Review: Matilde and Cristina, by Playful Promises

When London-based independent lingerie brand Playful Promises expanded their range to include E and F cup bras, I was very excited. Up until then, I’d been going for a sister size* as my usual 32E wasn’t in their size range. I reviewed their first larger cup style, Lily, back in March 2014 and, in February this year, I shared a bit of information on how they further tweaked the sizing on the E & F cup styles before launching their gorgeous Mia and Brigitte sets.

Since then, the team have been busily working on new E & F cup styles and have released some pretty gorgeous designs. After visiting Playful Promises to chat with founder and designer Emma Parker about all things bra fit related, I got to try on the gorgeous burgundy Matilde balconette bra (see image on the right) and have my first experience of being a fit model. As a thank you for my time and assistance, Emma kindly sent me two of the sets I had my eye on that day, and I couldn’t resist reviewing them so that you can see how great they are.

First I tried the Matilde balconette and matching briefs. The satin is soft yet sturdy, the fabric covered straps are comfortable and adjusted enough for my short shoulders, and the eyelash lace is ever so pretty. The main thing for me though was the fit, which was absolutely spot on for me. I wear a 32F now in most brands (including Panache and Triumph, but not Freya which comes up big in the cups) and the 32F was perfect in every way – the band was firm but not too tight, the underwires sat flat to my ribcage and perfectly encapsulated my breasts, and there was no gaping or overspill. The briefs are a skimpier style than I would usually go for, but they were comfortable and pretty (there’s a photo of me wearing the set here).

I also tried the Cristina longline cage bra and harness briefs which magically made me feel like I was their gorgeous model Miss Deadly Red the second I put it on. The harness strap on the briefs is soft, stretchy and adjustable so it is easy to slip it over your head when you need to take them off. Sadly the bra straps weren’t as soft and were rather too narrow for my squishy shoulders so I suspect they’ll dig in after a while – plus the five hooks and eyes need a bit of practice to be able to fasten them yourself – but I’m not sure I’d care when the set looks this good. This is definitely underwear that demands to be seen! In trying to get a decent photo for this blog post, I couldn’t resist trying the set on with my Kiss Me Deadly Elle robe and was very pleased with the results. (There’s a photo here where you can see the straps of the bra better.)

Another extremely exciting thing I saw when I visited Playful Promises were sets from their new super-glamorous full bust range which was still top secret at the time. You have no idea how much I wanted to tweet about it when I left their offices that day! It comes in sizes 28-36 DD-G cup and is now available on the Playful Promises site for pre-order and… wow… it is well worth the wait! With stunning campaign images shot by Tatiana Gerusova on the gorgeous Gia Genevieve, this collection reminds me of Agent Provocateur at its saucy turn-of-the-century best. Minus the sky high price tag, of course. I’m very much looking forward to getting my hands on a set, but the hard part will be working out which one I want the most!

*Going up a band size and down a cup size will have the same fit, when fastened on a tighter hook.