Lounge underwear, behind the hype.

All items in this review have been purchased by myself at full price. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

If you’ve followed me for a while, you know that I can be a bit of a… snob. It’s no secret that I prefer the luxury end of the lingerie spectrum not only because of design but because it’s usually more clear cut when it comes to ethical operating standards. The high street brands on the other hand tend to be a bit murky in that regard. I do however recognise that accessibility is a key issue; be that price, physical stores, fast shipping or easier to wear designs. Lounge Lingerie’s key strengths lay in its direct to consumer business model; prioritising fast shipping, trending styles and really embracing social media and the power of influencers.

It’s a brand I’ve never tried until now (its been up and running for 7 years now) and I thought I would start with quite a striking set and definitely one of the sexiest styles they do. This is the Livia set. It is comprised of a wired bra with cut outs, a suspender belt that is more like a waspie/body piece, as well as a thong and garters. One thing I find interesting is that everything seems to come as sets, you can’t buy just a bra. Ease of shopping or is it obligated up selling?

I ordered the bra in a size 36G (I’m a 32HH but the biggest cup they do is a G) and with the thong and suspender I had to order the same size so I got them in a XL. The garters appear to be one size. This set cost £100 and the shipping was free on orders over £40. I chose this set because I am a bigger body than what you see on Lounge’s Instagram and I thought the large straps would work well on my fame. Also we love a bit of bondage inspiration. So starting off, this set is not unique. You can find variations of this design on Amazon, Honey Bridette, Bluebella, Bordelle ect. It does make me wonder if this design was done in house or bought. Nothing at Lounge is particularly original or different but it is very approachable and eye catching.

The two things I was most concerned about when buying this product was the fit and the quality. It’s hard to tell too much about quality without long term wear (watch this space for updates) but first impressions seems like it’s actually quite good for the price point. No straps have been sewn twisted, no stray threads, all the hardware seems in good condition and generally no obvious flaws are present.

Trying it on though is a different matter. The highlight of this set is the thong. It fits, it looks good and it works with the rest of the set. The garters come up small which makes me think they are a one-size-fits-all situation across their size range which is alarming.

The bra, even though it’s basically my sister size, fits so so so bad. The wires feel like they are made for a 34DD (They come up small and are very flexible). The design of the bra is nice but it was disappointing how small the wires were and the lack of capacity in the cup. It’s obviously designed for a certain look and a certain consumer who wants the too small look. Or they just really don’t care about sizing but then why offer up to a G when it’s not..

But the worst part of this set was unfortunately the part that made me want to try it in the first place, the waspie. It was near impossible to put on by myself and and the grading was very off in my opinion. The use of very flexible materials up top, and then ridged material at the bottom, play a part in why this feels so out of proportion. My guess is that they fitted this on their smallest size and just graded up without testing because somehow the ribcage was enormous. This would make sense in the smallest size with it being a 24-26 inch waist and a 28-30 inch underband. The suspender straps are really wide which is fine but the suspender tabs used, and the way they have been tacked to the ribbon, makes it nearly impossible to attach them to stockings or the garters. If it wasn’t for the suspender straps I would have thought that I’d put on this piece upside down. The way that it fits, I could only suggest this piece likely to fit someone who is more of a triangle shape. Bigger underband yet hips and waist narrower.

The mesh on this body piece is very soft and the elastics and metal components are quite heavy so it has already warped out of shape after a few hours of wear. The zip appears to be upside down. It zips from top to bottom not bottom to top. I’m above average in height and yet the zip tends to buckle on the back as if there is too much length.

Overall I am disappointed in this set, I wouldn’t recommend wearing it outside of the house or count on getting too much wear out of it. Things I’d like to see change would be multiple sizing on the garters, getting better wires for the bra as well as adding in adjustability i.e. sliders on the bra band, suspender + thong, and perhaps a use of power mesh instead of a brief mesh on the suspender so the tension is more even to avoid warping.

What are your thoughts on Lounge Underwear? Id love to hear from anyone who’s tried especially those from the top of the size range.