Tomima’s Blog – Lingerie & Underwear Expert

There’s been quite a bit of advertising about Victoria’s Secret’s "Miraculous" Push-up bra.  Made by the Maidenform Company, the claim is that special padding lifts you up and out, thus adding up to 2 full cup sizes to your breasts.  And it does all of this with amazing comfort while keeping a natural shape.

Wow!  That’s quite a promise.  So, I went and bought one and put it to the test.  By way of explanation, a one inch increase in the circumference of your chest along the nipple line qualifies as a cup size increase.  So, to make their claim true, a total of 2 inches to the circumference needs to be achieved.

So, here are the results.  We used one of our 34B models. Her measurements are:

Band 34"

Bust 36"

First, we put her in the Spanx 216 Bra-llelujah contour bra.  These photographs show her shape. 

We then put her in Victoria’s Secret "Miraculous" bra.  Her measurements became:

Band 34"

Bust 38"

So, the claim is correct; her bust circumference increased by 2 inches.  And, I must say,  her cleavage and shape look natural and fabulous.

As I mentioned earlier, this bra is made by the Maidenform company.  And, apparently a deal was cut whereby Victoria’s Secret gets the exclusive for the first 6 months.  And boy, are they taking advantage.  The Victoria price is $48 for the solid colors and $52 for the prints. 

The Maidenform version, called "Twice As Nice" will be arriving in late June 2010.  Their design will have some differences – a little more coverage in the cups, a more stabilizing center front, and a different back design to provide more support.  Whereas the Victoria’s Secret bra goes up to DD cup sizing, the Maidenform will only go up to D cups. And, the biggest difference of all will be the pricing. The Maidenform price will be just $34. That’s a 30% price savings!

Personally, I’m very impressed.  The Maidenform Company, in my opinion, is the current leader in innovative bra designs. They have done a super job here creating a look of more natural cleavage. 

On a final note, I do want to point out that we tried to measure the thickness of the padding in this bra.  In some places, the padding is over 1 inch thick.  So, I have a bit of a concern with how to care for it.  You don’t want to stick it in the dryer, yet with all that padding, will it dry fast enough so that there won’t be a problem with mildew from line drying?  The jury is out on this one.

Maidenform & Victoria’s Secret have teamed up before on the Total Solution and Perfect One Bras.

Find Maidenform lingerie at HerRoom in these departments:
Bras
Panties

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I am really excited about the swimwear department we’ve added to HerRoom.  Like most women, I hate going bathing suit shopping because suits never look or fit right. The suits I try on either smash my breasts, and/or have no support.  And when a bathing suit claims to have a light pad in the cups for modesty, it’s nothing more than some triangle piece of flimsy fabric that quickly gets balled up and never sits right.

Since we deal with lingerie manufacturers, my buyers were delighted to see that several of the ones we work with are now taking their expertise in bra manufacturing to the swimwear arena.  But, they have also sized the swimsuits the same way they size bras.  A simple idea, but what a difference it makes.

Right now, HerRoom has a great collection of bra-sized swimwear on our site — specifically, Freya and Fantasie swimwear. We found a fabulous F cup model, and made a video fashion show to show you how great the full figure women can look on the beach or by the pool.  Oh, and the swim suits from these two brands go up to an H cup in many of the styles.

Below is our video. Sit back, enjoy, and be surprised by how great swimwear will now look on you.  It’s actually fun to buy a bathing suit!

Find bathing suits at HerRoom in these departments:
Swimwear

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Okay, this one totally stumped me.  Crinkly cleavage?  What is this?  Is this yet another thing to look forward to in old age?

Apparently this is all about a smooth decolletage. While many of us have spent a lifetime lifting and pushing together our breasts to create cleavage, women with natural cleavage claim that vertical wrinkles can form, causing less-than-smooth skin in their decolletage… who knew?

Rachel de Boer, a Dutch designer has invented the La Decollete.  She explained that these crinkly wrinkles are formed mostly at night when women sleep on their side and their breasts are thus stacked on one another.  Her design provides a layer of cushioning between breasts and prevents this apparent breast squeezing.

This bra was first marketed in the UK starting last October.  At a cost of $75 USD, the wearer must really want to prevent this problem.  Of course, these same vertical wrinkles can also be caused by advanced age and too much sun.

So, if you are wearing this to keep your decollatage smooth for the opposite sex, how do you think he’s going to react when he sees you wearing this thing in bed?

Is women’s lingerie just a magnet for strange products? There are plenty more in Tomima Unplugged.

Find all kinds of lingerie accessories, from nipple concealers to back extenders in HerRoom’s Etcetera Department.

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