From the years spent with my boobs (about a decade now), I learned they like to be supported and treated as individuals – that is they are not very fond of the monoboob I sported for most of my pre-enlightened teenage years. It goes beyond bad fitting though. Especially with a heavier top over, some of the Marie Antoinette cuts such as Tease me by Curvy Kate or my favourite Fauve Coco half cup can look a bit wider and shapeless even when fitted perfectly. The Emmanuelle full cup is the very opposite. It is a purple/bronze/dark salmon (is that even a colour?!) on black – to name just the combination I personally own – testimony to the fact that full cup bras can be stunning and practical as they set the boobs apart, creating a clear, slim silhouette.
Shape
Fauve’s staple bra has two forms – a half cup going up to a G cup which I haven’t tried as of yet and a full cup up to GG, which has come to be my everyday bra. It is comfortable yet firm, contains the breast tissue everywhere and still looks fabulous, classy and far from boring. Its magic for me lies in the forward projection of the full cup cut – not entirely rounded but just projected enough to create the 50’s look under clothes; two boobs rather than a shelf. Unlike some other pointy bras (especially Freya in my experience) however, the solid material makes the shape still very natural.
The bra itself consists of two firm panels and a non-stretchy top lace panel, with eye catching, (absolutely flat) embroidery over the whole cup. The firmness of the material as well as the fact it does not create any bulging under even the thinnest fabric makes it a perfect everyday, t-shirt bra! It does not have any further reinforced support in the elastic side panels but I have never felt anything but fully supported in this bra. One more point worth making, especially considering the price of the bra (retails at £54) – the band definitely does not stretch out much over time! On my older one, heavily worn for over 4 years (which I must admit I still wear), the band is still very firm, on the newer one even more so!
Fit
With Fauve in general I find their cups a teeny weeny bit more generous than Freya. I own all my Emmanuelles in 30GG (rather than H). The band is true to size, quite firm and not particularly stretchy. While the straps are not exactly fully adjustable, their front slightly decorated part can be easily adjusted if needed. The central gore is medium high with the underwires sitting right next to each other (with a barely fitting central bow). This helps with forward rather than east west projection but might be uncomfortable for someone with a wider set bust. I feel the forward projection, lack of complete “globes” shape and clear separation (again helped by the very slightly pointy shape) cuts a much slimmer figure on me. At the same time, it is a warning for everyone who desires the perfect roundness of Deco! As I have mentioned, the bra is extremely good at containing all the flash (I have used it for sports as well – don’t hit me!) due to its high wings, which is another thing to keep in mind as for some people it can rub uncomfortably in the armpit area. However the fabric is firm yet soft so although it comes up fairly high on me too I have never experienced any problems with it.
Design
Although Fauve Emanuelle was my very first absolutely well fitting bra, being a 22-year-old young woman I do at times find myself a bit unsure with full cups. Are they attractive? I have been given a fair amount of cleavage – do I just want to hide it? Shouldn’t I like my own body enough to display my…assets with pride? I have come to view the full cup Emmanuelle as an endlessly practical yet beautiful choice. The art nouveau embroidery is gorgeous and while I am not entranced by all of the colourways (pink lipstick anyone?!?!), the absolute majority is simply stunning. The design is in fact quite simple, but sports little details such as a grown up “no shit” bow (never thought I would describe a bow like that!) or straps which are wide enough to offer comfortable support yet with a line in the middle making them optically slimmer. In the matching panties department I have tried a brief and a short (the latter being my preferred option due to less ruffling), but there is a thong available as well, always with the same striking embroidery on the front and delicate background colour material on the back.
Emmanuelle has been a best seller for Fauve over the last few years and has come out in many colours. The last – the sunset (aka dark salmon in my colourbook) on black – is in stores at the moment, with the previous collections available on ebay and many on-line retailer sites in both full price and on discounts. As it is possibly my most favourite bra, I believe this review was to be written “now or never”. In SS14 season, it will be substituted by a very similarly cut Lavinia – from the pictures I assume the only tweak will be in the embroidery, which looks a bit more baroque/medieval to me.
Overview
As I have been informed by Mr Fringster, Emmanuelle is not really a particularly sexy or playful bra (as it doesn’t really show or tease); rather it is classy, grown up, with a strong, independent woman feel to it. It is a bra you can trust in all situations – under clothes, without clothes on, when running for a bus, in a business meeting or simply on a day about.
The Fringster 