Swimwear Challenge - Eveden Fantasie Valetta Tankini and Briefs

For our final challenge the amazing team at Eveden offered us the chance to select swimwear from their ranges, if you are unfamiliar with the name Eveden, they encompass Freya, Fantasie, Fauve, Elomie, Huit and Goddess.

Now with our ample assets we are out of luck in the Huit and Fauve ranges but I can shop in the Freya, Fantasie, Goddess and Elomi Ranges with ease and I love all three, but as Elomi is well known in plus sizes and freya is a popular brand I decided to give something from the Fantasie side a whirl and I wasn't disappointed!

A Fantasie bra was the very first bra I was fitted correctly in about 9 years ago, I have always made sure I am in a correctly fitting bra as it means less back ache, better shape!

With bikinis and swimsuits I prefer one with an inbuilt bra as it helps keep my rather large assets under control, and it just gives me more comfort and support in general.

So onto the review the set I went for was the Valetta - Persian Blue Tankini £59 and the Fold down Briefs - £26.50

The colours are amazing, so vivid and cheerful! 

The cups fit well, but think I could have gotten away with a cup size down in this 38H as it is fairly generous!

Bra hook and eye fastening, which I find so much more secure than plastic bikini clasps!

 Fully adjustable straps, which are a must for my tiny short shoulders!

Fold down brief detail!

My thoughts

Appearance - The pattern of this tankini is bold and vibrant not really for some but for me I really loved it and I am not normally a flowery sort of girl (just realised I am typing this in a floral dress!) but it is so pretty and sunny it can't help but give it a good score here. 4/5

Fit - The overall fit is excellent, although I could go down a cup size it isn't obvious and it is not gaping all over, its just a feeling I have but the briefs and the body of the tankini have excellent space and I can fault them on that! 4/5

Comfort - superbly comfortable, for someone who isn't at the 100% body confidence stage I feel I would be happy to wear this at the beach or swimming pool. 5/5

Performance - I haven't been swimming in this one yet due to major crazy decoration sprees but it has been for a test in the shower and had the full giggle and bounce tests, and I have to say it held up beautifully! 5/5

Value - With the tankini coming in at £59 and the bottoms £26.50 this is at the top end of the majority of people budgets but in comparison to the other suits I have tried during this challenge, the material thickness and the bra shape and support have been outstanding in this suit so I feel you are getting what you pay for, though the high, high cost is going to mean a lower score in this.  2.5/5

Coverage -  The coverage was excellent, the cups encompassed my breasts with no spillage and the tankini was a good length on me. 5/5

This has been my favourite from the whole challenge with the Evans swimsuit coming in second and the Panache from Tesco last, I am hoping to visit a lovely spa with my best friend soon so will be taking this little beauty with me for the day!

We hope this series has helped some of you ladies to find something suitable for your holidays and swim sessions.

If you want to look back at the other swimwear challenges you can click the links below

TESCO - EVANS 

Also go check out the other fabulous ladies in there swimwear Becky - Gina - Sara

Thank you Becky for inviting me to take part in this, it has been fabulous and challenging! 

Mhairi

xxx

Out of curiosity, do my Lingerie and Swimwear type post appeal to you, I am hoping to add a couple of new fantasie sets to my collection in september/october and if they are of interest I will happily post about them here for you.
the two I am looking at are 

Susanna - this antique gold set makes me so happy, its just so pretty, I have been obsessing about it since the press day.

Nicola - this lovely seal set is just so pretty!

So would you like to see them reviewed if I ever get my hands on them, finances permitting!

Plus Size Swimwear Challenge - Tesco

Plus Size Swimwear Challenge

Well hello again and welcome to our Plus Size Swimwear Challenge, myself and 3 other bloggers are challenging ourselves to try out some plus size swimwear, and be brave enough to blog about it. 

For me this is a huge thing as I can tell you that it is at least 5 years since I even went swimming, so swimwear has not been a priority for me, but I need to get fitter and swimming is an excellent way for me to do this.

Swimwear for me is doubly challenging, firstly I am plus size, obviously,  but I also have a very large bust at a 36/38H I struggle to get decent fitting bra's let alone swimsuits, I need support and plenty of it!!

The first swimwear I have been sent to try is from the lovely people at Tesco's, I choose the Panache Natalia Fuller Tankini top and bottoms in a 38G which is the largest size they do.

We are all following the same 5 step review to give a consistent report across all the swimwear.

So here goes.

Appearance 

The swimsuit is beautiful in person with vibrant colours and nice thick material.

I love the fold down panel on the bottoms as it made me feel more secure and helped hide my pre menstrual (sorry for the TMI) bloated tummy, this I like, I loved the purple trim on the top but not the bow on the bust so much as because it is round lace like ribbon it just doesn't look nice tied and wont sit right at all. 

It has nice little metal panache tags on the top and bottoms which thank goodness aren't in awkward positions and are just kind of cute! yes I like strange things :) 

Fit

This is where this Tankini fell down for me, the bottoms fitted beautifully, but the top was a strange one!

It has a full insert bra with 2 hook and eye fastenings with 3 rows which I love! I hate fiddling with bikini fastenings and they always snap on me! 

