the sides, which makes a non-working combination that rubs the heck out of your armpits. Personally, I think the strap placement could be fixed pretty easily, so maybe that could be something to consider in the design team. However, as a strapless, the Alicante works well and does its job without sliding down and rolling around.

The Bilbao on the other hand works well in all circumstances and stays comfortable during the day without the strap placement issue. Besides that, both of the bras are crafted lovingly from the softest materials, made with amazing supportive bands (with four sets of hooks and eyes I might add!) and easily adjusting straps. They work well for both plus size and more petite gals, as well as tall and short girls who benefit from the fully-adjustable straps. The panties are comfy and gorgeous as well and are great for everyday wear; even though they are not completely seamless, they are a nice basic pattern that gives them a flattering shape and a sturdy feel.

Both of these sets are ON SALE right now, so if you live in Netherlands, you can snatch the Alicante set up for a mere 31€ and the Bilbao set for 33,50€. If you live somewhere else, 4AllWomenLingerie ships worldwide and offers a wide selection of Signature! The sizes go from 70D to 100G, S-XXXL. How do you feel about molded t-shirt bras such as Alicante and Bilbao? Do you prefer non-padded bras like me? Let me know in the comments below! xx

Comparison of Ewa Michalak BM- and S-cuts: BM Landrynek + S Neonek

Hello peeps! I just got back from Finland, and boy does it feels good to be back home again! Even though I am currently on a sick leave for a sprained ankle and a flu (yap, UK was a bit rough on me) I am happy to get back to blogging. Somehow August kind of divides the year for me in a nice way and I feel like everything is fresh and new from the new minors I am starting at uni and a new makeup collection I just acquired on my trip. Also, I am happy to start this autumn season with some gorgeous bright neons from a favourite of many full-busted gals – Ewa Michalak. The EM team was so kind to send me a couple of their most recent shapes BM and S to try out and I was happy to get trying some new styles from them.

To get the styles straight, let me start with a introduction to the shapes. Ewa Michalak carries several different shapes in their collection, marked with a letter or a combination of letters attached to the name of the design. The styles I have reviewed before were the SM (a non-padded balconette for medium-large bust) and the PL (a padded plunge bra for all sizes, including detachable cookies inside the cups). As both of those shapes were a really nice fit on me, I was intrigued to see how the BM and S would do.

The S is a padded version of the SM cut, meaning a balconette designed for larger busts. However, the EM style guide mentions that the S-shape is also suitable for extra large busts meaning it does have a bit wider size range to it. The BM-cut on the other hand seems very similar to the S-cut as it is a non-padded balconette bra but as the EM site does not have a proper description on it, I am assuming it is designed for extra large busts as well, with the raised gore to bring more security and support. This way, the construction and the target market of the S and BM cuts are very similar, the only difference seems to be the padding which makes the S seem a bit bulkier to me personally.

When it comes to styling, I am huge fan of EM as they always come up with unique colour combinations and prints. This time, the focus on the Landrynek and Neonek are on the colours themselves, with some contrasting straps and trims which makes such everyday styles a bit more fun and hip. I can’t really pick which one of the combos I like more – the Neonek’s pink/banana yellow or Landrynek’s Neon Peach/Turquoise – they both are equally gorgeous. Also, both styles feature fully-adjustable straps and three hooks and eyes with the back band, which ensures the support of both styles.

Even though both of the bras are in line with each other in many ways, team EM suggested that I would try the BM in 70G and the S in 70GG as I mentioned I usually required a bigger size with padded bras. However, I am still a bit unsure if this was the right choice – it seems both of the styles run a bit bigger than for example the PL (which fits me well in 70H) and the SM (fits me in 70GG). This might be because the styles are designed with larger busts in mind meaning the sizes come a tad bigger in the first place. The BM fits me perfectly in size 70G but I think the S in 70GG is a bit on the larger side for me, so it would have been interesting to see how the 70G would have fitted in the S-cut as well. As my left boob a bit bigger than my right one, I have placed both of the cookies into the other cup, to balance out my a-symmetry and still, it seems the cups are gaping just a tiny bit. However, the bra is still totally wearable and great for those days when you want a bit of extra oomph.

In practice, I do tend to lean on the BM Landrynek more, just for the non-padded style of it. As I am a very busty gal, padded bras are not always the most practical option with most of my dresses, but the Landrynek does just the same job of uplifting and rounding as the S Neonek. Comfort-wise however, they are very similar with their super-soft materials and great supportive bands. As a rule of thumb, EM bras run very “Polish” in the brand so I would suggest sizing up for comfort. The wires are also typical for Polish brands, meaning they are rather narrow. However, I do feel like the BM and S cuts feel a lot better on me wire-wise, which could be due to tad wider wires than EM usually uses, or just the bigger cups that come with these shapes.

