Good grief, Figleaves has seriously been on FIRE lately. One of my favorite lingerie e-retailers, I continue to be impressed with both their buyers and their in-house designers. Not only are they stocking some of my absolute favorite brands’ best full-bust styles for this season (check out Cleo’s Jolie, Sculptresse’s Paradise, Fantasie’s Ivana, Freya’s Deco Vibe and Deco Darling, and Panache’s Clara), but from clothes to swimwear to activewear to boudoir lingerie, Figleaves has been turning out some really fantastic in-house designs for D-G (and in some cases D-H) cup sizes that should be making their competitors sit up and take notice.
While I admire lots of the new styles, like pretty new white colorway for Lucille from Lulu Tout (one of Figleaves’ in-house brands), I literally gasped aloud when I saw the show-stopping Illicite collection for B-G cup sizes.
Figleaves Boudoir Illicite Bra, Suspender, and Brief. Bra sizes 30-36 B-G, accessories in sizes 8-16 (UK).
Now look, I love me some comfy underwear. I have several pairs of gigantic cotton high-waist knickers in both beige and black, and I wear them with pride. If something’s too fiddly or wiggly or poke-y for me to get comfortable, it’s going to spend most of its life in the back of my drawer. But sometimes you might really want some show-stopping, completely impractical, make-you-feel-like-a-total-goddess lingerie, and oh boy does this collection deliver.
Strappy and bondage-inspired elements have been big in the lingerie world for the past few seasons (and show little sign of slowing down), but for the most part the full-bust world has continued with the same pin-up/heavy lace/whimsical pattern/polka-dot formula that’s served them well over the last decade. There are good reasons for this: despite increasing awareness of and demand for full-bust sizes, DD+ bras are still considered “niche” by many in the industry, and in a still-precarious retail environment, both brands and retailers are looking to produce and stock styles that are guaranteed to sell. Styles like Illicite, with minimal coverage, an extremely low-cut (and shallow-looking) cup, and straps that might prove a tricky fit, are a much riskier venture, and they won’t appeal to every customer.
Figleaves Boudoir Illicite Basque and Thong. Basque sizes 30-36 B-G, accessories in sizes 8-16 (UK). Normally I love the look of basques, but in this case, I think the intricacy and interest of all the overlapping straps in the bra/brief/suspender ensemble can’t be beat.
While I can’t imagine wanting to wear an ensemble like this every day, I’m really, really delighted that such a thing exists. I had a wonderful time in London browsing boutiques stocked with similarly adventurous styles, almost all of which were available in petite or core sizes only. As fun as they were to look at, after a while I got that uncomfortable feeling of being left out, like my size and my stature disqualified me from sharing in the fun. While I know the Illicite size range doesn’t cover a large portion of the range of full-bust sizes, it’s still really exciting to see a collection that delivers the same level of overtly sexy, fantastical lingerie for D+ customers.
Close-up detail of the brief and suspender.
Illicite is available exclusively at Figleaves in sizes 30-36 B-G (UK sizes, so the cup size progression is B, C, D, DD, E, F, FF, G).
What do you think of the collection? Is it something you’d like to try, or do you prefer to invest in styles that feel more basic? Would you like to see more full-bust offerings like this?