The problem I had is that the Bra fits my bust really well, but the swimsuit itself does not have enough material to encompass my ladies so it pulls down and shows the wires, not I think I am slightly bigger than the cup size of this tankini but I found it odd that the bra section fits so well but the suit is low on material!

I am not sure if Panache themselves make this in a bigger size but it would be interesting to try in some bigger sizes to see if it corrects itself with a bigger cup.

Comfort

The Tankini is very comfortable and if you have a smaller bust than me, I would highly recommend it, the bottoms give a nice silhouette and the material is lovely, I unfortunately can't vouch for it in the swimming pool as I am one too ill to manage walking there and two my ladies would most likely fall right out of the costume as it is. I am thinking of trying a stitch or two to bring the material to the wires so its a bit more secure but wanted to show it as is for the purposes of the review.

Coverage

The coverage for me is excellent, apart from the obvious boobage issue, but the top is nice and long easily reaching just past the top of the bottoms, and the bottoms themselves are tight but not bulgy and cover my amply bottom nicely. the back comes up high enough for there to be no lumps and bumps on show.

Performance

Well I cant give you a review on swimming performance but i performed jiggle tests and laying down tests, and it looks good, my boobs stayed in and it was comfy to lay down in so for a summer sunshine holiday I would be happy to take this with me either with the little stitch in or with the larger cup. 

Excuse the shorts but I am not well enough to worry about bikini waxes at the moment :)

Value

Well the Tankini isn't the cheapest item that Tesco's sell but if like me you have a big bust it might be a good option to look at, the price of £52.50 might be a it high for some, and possibly would be for me if it is only getting used for a one off holiday, but if I can wear it happily at the swimming pool too, then I will pay this happily if it gives me the confidence to go! 

Value is subjective, if you can afford it, go for it if not I would try something from Tescos other ranges. 

Overall I do love this Tankini, and if I can make it work, I would be a very happy girl!

Make sure you check out the other fabulous ladies taking part in the swimwear challenge.

Becky - The Ramblings of Mrsbebe

Gina - Fat Fit Fine

Sara - Confusedbrit

Simply Be SS12 Launch event

Yesterday I had the pleasure and privilage to be invited to the Simply Be SS12 Launch, it was such an amazing day and I saw some gorgeous clothing and underwear that I cant wait to get my hands on.

I will start my account of the day with my journey, which turned out to be so embarrassing and hilarious that it kept me going all day.
When I got off my train at kings cross and headed for the victoria line to get myself to oxford circus, I noticed my skirt was very swishy in the wind walking to the underground, but I didn't think anything of it.
I should have.... as I entered the platform for the victoria line, a train was just leaving the station add a big gust of wind flew down the tunnel, this resulted in my skirt flying up and over my head revealing my tights and knickers to the people on the platform, the guy nearest me was trying so hard not let me see his smile but to be honest I was laughing so hard I did not care.

My only thought was, well if I can survive that I don't need to worry about the rest of the day, and I really didn't.

I took a few photos from the event and more can be seen on the Simply be and Simply yours blog pages so make sure you check them out.

This is going to be a lot of pictures.

This gorgeous White and Red set jumped out at me the instant I walked int he room, I love a good polka dot, and this is a GOOD polka dot!

The shape wear all looked divine, with beautiful lace panels and sexy shapes so much nicer than the often boring black or frumpy looking sucky in bits of the past!

I need a holiday just so I can both of the retro inspired polka dot swimwear and also the other red/white/blue print tankini to the right, they looked absolutely fab!

All the other colours looked gorgeous too.

Chanos bra with the most gorgeous little details, so pretty.

The lovely Ceri from Curvyguru! 

These WILL be mine!

Finally a company is realising we don't all want to wear shapeless black tents!!

Pretty Bags and sandals for the summer.

My picture doesnt do them justice but these were such a gorgeous coral colour and the heel looked perfect, anyone inviting me to a summer wedding?

Lace and pink, felt gorgeous!!

Think I have found my summer maxi dress.

Loved how vibrant the colours are.

Loved this dress fat girls CAN wear white!

The girly pink flowers on this little shrug jacket were just gorgeous.

And the jumpsuit teamed with it, may have tempted me to give one a try, it felt soft but the material was heavy enough that it didn't feel like it was going to cling in all the wrong places and hang like a sack.

Not usually one for yell but I loved this blouse with its tiny black stars all over, think this will be added to my wardrobe as well.

And all of us bloggers together.
Back left to right Em from oh the places you'll go, Ceri from curvyguru, Naomi from Diamonds 'n' Pearls, Me, Georgina from fullerfigurefullerbust.
Front left to right Lauren from pocketrocket and Rosie from A rose like this.

All the wonderful people i met yesterday were so friendly and made me feel welcome, especially as I was a nervous wreck, I really hope I get to spend more time with them in the future as I had a fabulous day.

I would like to say a special thank you to Charlotte Simply be who has been so fantastic inviting me along and allowing me to select some gorgeous items from the current collection online at Simply Be for review.

So watch this space my reviews will be coming up in the near future.

Mhairi. xxxx