When I decided to write a blog review of the Lucky Lingerie, I thought of about 15 thousand innuendos I could include in the post. BUT, my mom reads my blog, so I won't go there. ;) You're welcome mom!

Now to the actual review.

The Rad Patterns Lucky Lingerie is an amazingly fun pattern. It includes, a bra, longline bra, camisole AND nightie. Depending on your fabrics your pattern can go from sexy to everyday with one pattern. And even better is that Stephanie has included multiple bra cup options (small, regular and large). Even better than that, the back pattern piece stays the same for every bra cup. You might be thinking, "um, ok, why does that matter?" Oh it matters plenty. You can see my ramblings about that on this blog post here.

But let's not dwell on previous stuff. Moving forward. My measurements (as it pertains to this pattern) are 32.5" underbust, 39" full bust and 38" hip. That puts me exactly half way between the small and medium underbust size. HOWEVER, there is no 39" full bust for the size small. After talking with Stephanie of Rad Patterns, I opted for the small back and bra band and medium cup sizes. Now I foolishly went with the regular medium cup. Who was I kidding? My measurements might fit in that cup, but there's too much there to actually fit a regular cup, LOL.




So round one muslin was a fail. That's ok. Firstly because it showed me what things I might want to change. And secondly, it reminded me not to be dumb, lol. This is the one place I will make a valid complaint (and it is super minor). The longline bra fits down the sides of your body, but there was no measurement chart for the waist of the longline. I know I should have known to let out the waist, but  didn't. Shame on me. Anyway, if you're making the longline, be sure to check out the waist measurement chart to be sure you can squeeze into the longline size that you pick. For me, my ribs are quite prominent and my waist isn't very small (compared to my underbust anyway, they're the same), so i was better off with the medium longline than the small. I actually had to have my husband help me cut off my muslin. I couldn't breathe. o.O

Alright, so muslin was a fail, but obviously I've got this great Leopard Single Brushed Poly bra with fabric from Sly Fox Fabrics, so how'd I fix it?
#1- I went up to the large cup medium. This is definitely a better overall fit. For me, I think I'll bring the underarm up just a bit for more side support. But overall, I'm happy with the cup fit.
#2- I made the straps wider. the 1/2" wide strap just isn't big enough to feel comfortable with my large bust. Plus, it was a PITA to turn. It was easy to add 1/4" to each side of the strap. This also made it WAY easier to turn the straps. If you don't have a strap turner, buy one. But in the mean time, I prefer the wider straps anyway.
#3- I made the size medium longline. My ribs are actually 2" wider than my underbust, so this helped give me some more space to breathe without sacrificing the smaller back (which I definitely need.
#4- I shorted my straps. Be prepared to change up the strap length as it is going to vary a lot from person to person.

Improvements for next time?

#1- Power mesh. If you have a large bust and you haven't heard of power mesh, you're missing out! A good powermesh in a sports bra can take me from "giant" cup size to a b-cup. This obviously isn't a sports bra but adding powermesh to the cups only will provide more support, lift and Oomph.

#2- Boning. This pattern recommends adding boning to the long line for extra support too. In my case, the boning should stop the longline from trying to roll up into my underbust. This happens to me because my underbust is 32.5" but my rib cage directly under my underbust is 34". The fabric always wants to roll to the smallest area. The boning will help. I already own "sew in" boning for a dress project, so I'll definitely be trying that next.

My recommendations for what it is worth. As much as I love brushed poly I used cotton/lycra for the lining. Brushed poly does not absorb sweat, so be sure that what you put against your skin either wicks sweat away, or will absorb it so you don't feel sweaty and gross. Measure your underbust and your ribs. If your ribs are bigger, size up at least at the waist of your longline bra. If you're too big for the largest cup size in your underbust size, size up, but be sure to use the "Large" cup size, even if you fit into the regular cup size. And as always, make a muslin so you can be sure that your good fabric doesn't go in the trash. :)

Of course, etsy doesn't have an affiliate program, but please, feel free to tell Stephanie I sent you.