Bra-Ventures, Bras and Road Trips, Part 2

If you haven't seen Bra-Ventures, Bras and Roadtrips Part 1, be sure to read it first.
<Back to Part 1

Day 4:

Since it had been a bit chilly the day before, I decided to wear my Comexim 3HC Sonia.  Now my Sonia is a bit special in that i believe it has been mislabeled.  I bought it secondhand off Bratabase and the measurements matched up to my other 3HC's.  My Sonia is a 75G, I would say it fits like an in between of 75F and 70G.  The band is a bit loose and I wear it on the tightest setting, it doesn't seem to ride up any.  Again I did get a bit of the wires resting on my  ribs but not as bad as in Irish Coffee.  I think when I have taken measurements of all my 3HC's I did notice Irish Coffee to be a bit wider than my others, making it most likely shallower so that might be the issue with that.

Comexim Sonia

Bra-Ventures, Bras and Roadtrips, Part 1

This is going to be a bit different from my usual blog posts.  I do mention the bras I packed and my thoughts on them for the day, but it will be heavily focused on our trip.  I hope you enjoy reading this, and let me know your thoughts. This is a 2 part series, click here for Part 2.

So my boyfriend and I live in Ohio and they salt the roads like crazy during the winter, this causes tons of rust especially on older vehicles.  Both of us being car enthusiasts,we tend to have a fondness for older cars.  My boyfriend had owned 29 cars (all used and usually a purchase price under $1000 or he made trades), for vehicle number 30 he wanted to get something he really wanted.  However what he wanted was an early 80's Toyota Pickup, most of which in our area have horrible frame rust (so if not currently structurally unsafe could happen) in addition to body rust.  He scoured craigslist all over the country in regions that don't salt their roads.  He found one in Washington state, despite all their rain, the vehicles there tend to be in good condition.  We planned to fly there and drive the truck home (extensive photos, videos and questions were taken and answered about the truck before purchasing plane tickets).


We both work as independent contractors and didn't have any jobs lined up anytime too soon, so we would be making a vacation out of road trip home.  I wasn't sure how long we would be gone, but I wanted to bring a few bra options.  We were traveling light since we didn't want to deal with any checked bags (I always fear something will get lost and can't justify the cost nor do either of us need that much).  We were able to bring a personal item and carry on bag (we both chose back packs for the personal item). I chose to bring 6 bras with me 3 padded and 3 unlined (unlined are great for not taking up space).

Day 1:

I've been loving my newly acquired Cleo Mimi recently and decided to give it a try for our flight from Ohio to Seattle with a connection in Chicago.  I was very pleased with my decision on that one, it remained comfortable the whole time.  I also partially chose this one for the flight since the band is a bit on the looser side, although I chose not to pack any of my tighter fitting bras that would require an extender.  I was very pleased with the Mimi, it remained comfortable all day and didn't get irritating while being cooped up on the flight (some bras get a bit uncomfortable while sitting especially if you you sitting backwardly).  I put Mimi on at 4am EST and didn't take it off until probably 8pm PST (11pm EST), so that was a long day.  If you haven't read my review on the Cleo Mimi be sure to check it out, I found it to be a good alternative to a Polish half cup and did a comparison.

Sunrise in flight to Seattle

My Thoughts on Cleo Hettie, and Lily Comparison

So when I first began my "ABTF" journey Cleo was constantly recommended as a diagnostic bra for fit to help determine shape since Cleo offers a variety of styles for different shapes.  Marcie for FOT, Lucy for FOB, and Lilly for even.  Being new to unlined bras I was unsure of the profile those bras under a shirt.  Most of Cleo's unlined offerings give a very round shape (which I liked), but also a very front and center profile.

Here's a quick photo guide for the different cuts:

Minnie a Marcie Clone for FOT 32DD

Lily for Even Shapes 34D

Kali a Lucy Clone for FOB 32DD

The front and center made me a bit unsure if I actually liked the way the bras fit, I felt it brought my breasts too much into the center of my body and made me a look a bit less balanced in shape since they moved outer fullness to the center.  However, I have fallen in love with some of their newer designs and decided to give Cleo's unlined offerings another try.  A bit of a spoiler alert, I am very happy I decided to give unlined Cleos another chance.

