Last year I was packing for holiday and at the very last moment realised I’d packed a couple of tops that were strapless or that I didn’t want bra straps on show with, but also that my only strapless bra was a 30FF Wonderbra Plunge (the same one that Charley reviewed here) and wasn’t the best fit. It’s not bad, per se, but it isn’t exactly comfortable for all day wear and sits quite low on me – I’ll have to review it properly sometime. So with only a day to go before we set off, I hopped onto Amazon and ordered the one bra on next day delivery that I’d been going back and forth on for months – the Curvy Kate Luxe strapless.

Being a big Curvy Kate fan already, I’m mostly confident in my size from them. I’ve owned a variety of soft cup and padded bras from Curvy Kate and my usual size is a 28GG, and reading that the Luxe fits quite true to size, that’s the one I decided to go for. I’d heard that the Curvy Kate Luxe was a bit of a revolution – a strapless bra that fit a huge range of shapes and sizes and actually stayed in place, so I was pretty confident that it work for me. And did it?

Shape & Appearance

I chose the Biscotti version of the Luxe strapless as I’d planned to wear it under lots of clothes including a couple of white off the shoulder tops so I didn’t want it to show through. This “nude” is quite a pale beige that suits my skin tone pretty well.

The cups are made of 3 panels of stiff foam with 2 vertical seams up the front. The band is made from a silky smooth piece of stretch fabric with a pretty design feature of vertical stripes. The wings of the bra directly under the arm have a piece of boning to stop the wider edges from collapsing under the weight, and the edges of the band have silicon strips running all the way around to hold it even more firmly in place. The interior of the cups also has a hidden side sling to pull everything central and upwards – I don’t have a picture of this, but you can see one at Boosaurus’ review.

The bra is a balcony style with a high gore that almost matches the height of the cups, with a bow and a couple of buttons for decoration at the top.

The band is really wide, with 4 rows of 3 sets of hook and eyes – all the better for support, although a little tricky to fasten! The bra also comes with detachable straps that can be worn in a variety of ways too making this not only a strapless but also a multiway bra. The straps themselves are really thick and sturdy, so good for a bra of this size range but may be a little bulky under daintier tops.

Size, fit & comfort

I chose the Curvy Kate Luxe bra in my usual size of 28GG. As you can probably see, it’s not a great fit sadly. To be honest, I don’t think a different size would make a huge amount of difference to me – I’ll explain why.

As you can see – I do get the uplifted shape from this bra that it promises, but possibly a little too much! I have an even to full on top shape that’s quite projected and quite tall roots (that means they go fairly high up on my chest compared to where they start), but more importantly, I have these factors plus very firm tissue. So what’s already there at the upper edge of the cup gets pushed further upwards and kind of “squashed” against my chest wall. I’d heard that the Luxe was more projected than most strapless bras, but I’ve found it to be quite shallow actually, coupled with a fairly closed edge on top that stops at the wrong place for me. The high gore is also just slightly too high and tries to sit on breast tissue at the top where they sit close together, especially when they’re pushed upwards.

So with the uplift it provides and my specific shape, it just doesn’t work sadly. It may be that if you only have a few of the shape factors I have but not others, it may work for you, but all the things come together just the wrong way for me.

Despite this, it’s not actually that uncomfortable for me so is still wearable – the issue is that I don’t get a smooth line under clothes and that the bra tries to push downwards a bit. I could try a 28H to get a little more projection, or maybe a 30GG for a bit more projection without the band pulling as tightly (which sometimes can cause bras to be too shallow), but I’m still likely to get these issues.

Speaking of the band, it’s a good firm fit – much firmer than Curvy Kate’s usual 28 bands which I sometimes find to be closer to 30s. It’s also awesome to have the large amount of hooks and eyes for a more comfortable fit at the back. The firmness of it holding itself (and the weight) up can give a bit of “squish” under the band line but going up a size in the band would probably compromise lift, and a 28 isn’t uncomfortable for me either.

The size range on the Curvy Kate Luxe is pretty awesome for a strapless: 28-30 D-J, 32 D-HH, 34 D-H, 36 D-GG, 38 D-G. It’s usually priced at around £32 and is available in two colours (Biscotti and Black) from loads of retailers, so you’ve got plenty of choice:

Figleaves

Brastop

Amazon

House of Fraser

Simply Be

Debenhams

Bravissimo

You can also see reviews of this bra by:

Becky’s Boudoir (30H)

Boosaurus (30G)

Fuller Figure Fuller Bust (36H)

The Lingerie Addict (34E)

Thigh Highs and Glitter (30HH)

Curvy Girl Thin (36GG)