Cleo are, for me, a pretty failsafe brand and I tend to find that most of their items fit me pretty well (with quite a few achieving pretty impressive scores in their reviews!). It wasn’t until Cleo’s Meg got a pretty lacklustre 7/10 that I started to doubt in Cleo’s flawlessness. I was especially disappointed as the Meg style became the base for many beautiful colourways – often some of my favourite styles from each Cleo collection.
It wasn’t until Moda back in February (when this season’s collections were showcased), that it was mentioned to me that the ‘Meg’ style had had a teeny-tiny fit refresh; so when the Cleo Lily (which looks spookily similar with its cutesy parrot print – can you tell the Cleo design team like bird print?!) sparked my attention I simply had to put that theory to the test.
I’m delighted to report that, once again, Cleo as a brand have absolutely knocked it out of the ballpark with Lily. She fits just as gloriously as any of my other dearly loved Cleo sets (Marcie and Melissa being two great examples).
The creasing and puckering in the cups (as seen in Meg) are long gone, and in their place are flawless smooth lines and a lovely rounded shape.
I picked up the bra in my ‘usual’ size of 30FF. When I tried the Meg I needed a 30F, but I put that down to a change in my size rather than idiosyncrasies in Panache’s sizing.
The cups feel a touch wider set than the Marcie, which isn’t such a bad thing for me with my wider set boobs, and I don’t think would be much of an issue for ladies with a closer set pair. It’s just something to bear in mind if you’re looking for a twin to your Marcie set – a widely-loved Cleo bra amongst so many bra bloggers. Lily will still be 100% worth a try on, though; if you like the colour and print (who wouldn’t?!).
I think she’s a great option for every day, especially under darker tops. Navy is a perfect alternative to the black bra. Plus the addition of a pretty parrot print and some salmon pink straps and you’ve got a young, fresh and fun version of a basic bra.
The only problem with Lily (and it is quite a minor niggle) is that I wish that the parrots within the print were a tiny bit brighter. Even from new, they have this slight washed out look to them. It doesn’t look bad as such, but I’ve noticed it.
If you want to try Lily for yourself, you can snap her up from Bravissimoand Very.
Attractiveness: 9/10
Fit: 10/10
Comfort: 9/10
Styling: 8/10
Support: 10/10
Shape: 10/10
Price vs. Quality: 9/10
Re-purchasability: 10/10
Invest In Your Chest Rating: 9.5/10
