Way back in May, Char posted her review of two gorgeous and budget-friendly bras from a new-to-us brand, Cybele. I’ve been a terrible blogger since then (blaming wedding, honeymoon and pregnancy – that’s a lot to happen in that space!), but at the same time, I also received two sets of my very own from Cybele’s Spring/Summer 18 collection to review.
As I said, Cybele were a brand that was new to us, and we always love being introduced to lingerie companies we didn’t know of before. They are a European company that’s part of the Naturana brand; Cybele seems to be the younger, fresher and more fun version of this well-established company who began in 1917. In addition to their lingerie, they also offer a selection of nightwear and loungewear. In my eyes, Cybele’s offering is of basics that are that bit more interesting than the usual, with some simple but fun patterns, bright colours and pretty detailing.
I was sent the padded bra in orange (£25.50) and the non-padded underwired bra in beige (£24), both in a size 32F. The sizing for the brand runs from 30-42 and A-F cups. I know 32F isn’t my size, but read on to find out why I picked this size!
Shape & Appearance – Cybele Orange Padded Bra
The orange padded bra has a gorgeous bright orange shade which is ideal both for the spring/summer collection it’s designed as part of, but also for autumn in my opinion too – I’m thinking falling leaves, pumpkins and warm, glowing fires. It’s cute to wear, and fortunately the shade isn’t so bright that it shows up under clothing.
The cup itself is actually moulded rather than the usual cut-and-sew foam I wear in DD+ bra sizes. I imagine this is due to the fact that the bra isn’t designed necessarily as a DD+, but runs from an A to F. This can be a tricky cup style to fit larger sizes – hence why it’s fairly rare to find a moulded bra in them! – but for those of us that do fit them, they can be super comfortable, usually with a slight push-up effect (like here) due to the cup being a little shallower (as moulded bras are wont to be). The cup and body of the bra is overlaid with a delicate orange scalloped lace that’s the same shade as the fabric underneath. I’d describe the bra shape as a plunge, with a fairly low gore and cups that sit diagonally across the breast.
It’s accessorised with a pretty bejewelled charm at the gore and a “Cybele” metal tag on the side of the main body of the bra. These both give the bra more of an upmarket feel than the price suggests which is awesome.
The straps are fully adjustable and the band fastens at the back with 3 sets of 2 rows of hooks and eyes.
Shape & Appearance – Cybele Beige Underwired Bra
The beige underwired bra is non-padded with a three piece cup shape – the lower part split into two with a vertical seam, and a horizontal upper cup piece. The lace used appears to be the same one in a different shade to the orange padded bra – a delicate design with beautiful scalloped edges that’s very traditionally feminine without being “grannified”. For me, it provides a supported but fairly natural shape.
The colour of this beige bra is wonderful as it has an ashy undertone that suits my skin tone very well and acts as a nude. I have deceptively pale skin meaning that most beige lingerie is in fact slightly too orange for me, but this blends into my skin ridiculously well. The lace is lined, but it is pretty sheer on me though, hence the random stars and hearts – might as well make censoring fun!
Like the other bra, it has the same charm at the gore and metal tag on the side, fully adjustable straps and same back fastening.
Size, fit & comfort
As I said, I chose a 32F in both these bras as my best fitting option, even though that’s technically a size smaller than my usual (pre-pregnancy!) sister size of 28GG, and is technically 2 sizes too big in the band too. The sizing for Cybele runs from 30-42 in the bands, so in reality, I’d have been better with a 30 band, however the 30F would most definitely be too small for me, so instead, Cybele sent me both the 32F and 34F to try. The band on the 34F was far too big, but I was surprised that the cup was also a little big too – I’d expected to have to stick with the 34F so that the cup would fit and struggle with the larger band, so I was pleasantly surprised to find I could manage in the 32F!
As such, both the bands on these bras are too big for me, but not unmanageably so. Up until recently (pregnancy aside), I could wear both bras on their tightest hooks and feel very comfortable in them. In fact, in the couple of months leading up to finding out I was pregnant and the first month or so, these were my most worn bras! While I love my fancy lingerie, I more often than not reach for my basics, and these are excellent basics.
And magically, the 32F beige unpadded bra has managed to fit my new size up until about 2-3 weeks ago, meaning it was one of only 6 bras that made the cut for our recent honeymoon, despite the fact that 4 of the others were in my new 30H/32GG size, and the other was this Empreinte bra that had a little room for growth already. I can only imagine that this is due to the lace being a little on the stretchy side in combination with a larger band, but I was really happy to have a basic nude-for-me bra to wear under clothes while honeymoon and while struggling with finding a new size!
Overall
Both bras were sent with the matching briefs (£14) which were the same style but in different colours. As Char said in her review, they’re wonderfully wedgie-free with a little more coverage than a bikini brief but not quite a short. At the front, the lace is sheer, but the back of the briefs is a soft and stretchy microfibre that’s really comfortable against the skin.
In terms of value for money, I personally think these sets are excellent and very budget-friendly. Considering how much wear they’ve already had in my wardrobe, they’re amazing! They make very good basics that are more than the average lingerie set at a high street price.
The only criticism I’d have is that I wish the sets had better names – and that’s barely a criticism at all!
