A Review of Parfait’s Recent Size Expansion – 30H Charlotte!

So it’s no secret that I love Parfait. I’ve gushed about their bras more than a few times here… even though they didn’t really fit. I sent a request (or 5) to the company to expand their size range and crossed my fingers. Other bloggers and customers did the same.

While I was hoping that the Casey (like the Deco, but better) would be the first bra available in larger cup sizes, I’m not at all disappointed that the Charlotte was first in line, along with the Alexis babydoll and Sophia bra. I’d been wanting to try the Charlotte for ages, but had heard that the cups ran small, so even a 32G (my usual trying-to-make-parfait-work size) wouldn’t have worked. Thus, I was very excited to hear that Parfait was going to expand the size range of the Charlotte to 28-40 D-K!

(Sorry for the not-great photo… I’m currently staying in a friend’s dorm room!)

When Parfait asked me to review the Charlotte, I had no idea what size to order. I heard that the bra (after working out the new sizes) now ran true to size, so I thought I’d try ordering my current average size: 30H. And I’m happy to say that that was the right call! The 30H fits quite well. There is some space in the bottom of the cup, as well as some overspill at the top, but a 30HH wouldn’t really fix that, as the issue is with cup-depth.

 

Speaking of which, the underwires on this bra are narrow and the cups are deeper than other US and UK brands. I could have used a bit more depth toward the center of the bra (right around the gore), but this is probably the deepest-cupped non-Polish bra I’ve seen!

The band has 4 rows of hooks and is extremely supportive. It runs slightly snug (my ribcage is 28.5 inches and the 30 fits well) and is supportive enough that I could probably hack the straps off this bra and wear it as a strapless (with some minor adjustments to the top of the cup).

I’m in love with the fabric and design- I chose dusty rose and I’m glad I did. I don’t usually like pink, but the rose color is muted and looks great with my pale yellowish skin. It’s really sophisticated and, wow, I want it to be seen! I’d consider wearing it under a sheer lace top.

Wow, this bra…

Good job, Parfait! I’m really excited to see the more bras in the extended size range!

Diversity in Lingerie: Gender

I’ve been thinking about writing a post on gender for a while now, and #DiversityInLingerie seems like the perfect opportunity to talk about this:

I am transgender*. The asterisk there signifies that “transgender”, as used here, refers not just to binary trans persons, but also to genderqueer and agender individuals. More specifically, I am agender. That means that I don’t identify as female… or male… or genderfluid… or anything gendered at all. I am not a woman- I’m just a person.

 

In the realm of lingerie, there’s a lot of pressure to conform to traditional gender roles… a few months ago, I was even afraid to post photos that showed my armpit hair.  Over the past few years, I’ve seen a lot of transphobia in the realm of lingerie, and it makes me really sad.  I’ll talk about a few things here:

1) I wear lace and frilly things. I cannot for the life of me understand what lace and frills have to do with “womanhood”. But I’ve had countless people tell me that clearly I am female because I like to wear dresses and velvet and lace. Or that I have large breasts and don’t try to minimize them means that I identify as female.

Nope. I like lace and velvet and dresses because I like the way they look. It’s as simple as that.

2) Lots of bra forums and related websites are “for women only”. I know the intent is to keep out fetishists**, but what about people female-bodied persons who are not women?

3) Related to the last point: a lot of hate spouted at transwomen. My hunch here is that people just don’t get that there is a difference between people who wear bras or who post on bra forums because they find it sexually arousing** and transwomen (non-female-bodied women). Transwomen aren’t “sort or women” or “men pretending to be women”… transwomen are women.

(**I’m bringing this up not because fetishes are “icky” or “perverted”, but because there is a big difference between crossdressing and being transgender. When you’re involving sexual things (fetishes), you need to make sure all involved parties are consenting… which isn’t the case on forums for bra-fitting, which isn’t a sexual subject.)

I haven’t nearly exhausted my thoughts on this subject, but I think this is a good place to start.