Cleo had offered to send me a couple bras to review and I already reviewed Mimi a 3 part half cup, which I loved, and they also sent me Hettie.  Hettie unlike Mimi is an unlined balcony with stretch lace at the top.  The Hettie is also a clone of a discontinued favorite Lily.  Lily was best for a mostly even breast shape, and was a bit closed off on top, so the stretch lace on Hettie may make it an option for those who are also more FOT.

Hettie is absolutely gorgeous, although how the color appears can vary a lot based on lighting, fortunately my photos are close to accurate in color.  In many photos Hettie seems to come across as more navy all over, and while the stretch lace is navy the rest of the bra is a more of turquoise with teal dots. This color combo makes for a great contrast, and Hettie is also available in burgundy (I found one at Nordstrom Rack, but it wasn't my size).

Compared to Lily, which I have tried in the past and still have one in a sister size of 34D the Hettie gives a nice round shape, but doesn't seem to pull breasts inside your frame as much (photos in shirt at bottom of post).  The cups actually have a bit of excess fabric on me on the outer section of the bra by the wire,  but I don't think I could size down as I get a touch of in cup quad where the fabric meets the lace, but really only right after scoop and swoop.  This isn't nearly as bad the in cup quad I've gotten in other Cleo's such as the Minnie (a Marcie clone), and isn't noticeable at all under a shirt.

You can kind of see the little bit of in cup quad as well as the wrinkling on the outer section of the cup.

I get a lot moe quadding in Lily, it's also a bit too closed off on top.

Even though I get a tiny bit of in cup quad in Hettie, the stretch lace does gape a little bit, at least after the initial scoop and swoop, but it's mostly near the gore and not bothersome.  Because of this I think Hettie could still accommodate someone who is a bit full on top.  I believe I'm mostly even with some slight FOT tendencies (possibly from being high set).  By contrast, in Lily I have to reverse scoop a bit to get the gore to tack.  The cups on Lily (9in) aren't as deep as Hettie (9.5in) and both bras have a cup width of 5.25in.

Here you can see the little bit of gaping near the gore on one breast.

When the Cleo rep asked me what size I wanted to try I chose 32DD, because I remember a lot of their older models running small, and being between sizes I chose the larger.  I had heard that some of the newer Cleo's were quite stretchy and ran big, but despite knowing that I went with the larger band based on my experience with the older models.  The band on the Hettie does run quite large and it will actually ride up on me on the loosest setting, and still a bit on the tightest.  Hettie stretches to almost 33in, and Lily in 34D stretches to about 32.5, unstretched Hettie is 29.5in, and Lily 28in.  I would definitely suggest sister sizing down for this one.

Band rides up on the loosest hooks, problem is solved by wearing on tightest hooks.

For a comparison this is Lily in 34D and it doesn't seem to ride up as much as Hettie in 32DD.

Despite the big band I do find Hettie to be quite comfortable.  In older Cleo's when I would try to wear them I remember the gore being incredibly stabby especially while sitting.  I've worn Hettie many times now including on a road trip (lots of sitting) and today while finishing my taxes (more sitting, and yes I know I'm cutting it close to the filing deadline, but they are all finished now), and the gore while being a firm tack is still comfortable.  I am more aware of the gore in Hettie than I am in a Comexim or a Curvy Kate, but by no means am I uncomfortable.

I would definitely recommend Hettie especially for those who need a lot of projection and immediate depth.  Also great for an even shape and possibly those who are a bit FOT.  As I mentioned when I reviewed Mimi, I would love to see Cleo try out some lower and narrower gores on their unlined and non moulded cup offerings.

Here's how Hettie and Lily compare in profile under a shirt.

32DD Hettie under a shirt, you can't even notice the in cup quad. (I have no idea what is up with the weird streak of light).

34D Lily under a shirt, I'm getting both in cup and regular quad.

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