Any lady with a bra size past a DD cup knows that trying to find a shirt, dress, cardigan or coat that will button up properly is damn near impossible.
Clothing on the high street is simply not made for women of unreasonable breast size. You can be a size 12 with a set of G cups, but good luck finding a dress for your Christmas party. Even the most casual of outfits can suddenly be turned into some sort of wayward peep show, with any movement freeing the clasp of your dress or the buttons of your top. Not exactly what you want while at your niece's first birthday party, eh?
Thanks to the Twitter Lady Elite (Moran, Laverne, Knight, Balding) I heard about Saint Bustier, a shop that caters for big-busted ladies, cups D-H, up to sizes 8 - 18. I had my doubts about Saint Busiter, simply because most shops that cater for ladies of the curvy persuasion go for the Cover-Up method, thinking that that all we want to do is hide our cleavage, hide our hips and makes us look like we're wearing poorly-fitted onsies.
However, browsing through Saint Bustier's virtual racks (no pun intended) it's clear that they make clothes for women who like things a bit tighter fitting, as well as those of us who want clothes that skim over certain ares of the body that we don't want to draw attention to. It's a hard balance all needs and wants of female customers, but so far it seems Saint Bustier are trying to their beset to get it right, offering trousers, skirts, dresses, tops, knitwear and shapewear of many different styles and sizes.
My only true grievance (aside from the fact that the models on the site aren't exactly curvy) would be that the cost of most items is out of my budget. However, it would appear you get what you pay for. The reality of the current state of fashion is that if you want a top that is made for a woman with curves, you have to go off the high street and spend a fair bit of money, or settle for high-necked shirts or garments that are too big. Sigh.
Here are a few of my favourite items from Saint Bustier - may those of you with deeper pockets than I, enjoy!
Trousers
Left: Helene Trousers Right: Deluxe Pants
Dresses
Left: Archipel Dress in Marble Print Right: Perry Peplum Dress
Tops
Left: Sneaky Shirt in Black Right: Milan White Shirt