Brava

It's... starting to get a little chilly outside. Not gonna lie. I'm a pretty cold-blooded girl, and I definitely prefer winter. But with the changing of the season (not to mention prolonged shipping times these days), I wanted to get a jump on sprucing up my wardrobe. I think this is... the winter where I embrace layers. 

(Oh, first thing's first... I like to give credit where it's due. A friend sent the above images to me a while back, but for the life of me, I do not know the artist... If any of you do, let me know, and I'll certainly give credit. I just thought it was a funny comparison, especially given the topic... I sincerely wonder how the woman on the right feels...)

There's a clothing website I haven't tried yet — they're based out of the UK. They're called "Bravissimo" (cute, huh?), and they cater to woman who are curvier than the norm, especially in the breast department. For a person like me, who gets crosseyed after too much clothes scouring, that seems to be a quality that makes the load a little easier to carry (so to speak!)!

Clothing is always a trial and error thing for me, but I've got good feelings about these folks. They don't specifically cater to the super-busty like yours truly... but they do offer cuts that are just much larger in the chest than you would find at a run-of-the-mill lady clothing emporium. Worth a shot!

Still, I had some questions, and some points I wanted to confirm. So, I reached out to their live chat. A lovely woman got back to me, on a Sunday of all things, and gave me some great pointers and info about the brand. 

I figured this was a conversation that is a little... interesting (or maybe not?) But why not — might as well share it! For what it's worth, she was super-helpful, and really helped point ADD me in the right direction!

She sent a couple of links, too... If any of you get bored, and would like to offer any opinions? I'm ALL ears. Clothing is hard for me, when looking at it takes place in a vacuum. 

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You are connected to

Bravissimo

Me13 Sep 17:58

Hi! This is the first time I'll be ordering from you, so I had a question... I'm really busty, lol... Without my chest, I would be a size 12 (US) or14 (UK); but I typically wear a 40LL or M bra (UK size).

Me13 Sep 18:00

My question is (and I don't want you to have to be my "personal shopper," haha)... are there any articles of clothing on your site that you've found to be especially good for someone with my proportions? I'm certainly not picky, and I know that certain things like buttondown shirts, things with no stretch, etc., wouldn't be options.

Me13 Sep 18:01

Basically, anything that comes to mind where you're like, "Oh, yeah, THIS style works great for our especially busty clients. :-)

Me13 Sep 18:01

Thanks!

Bravissimo13 Sep 18:07

Hi,I'd love to help today.

Me13 Sep 18:07

Hi! Thanks so much. :)

Bravissimo13 Sep 18:09

I hope you don't mind me explaining our clothing..

Bravissimo13 Sep 18:09

As you probably know, our clothes are designed especially for women with bigger boobs so the sizing is unique too. They come in standard high street dress sizes (US 4-14,) with three different bust sizes, depending how much extra room you need for your boobs – Curvy, Really Curvy and Super Curvy. So, if you find it difficult to get clothes to fit you properly, you should be able to say goodbye to either sizing up to accommodate your boobs but swamping the rest of your figure, or having clothes that fit the rest of your body well but pull or gape at the bust

Me13 Sep 18:09

(I should mention, too, that I have a great seamstress... So if something may involve going up to larger sizes, I can totally have it altered.

Me13 Sep 18:10

That's great information. I can pretty much guarantee that I would go "Super Curvy" on just about anything, lol.

Bravissimo13 Sep 18:10

For example: https://www.bravissimo.com/us/products/jessica-full-skirt-dress-pd721/#rust-pd721rst This dress would be a size 14 in the body but a size 16/18 in the chest (14 really/super curvy)

Bravissimo13 Sep 18:11

I agree, I think it will give you more room to accommodate in the chest

Bravissimo13 Sep 18:11

I would stick with items that have jersey material as they come up a bit stretchier

Me13 Sep 18:12

I was looking at that dress — it's adorable and really timeless.

Bravissimo13 Sep 18:13

If you order from our US website www.bravissimo.com/us then the clothing conversion is already there for you

Me13 Sep 18:13

Perfect... a little bit of stretch. :) I'll keep that in mind as I search around.