All in all, Ewa Michalak has once again impressed me a great deal. Also, if you would like to buy the matching panties for these sets, they are finally available! I have not tried them, at least yet, but usually EM panties are worth the money as they are extremely comfy and utterly cute! The BM Landrynek retails for 169 zlotys and the S Neonek 179 zl which translates to roughly 40-43 euros which is a very good price point for such excellent construction and fit. Do snatch these up before the sizes are gone as the AW styles start rolling very soon!

What do you think of the BM Landrynek and S Neonek? Which shapes are you favourites when it comes to EM bras? Let me know in the comments! xx

Review of the Ewa Michalak “SM Mgielka” in 70G

I was very hesitant to make my first order on Ewa Michalak but after my boyfriend got his first paycheck from new his job, he decided to take the plunge for me. I have never had an Ewa bra before meaning the sizing worried me. I had heard the bands usually run a little small so I went for my regular Polish band size 70/32. With a little help of my blogger friends (thanks to y’all <3) I decided to settle for a size 32G which is a sister size to my usual 30GG. The EM sizing guide would put me somewhere near 75FF/G but as a believer in firm bands I decided to stick to my best guess meaning 70. My boyfriend was also sweet enough to buy me the co-ordinates so you’ll hear the comments on both the bra and the panties. Let’s see how SM Mgielka worked for me!

The design: First of all, as you can see the bra is completely sheer so if that’s not your thing, don’t consider. However, sheerness is SO my thing and I absolutely love this set for it! Excuse the nipples btw, women have them and I don’t see the reason to cover them (so get over it). The design of the bra is very striking with the thick black seaming going around the bra. I don’t own much black lingerie anymore but I do love it once it’s beautifully crafted! I think Ewa has managed to design a beautiful not-boring black bra to fill full-bust market’s gap for sexy sheer lingerie and I’m very happy that I gave it a try. I also adore the huge bow on the front, so cute!

I think the shape of the bra is one of the best I can get in a non-padded bra. “SM” in the bra’s name stands for a unpadded balconette, a one that gives more coverage and uplift for a medium-to-large bust. For me this is actually one of the bras that give me a little less coverage than my average bra so I would be very interested to try some other Ewa Michalak styles as well (I already have my eyes on the PL Slowianki!). The shape is quite naturally curved but extremely uplifted because of the well-placed seaming and the three-part cup construction.

The Fit: The fit of the bra is very good except I probably could have gone up a cupsize meaning I am probably somewhere between 70G and 70GG. My smaller boob is completely fine but I just feel like the upper panel of the other cups is pressing my bigger boob a bit. However, I’m not spilling out notably and the bra feels good on. Even wearing it for the whole day there is no spillage whatsoever. The shape of the bra however might be a bit better suited for someone with lower fullness. However I feel like the bra gives me such great uplift I can’t part with it and would welcome many more SM bras in my lingerie wardrobe!

The band of the 70G feels snug yet quite stretchy meaning it is about the same as eg some 30-band Curvy Kate styles I own. So with this style, if you are between sizes or prefer looser bands for comfort, I would go up from your regular British band size. The wires are very narrow which are just wide enough for me, if they would be any narrower I think they would stab my breast tissue. The cups are medium depth in my opinion so they are quite spot on for me.

Comfort: This bra is so comfy! I feel like the band is just stretchy enough for me to not even notice that I’m wearing a bra and the wires come so low they don’t poke under my arm. The wires feel quite flexible too so they don’t stab my ribs nor my sternum painfully even though the gore lies flat as it should. The mesh and the lace are probably not the most conventional or best material for someone with excema but so far I haven’t had any discomfort regarding them. The straps are placed well for me and stay up hrough the day without readjusting. Also I like the little detail of the strap attaching to a wider sling on the top of the cup.

The Co-ordinates: The thong is so cute I knew right away it would be my choice for the co-ordinates! There is also the option of a classic brief but I really like the thicker upper panel of the back of the thong which flatters my butt greatly and gives more coverage than your average thong. The big bows are so darn cute and I’m also a big fan of the ruffle! This thong is also very comfy and feels great even under the skinniest jeans. The crotch area is quite thin so do think about that if it generally bothers you with panties. However, it’s not the most skimpiest thong I’ve ever seen so I’m quite happy. The lace edge at the top part of the thong is not stretchy at all so do keep that in mind when opting for a size. I got mine size 8/36 and it fits perfectly!

All in all, I’m very impressed with my SM Mgielka and am already drooling over some other styles, including PL Slowianki and the new sweet SM Bialy Bez. Also the prize of this set is not bad at all! I paid about 55€ for mine including shipping. To Finland, it took only four (!) days to deliver so I was quite happy about the speedy delivery as well. Also Ewa’s team kept me posted on everything that happened regarding my order so I wasn’t left wondering at any stage of the process.

Has anyone of you tried Ewa and what do you think of her bras? Also, if you have an opinion, should I try the 70GG next time, just for comparison? I would love to hear so please do drop me a comment! xx