Lilyette Bras

Bra shopping is a horrible experience, and I hate it.  Of course, all women already know the horrors of bra shopping.  If this review were about shopping for bras, we would be done now.  Unfortunately for you, dear reader, we are going to delve into the world of the bra.  Some of you don't know much about them, as you don't wear them.  Mark thinks putting one on his head makes him a bumblebee.  By the time we're done, you'll have a pretty good idea how I feel about the Lilyette bra I bought a few weeks back, as well as its evil twin.

Because of my aversion to bra shopping, I will wear a couple of bras until they pretty much wither away and waste into nothing.  A few weeks ago, my bras had pretty much died.  They weren't giving me a whole lot of support, so I broke down and wandered into the bra section of a local department store.  I grabbed a few bras that I thought were my size, as well as a couple that were a one size difference.  See, the first problem with bras is that they don't all fit the same.  It's the same as buying jeans or a t-shirt.  Each store and brand is a bit different.  Add my unusual size into the mix, and I'm lucky to find a total of three or four bras to even try on.

Out of the eight or so bras I grabbed, the first one was the only one that felt like a good fit.  It just so happened to be a Lilyette minimizer bra.  I had never tried this brand before, but it felt great when I tried it on.  I had picked up a nude color and went to grab a black one, as well.  Unfortunately, because I'm not a normal or average size, they didn't have a black bra in my chosen style in my size.  Undaunted, I purchased the nude bra and set off for whatever adventures awaited me.

Cut to two days later.  I loved my new bra so much that I went online and ordered the same bra in black.  My new bra needed an evil twin, and the internet agreed to deliver.  

Cut to another two days later.  My black bra hasn't arrived yet, and I start having problems with my nude bra.  All of a sudden, the material surrounding the under-wire was moving freely around the wire.  This means that certain parts of ones anatomy aren't staying where they're supposed to stay.  There is a constant battle to keep them from escaping.

Cut to almost three weeks later.  I've had my black bra for a while now, and it does not exhibit the same flaw as the nude one.  It turns out the nude bra is actually the evil one.  If I'm just reviewing the black bra, it is wonderful.  It has kept form and shape.  It doesn't slide down throughout the day.  The rings on the straps that allow you to alter the strap length stay put, unlike the last couple of bras I had.  It really is a perfect bra.  The biggest complaint I have about the black bra is that it has lace on the outside of the cup, which can cause finer material shirts to look odd due to the lace pattern behind the material.

My only complaint about the nude bra is the problem I am having with the material moving around near the under-wire.  Unfortunately, this is a huge problem.  If the bra were months old, I could understand having a problem like this.  Having this problem surface in under a week is unacceptable.  Once you wear a bra, you can't return it.  I don't believe it can be exchanged either.  As the material rolls one way, the cargo rolls another, gravity inspired way.

In an attempt to restore my faith in the Lilyette line of bras, I decided to research them and find a customer service number.  It turns out that they are made by Maindenform.  I had not owned any of their products in the past, so I had no preconceived notions.  I sent them an email to day, explaining the problem.  I'm waiting to hear back, to see if they have an acceptable solution.

If you're looking for an inexpensive bra that is comfortable and able to handle plenty, give Lilyette a shot.  The bras I picked out run around twenty dollars.  Keep in mind that you have a fifty fifty shot of getting a bra that keeps its form.  It's possible I just got a bra that is defective.  We'll see how Maidenform handles my email.


UPDATE!

Earlier today, I received a response from Maidenform.  If I mail the defective bra back to them, they will ship me a new one.  I have to pay for shipping, but it's better than nothing.  Based on their customer service, I would definitely buy more merchandise from them.