Bravissimo13 Sep 18:13

A US 14 the curvy/really will be a 14-16 and the really/super will be 16-18

Me13 Sep 18:14

Cool... I'm located in Spain at the moment, actually... is there any issue with mailing there (aside from any normal delays?) Also, do you know if it's ok if something is delivered to a post office box as opposed to an actual street address?

Bravissimo13 Sep 18:14

It's a stunning dress! My go to! But there's loads of different clothes that would suit your sizing

Me13 Sep 18:15

That's great... And elastine is my best friend! :-P

Bravissimo13 Sep 18:15

Ahh perfect, Spain is beautiful! Post to Spain costs £6 and is taking 14-20 working days. Usually a bit quicker but with everything going on, I'd give it the time just in case and yes, you can get it sent to a PO box, no problem

Me13 Sep 18:16

Oh, great. Yeah, no rush — the world's kind of a crazy place right now, lol...

Bravissimo13 Sep 18:17

It's it just. Such strange times

Me13 Sep 18:18

Oh, and one more question that you might be able to help with... Anything more cold-weather appropriate that you might be able to recommend? Along the lines of a winter coat?

Me13 Sep 18:18

I guess something that would accommodate 140cm in the bust (I don't mind looking like a marshmallow, lol!) Just more for function.

Bravissimo13 Sep 18:19

Of course, here's a link to Winter coats/jackets etc  https://www.bravissimo.com/collections/coats-and-jackets/

Bravissimo13 Sep 18:19

Not that these have a whole lot of stretch but a nice dress with a denim jacket over the top too

Me13 Sep 18:19

Ha, a denim jacket has long been on my bucket list, lol... Might have to keep that one for the tailoring gods, lol. :-P

Bravissimo13 Sep 18:19

Or a lot of our clothes can be layered for when the cold weather reaches us

Bravissimo13 Sep 18:20

Like, a long sleeve top under a pinafore dress. Both have some great stretch and versatility.

Bravissimo13 Sep 18:20

https://www.bravissimo.com/products/faux-suede-pinafore-dress-pd830/#tan-pd830tan

Bravissimo13 Sep 18:20

https://www.bravissimo.com/products/ava-top-pt655/#ivory-pt655ivy

Me13 Sep 18:21

Oh, yeah, I was looking at the pinafore dress — SO cute — that whole look with the brown and the ivory is very "me." And I'm always down with layering.

Bravissimo13 Sep 18:21

That style of dress is  popular with clients who need a little more space in the chest. Layering keeps it conservative but the dress itself is a little flirty. And adaptable as the seasons change.

Bravissimo13 Sep 18:22

Here's a link to all of the pinafore styles. https://www.bravissimo.com/search/pinafore%20dress

Bravissimo13 Sep 18:22

I think you'll find that the brown one is the most forgiving (I love elastine too!)

Bravissimo13 Sep 18:23

See those long-sleeve tops, too. Lots of different colors and patterns.

Me13 Sep 18:23

I'm loving all of this advice and information — you've given me so much good stuff to think about! :-D

Me13 Sep 18:23

Well, thank you so much. I don't want to take up too much of you time, but thank you for clarifying some of this stuff for me. Lots of cute stuff up there! I love how timeless and practical it all is. Thank you guys for specializing in the bustier among us! :)

Bravissimo13 Sep 18:23

That's so great to hear! That's exactly what we want in our pieces, timeless! You'll find some great items  :)

Me13 Sep 18:23

I'm looking forward to it. :-)

Me13 Sep 18:24

Thanks again. Stay warm, and take care!

Bravissimo13 Sep 18:24

My pleasure! Enjoy the rest of what's left of the weekend  :)

Me13 Sep 18:25

You too! Thanks for helping out on a Sunday, too. :)

Bravissimo13 Sep 18:25

Aww anytime!

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So that's been part of my lazy Sunday. At least I got to be productive while taking some time to give my brain a little bit of a rest. :-)