Bra styles

[whatsagoodusername]

Hoping someone can enlighten me a bit...

What is the difference between balconette and plunge bras? I get it, more or less about the cut, but what difference does it make to shape?

Plunge bras suit me. I find that balconette bras do not - they make me look like I've got my boobs plopped on a shelf. But when I am browsing in the Bravissimo catalogue, all the ones I like are the balconette and it's a bit frustrating because I am reasonably sure they will not work for me once I've got it on.

My current day-to-day bra is a "plunge balcony" from Freya. So will some of the balconettes work for me, or should I just steer clear altogether?

A plunge tends to give good cleavage whilst a balconette (and half cup) gives better lift and a 'cakes on a plate' look.

Plunge bras tend to work with breasts which aren't too bottom heavy or soft, e.g. young, firm boobs! I have fairly well balanced breasts but they are quite large (30GG) and I tend to fall out of the middle of plunge styles if I'm not careful. Many plunge bras are also moulded in style which some people find hard to get a good fit with as they don't mould to your own shape and cause gaping.

Personally, I love balconettes as they give good lift and the ones I wear give a great forward, founded shape too.

Another fly in the ointment is that there isn't a clear definition/boundary between the styles so you can't rely on the names sometimes. To me:

Plunge - very low in the centre, mainly cleavage creating! satine
Half cup - quite straight cut across the breasts, often not much higher than the nipple. Good for very wide necked/scoop tops where the sides of a plunge might be visible mademoiselle
Balconette - a more supportive, higher cut but sSill quite a wide neckline and not super high coverage . Cleo Juna, Cleo Marcie etc. Still quite a wide neckline
Balcony - higher still, comes in more over the breast but (assuming not a moulded) should still be constructed in such a way that the piece of fabric the strap attaches to also goes under the breast. The Freya balconies are what I would call a true balcony example
Full cup - these are high, full coverage but also have a different construction with a seam running across the cup. andorra

Thank you!